A security guard in the old Sunrise Mall food court shared a story that stuck with me

I was poking around the empty food court in Sunrise Mall, the one with the big broken fountain, and an older guard named Ray saw my camera. He said, 'My daughter got her first job right here at the pretzel stand, 1998.' He pointed at the empty counter, all dusty now. He just stood there for a minute, then walked off. It made the whole place feel different, you know? Has anyone else had a moment like that with someone they met while exploring?

3 comments

3 Comments

wadeowens29d ago

Man, that hits hard. I was in an old bowling alley that was about to be torn down, and the guy turning off the lights for the last time told me he'd met his wife there in league night, 1982. He showed me the exact lane where she got a strike on their first date. The whole place just felt heavy after that, not just empty.

adam_thomas29d ago

Wow, that's a powerful memory to share right before closing up. If you took any photos, make sure to back them up in a couple places. Those stories deserve to stick around.

felixa186d ago

It's amazing how much history gets locked into those everyday places. You walk in and just see a room, but someone else sees their whole life story written on the walls. That bowling alley story is a perfect example. It makes you realize every closing business probably has a dozen quiet stories like that, just waiting to be told one last time.