Small Town Memories

When Paul is working at Keysville Station, Kiara gets off of the bus in town and hangs out until the business closes. A friend her age lives across the street above the Chinese restaurant her family owns. It has become an almost daily ritual for them to look for each other across the streeet, then call one or the other over to play. It's neat to watch the whole exchange which usually goes something like this...

"I see you over there... can you come out to play??"

"I'm coming as soon as the coast is clear."

"Yeah! I'm here!"

"Hmm... now what should we do? Wanna come back over to my restaurant and check out the bubble gum machines?"

Kiara has loved the freedom to explore the town on her own. Of course, we have a certain perimeter where she's allowed to go. It includes another friend's mother's business down the street, a playground, the dollar store and a few friend's houses. These are the small town memories she'll look back on fondly.

A Look Within

For those of you who are curious... here's a look at some of the aniques and vendor spaces in the new business...

(I couldn't resist setting up an old fashioned schoolhouse area!)

These last two are of Paul's sister, Joan's, booth. She has been selling lots of stuff!

Newpaper Article

I cut and pasted an article that appeared recently in our local paper. That is Paul's sister, Joan, with him in the picture. (I wasn't available for the photo op). Since then people have asked if they were my parents. Ahhh, I feel young again!!!

All Aboard! Keysville Station Now Open
By Samuel Weddington
Published: Friday, April 3, 2009 9:14 AM CDT

When Paul, Sherry, and Kiara Robleto moved to Keysville several years ago from New Kent County, they saw endless possibilities. “We loved the town,” Mr. Robleto remarked. Seizing both the momentum of their new move and opportunity, their first order of business was to open the Roselawn Bed and Breakfast.Over time, Roselawn has become a fixture within the community, opening the town up to even more tourism as well as hosting the monthly meeting of Charlotte County’s Meals on Wheels board meeting. However, the Robletos saw even more possibilities within Keysville. Sensing that downtown Keysville was undergoing a renaissance with the addition of wonderful local businesses like the Perfect Package, but still needing more businesses to increase foot traffic for other King Street businesses, the Robletos struck upon an idea. From this germ of inspiration, the Keysville Station Antiques and Vendor’s Mall was born. Opening March 1st, Keysville Station brings to the downtown of Keysville not only an antiques store, but also a place for people from around the area to come and browse a number of different goods from furniture to collectibles and knick-knacks from multiple vendors. The antiques residing within Keysville Station are remarkable unto themselves, made up mainly of turn of the century pieces.Residing within the old Tri-County Ford building across from the town’s Chinese restaurant, Keysville Station has a lot of room to grow into. The front area of the business is a dedicated antiques and furniture showroom, while the back area of the business houses vendors offering a wide range of goods. The upstairs of the building also houses a number of show areas and vendors as well.
Yet, the Robletos’ dreams do not stop there. In the back area, a sound stage has been set up for bands to play every Friday night. Additionally, a new outdoor flea and farmer’s market is open alongside Keysville Station every Saturday, starting at 8 a.m. To support all of the customers coming to all of the events at Keysville Station, a snack bar will soon be opened up within the building, complete with a train car façade.In the end, the Roblettos see that the larger Keysville area has the population to support smaller, local businesses, and more importantly, that Keysville is still a town where residents congregate to shop and socialize together. Imagining many Saturday afternoons to come in which residents come to the downtown and pick from the wide variety of downtown businesses while meeting their neighbors, the Roblettos are rapidly moving towards making their dream a reality.Keysville Station Antiques and Vendor’s Mall is open Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Sunday from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Booth space within the building is still available, with prices ranging from $60-$150 per month, and flea market spaces are also available at $10 per unit. The Robletos would also like the public to know that a Meals on Wheels charity booth is up and running within Keysville Station. Donations can be made at the booth, and all monies from booth purchases go directly to Meals on Wheels.

Happy April

I'm sitting here at the Vendors Mall manning the register while Paul runs home to fix our lawn mower. I am actually happy to see that thing come out of the shed because it means warmer weather and beautiful spring blooms! I think I had a touch of SAD this past winter!

Paul's sister, Joan, is back in town to help out with the new business. Kiara is at her grandmother's house this weekend.

Nothing much new since my last post. Can't put any pics up because I'm not on my home computer where they are stored. Haven't taken any lately anyway, so I guess it doesn't matter.

Maybe my next post will have something more exciting to write about! Until then...