Piece of Oakley history will go with the FishersPiece of Oakley history will go with the FishersMay 7, 2004
Driving down Oakley's Main Street/Highway 4 can be a great source of current affairs if one looks. For example, one can check out the local economy by seeing how busy the businesses are. See who is working out at the Delta Family YMCA and if you pass by Dr. Mike Painter's Oakley Chiropractic one can discover upcoming activities, great inspirational sayings and this week discover that it's time to say goodbye to some old friends.
Dr. Mike's sign says "Thanks Ron and Karen F. for 20 great years." He's referring to Ron and Karen Fisher. The Fishers are longtime local residents, but most people will probably know them as the owners of Oakley Cleaners. The couple have been doing business in Oakley's downtown for the past 20 years or so.
When people refer to Ron and Karen's place they always say "the orignial Oakley cleaners," mostly because the couple came to town and opened their business when there were only downtown shops.
Some may find it hard to believe, but 20 years ago Oakley was a much different community. The population was closer to 10,000 than the current 25,000. There were mostly older homes in the community. The main grocery was Centromart and the business district pretty much ended there. There were other places down by Live Oak Avenue, but half the time people thought that was Antioch and not Oakley. That was probably because the battle line for the town borders there being fought at that time so heavily. That is why for so long people called the DuPont Plant Antioch. Ah...but that's a whole other column.
When the Fishers opened their business there was no Cypress Shopping Center, where Raley's is today. That center was opened in 1990. There also was no Oakley Town Center, where Albertsons and Hollywood Video are today. That was built in 1991.
When the Fishers opened their cleaners the business base downtown was much as it is today with a few new variations. Cinquini Real Estate held its prominent spot on the corner of Del'Antico Avenue. The Bank of Agriculture and Commerce was the main bank in town, Oakley Chiropractic Clinic and Hampton Chiropractic were around and Cutino Feed was the hotbed of excitement and where everyone went to hear the town news.
OK, so now we're starting to sound like "Little House on the Prarie." Oakley wasn't the Old West. As a matter of fact, Oakley may have had better commerce downtown in the early '80s in some respects than it does now. Mostly because people were loyal to their businesses then and shopped locally.
While the Fishers didn't have a lot of time available to spend outside of their six-day-a-week, 10-hour-a-day business -- where the couple basically ran the business themselves with Karen and Ron sharing the cleaning duties, plus working at the counter and Karen also taking in sewing and alteration work -- the couple still had time to give back something to the community, besides their tax dollars.
Ron and Karen were both very active in their church and in the the local schools. For several years Karen ran the cooking contest for the Oakley Almond Festival and worked year-round looking for local residents to come up with their favorite family almond recipes. One year the couple spent the festival binding cookbooks as fast as they could be sold.
For those who patronize Oakley Cleaners, the business won't be closed. The couple sold the business to a young Concord couple, who plan to run the store as a family business just like it always has been run.
As for Ron and Karen, they will be heading for rest and relaxation in the slower-paced town of Redding. Dr. Mike Painter's sign says it all, they will be missed.
Roni Gehlke's column on life in Oakley appears each week in the Brentwood News.
Distributed by the Contra Costa Times