The grand re-opening of Homewood’s Dairy Queen is coming. Kelly Welsh, manager of the store, said she expects to announce the re-opening in four to six weeks after extensive damage was done to the building in a car accident July 17.
Homewood DQ, shows the building already secured
so that damage assessments and rebuilding could
begin. (Photo by Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
The grand re-opening of Homewood’s Dairy Queen is coming.
Kelly Welsh, manager of the store, said she expects to announce the re-opening in four to six weeks after extensive damage was done to the building in a car accident July 17.
Welsh said the last week “has been a blur” but she stressed: “We’re well on our way.”
Two people were injured in the early morning crash and one person had to be extricated from the vehicle. Police are not releasing their names.
Welsh said the four walls of the store at Ridge Road and Gladville are up, and carpenters were working this week on the structural beams in the ceiling to make certain the walls will be able to take the weight of a new roof. Her sister found a replacement roof that is identical to the red imitation tile roof on the store.
“We need a new floor and we don’t have windows yet,” she said.
Each day she’s on site to make certain things are coming together. Some mornings she’s been on the phone trying to find replacement equipment and added that she’s been hearing from other owners and operators who are willing to help get the Homewood store what it needs.
The Welsh family has owned the Dairy Queen for 51 years. Four generations have worked in the store since Art Welsh bought the business in 1967.
Homewood residents and those who’ve moved away have sent encouraging notes through social media, “and even people I’ve never talked to in my life are sending me messages on Facebook” where she’s now known as The DQ Girl.
Welsh said she was asleep when her aunt Judy Welsh called at 3:42 a.m. and told her to stay calm. Then she told her “there was an accident and a car was in the Dairy Queen and I could just hear from her voice that it was sad. I could just tell.”
The Welsh family realizes this was an accident. They are praying for the victims, especially the one with extensive injuries.
“I think about him every day. We’re a religious family and we’re all praying that he recovers,” she said.
