(COLORADO SPRINGS) — They say home is where the heart is. For some, it’s with the people you love. As for others, it’s been Poor Richard’s in downtown Colorado Springs for the last 50 years.
“It’s truly become my home away from home,” said Robin Izer, a local poet and Poor Richard’s regular.
Izer started coming by Poor Richard’s back in 1990 to read books, write poems, and spend time with friends. For her, the feeling of being inside, along with all the memories, is unmatched.
“I’ll get a couple of tea or coffee, or hot chocolate, and I will just read an entire book, not to mention the wonderful luncheons and dinners I’ve had with very close friends and family,” Izer said.
The idea became reality because Richard Skorman, a former Colorado Springs City Councilmember, found a way to gather some books.
“I worked in a bookstore, and they went out of business and couldn’t pay me,” Skorman said. “So, they paid me in books, and I ended up opening a little bookstore.”
Skorman found the current Poor Richard’s location in 1977, originally named it Richard’s Feed and Read, and it blossomed from there. Skorman would continue to add more to his repertoire by opening a toy store in 1995. Mitzi Pasternak got the chance to be one of the first workers among the toys and took the job through an encounter with Skorman.
“Richard saw me when I was ordering food, and he said, ‘Do you want a job?’ And I said, sure,” Pasternak said.
But Poor Richard’s was not done growing as Rico’s Cafe and Wine Bar opened in 2005 to go along with the restaurant, bookstore, and toy shop.
“We’re a business that has been here for a very long time and has evolved with the community, and that we are a very community-based business that welcomes everybody,” said Patricia Seator, a Co-Owner of Poor Richard’s.
Both Skorman and Seator kept going even through the tough times.
“20 years ago, a lot of stores were closing down because of Amazon, so we had to figure out what to do,” Seator said.
But they did so by overcoming challenge after challenge. But the time is ticking for both Skorman and Seator as they both cannot run Poor Richard’s forever. Both say they want to find someone to pass the baton to who will keep the business going for the foreseeable future. But they are still focused on running the shop for the moment.
“I just think there’s this really welcoming, accepting kind of funky vibe about this place that has only grown over the last 50 years,” Izer said.
For all the people in Colorado Springs who love it, they hope the space will stand the test of time.
“Anybody who comes to Colorado Springs, they know when they come to Richard’s they’re home,” said Laura Benemarks, a local painter and a Poor Richard’s regular.
