Hello, kid.
Hello, darlin'.
Hey, junior. How ya doin’?
Those were just a few of the familiar greetings that many who ventured into Johnson’s Farmers Market would hear from Jimmy 'Chickens' Johnson.
But now, that friendly greeting or some variation of another jovial rejoinder from Johnson has gone silent with the closing of his family's iconic fruit and vegetable stand on County Road 93 in the Midland area.
For years, Johnson manned the cash and dished out story after story about his life as a top-notch hockey player and all-around superlative athlete to life in Midland, or just about whatever topic happened to catch his fancy on that particular day.
And those who dropped by to buy a pie, a bushel of apples, maybe a dozen corn or some fresh tomatoes always seem to keen to listen and enjoy the repartee.
Many in the area are now expressing their collective sadness as the "landmark" business frequented by thousands over the years has closed for the final time.
Garnet Reid called it the "end of an era" in Midland.
“We will truly miss Mr. Johnson, his staff and his familiar greeting ... 'Hello, kid',” Reid wrote. “Thank you Mr. Johnson and family for your many decades of serving this community.”
Debbie Pender-Messenger says Johnson will be missed as well as his big smile and his always available presence when it came to a friendly chat.
“Not only the store will be the end of an era, but also the dances which were held at The Rooster Tail just behind the store. Many good times with Midland people, and out-of-town people. Live music every Saturday night," she said.
Bonnie Curry-Desjardins also fondly recalls how she and her brother, Bruce, would ride their bikes on an old road between the highway and the houses to get a Popsicle from (Jimmy’s dad) Vern and Mrs. Johnson's store.
“We'd say ‘hello’ to Jimmy as well. Manson and Eileen Curry, my parents, bought a lot of produce and flowers for the gardens from their store, as well as being good neighbours for many years,” she noted.
“Years later, Bruce went many a night to The Rooster's Tail to meet 'chicks' and dance. Jimmy kept the place after his parent's passing and always had kind words remembering old times! I'll miss Johnson's Fruit Market as well as the Johnson family.”
Former MidlandToday columnist Rene Hackstetter wrote about Johnson in this 2020 article where he described those visiting the stand on their way between their Toronto jobs and local cottages.
“Johnson's Farmers Market is a hostelry of sorts, a kind of way point along the route to the Magic Islands of the Georgian Bay,” Hackstetter wrote.
“Chickens is really an old master, a gatekeeper, guarding these sacred precincts from the profane. He masquerades as the vegetable seller along the road, but there is so much more.”
