Wednesday, April 26, 2023

A familiar face is leaving Key Food

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Arrman Mohammed, a manager at Key Food on Avenue A who always seems to be there when we are, is (semi) retiring. His last day here is on Saturday, April 29.

He started at Key Food in 1986 as a teenager on Long Island. He said he walked in, asked for an after-school job, and was given one in the deli. 
Mohammed, now 56, has worked at Long Island, Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan locations for 35-plus years. He has been at the Avenue A store for the past decade.

He will enjoy not working for now, saying he would "take my alarm clock, put it under my feet, and crush it. No more waking up at 4:30 in the morning." 

Upcoming plans include spending time with his 28-year-old son... before a move to Florida, where he hopes to take up a position with another Key Food. (Florida has 50-plus Key Food stores in the state.) 

Mohammed encourages people to stop by and say goodbye this week before he clocks out one last time ...

10 comments:

stephen b said...

I for one will miss Mohammed but if he's happy he's going to Florida I'm happy for him. Thanks Mohammed.

Trixie said...

Oh, I hope Florida is wonderful for him and that he'll enjoy many happy years there!

Anonymous said...

Always kind, nice and willing to help - Congrats to you sir!

Anonymous said...

I was a working teenager in 86 and I still am! Good luck to you. If they ask you what a rat czar is, you'll know!

Anonymous said...

I sort of envy this guy. He found something he clearly liked and stayed there for decades, hopping around the boroughs to different stores. Industries rose and fell, markets crashed, pandemics swept, and yet this guy found professional satisfaction in the one sector that no crisis could erase: the grocery industry.

Anonymous said...

@Anon 4:50 pm,

I second your sentiment. I wish I could have the work longevity to stay, 35 years and he ain't done.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations! Enjoy your well-deserved retirement! Definitely ditch the alarm clock, ahhhh! Wishing you all the best, and many many years of good health and happiness.

Sarah said...

"He will enjoy not working for now, saying he would "take my alarm clock, put it under my feet, and crush it. No more waking up at 4:30 in the morning.""

That's the spirit! Enjoy retirement!

Anonymous said...

Moving to Florida. Good for him.

Anonymous said...

This is my soon to be father-in-law! I can’t express how much respect I have for him. I’ve seen the long days, I’ve seen the passion, I’ve seen the dedication and everything else he has sacrificed to put into doing above and beyond at his job. I am the happiest person in the world that he’s finally able to get time to enjoy his life in sunny Florida!