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Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Swampland People: Patsy Cartwright
Sometimes we go through the day running into this person and that and while we know them, we really don’t. Working in the Albemarle for three years now I’ve met a lot of folks and I love seeing them time and again and while they’re not what you might call typical newsmakers, they’re part of the fabric that makes up Swampland. So I thought why not blog about these people and introduce you to a few from time to time.
Patsy Cartwright is one of these folks. Patsy has worked at Todd’s Pharmacy on Poindexter St. in Elizabeth City for about four years now. I’ve enjoyed going into Todd’s to buy this or that and bantering with Patsy.
The first time I met her there was a little controversy over whether or not she really did see a seal crossing the causeway from the swamp to the river. It was a good laugh and all the ladies that work in Todd’s were enjoying the story.
I asked Patsy to tell me a little bit about herself and started with her age. “That’s not fair,” she exclaimed, smiling at me in that smile that seems to make people smile right back.
Patsy grew up in Powells Point in Currituck County. She says up until she was 18 she was a summertime beach girl. But marriage brought her to Camden then Elizabeth City and now to Hertford County over the past two months.
“For a larger home,” she quipped.
As I was talking to Patsy, regular Todd’s customers were vying for her attention, calling her by name. She’s like that; people just like talking to Patsy.
“I love my customers,” she said.
And they do seem to love her too. And so do the ladies she works with.
“We’re all like sisters,” she said.
And they are. They tease one another mercilessly from time to time. In fact I probably gained points with her when I pulled a note off her back that read, “Kick me.” The laughs from that gag by her fellow workers went on for sometime.
And laughs are good, especially in a pharmacy, I suppose. It is like a small family in there, led by owner William Owens who Patsy says she loves and is thankful to have a boss (can’t forget the brownie points, Patsy).
Patsy is the mother of three and the grandmother to nine children. She has a grandson, Paul Searles, who is serving in the Air Force in Iraq.
So what makes Patsy so popular at Todd’s?
“I’m so friendly,” she said, laughing, her co-workers giggling and laughing along.
But you know, it’s true. In three years I have yet to see Patsy be anything but friendly.
