10/05/2026
A long post from someone who is professionally frustrated.
I want to start by saying this: I love this community. I may be a transplant, but I’ve lived in Anson County since 2014, and over the years I’ve grown to love it as my own.
Owning a small business is extremely difficult. Owning an independent pharmacy brings another set of challenges because, unlike most businesses, we often don’t get to decide what we make on what we sell. That’s a discussion for another day.
Parsons Drug Company has been here a long time. I certainly haven’t been here for all of those years, but I’ve been here long enough to know that Parsons has been open on Saturdays for decades.
We pay our sales, payroll, and property taxes. More importantly, we try to support this community every chance we get. We donate to our schools, local organizations, WPD, ACSO, and various individuals. We participate in educational events and local events. We help provide for the homeless or those in need. We work hard to keep our store and our little corner of uptown clean, inviting, and fun.
Since purchasing Parsons in 2021, we’ve tried to bring some spark back to a 150-year-old business. We’ve also expanded healthcare services and opportunities in our community that simply weren’t available here before.
But there is one area where I have become increasingly frustrated: the lack of consideration given to businesses that remain open during town events, particularly when it comes to road closures, parking, and access.
The square is a great place for events. We want Wadesboro to have events. We want people uptown. We want our community to thrive.
But why should those events routinely come at the expense of businesses that are already here and serving customers every Saturday?
Since 2021, I have discussed these concerns with mayors, council members, and town employees,- and town managers multiple times. Responses over the years have ranged from “It’s just one event,” to questions about whether we are really that busy on Saturdays, to essentially saying customers can park somewhere else and walk.
It isn’t that simple. An increase in “foot traffic” doesn’t help us. People come to the pharmacy because they have to, not because they want to browse or just visit.
What about our elderly or disabled patients who cannot walk several blocks? What about the person leaving the hospital who needs a prescription? What about a parent with a sick child?
During previous closures, we have literally walked prescriptions two or three blocks to find patients because they couldn’t get to us. And to some event staff members, they saw us and the challenges. And they addressed it, apologized, and fixed it for next time.
I’ve offered suggestions and possible solutions several times to town personnel. I’ve spoken in person and via email. The suggested solutions went nowhere, got dismissed, or altogether ignored. Eventually, we simply dealt with it and accepted that our advocating would be ineffective. We got quiet.
The majority of the time we do not get any notice at all or are avoided, like with the library and yard sale, because they knew we’d be unhappy. “Well the town approved it” is the normal verbiage. I’ve even had event personnel come into our store while we were conducting business and hurry customers along and out because their vehicles needed to be moved for a closure. There have been times when roads were closed the day before an event.
At one point, I was also told that a town employee had made an accusation that support for our business was withheld because Parsons was supposedly racist and did not hire enough black employees. Hearing that allegation attributed to someone associated with the town was incredibly upsetting and further damaged my confidence in our relationship with town leadership.
So, you can imagine my surprise when I actually did receive advance notice about this Saturday. I was informed that both Wade and Greene Streets would be closed for the event. I was then asked which of our doors I would prefer to have blocked. My answer was neither.
I was told food vendors would be positioned around our building and that at least one of our entrances would need to be blocked for electrical needs. I explained that our front entrance needed to remain accessible, particularly for our handicapped patients.
I confirmed that both streets would be closed. I asked whether the appropriate permission had been obtained for the Greene Street closure and was told yes and that I could contact the town for additional information.
I did thank the individual who contacted me because, despite my frustration with the situation, they at least gave me advance notice instead of us discovering it at the last minute. I was also assured that the roads would not be closed Friday.
And then, completely separate from Saturday’s event, here we are today—Monday, October 5—with additional road closures, detours, and rerouting around our business. These closures are unrelated to Saturday’s event, but once again, I received no advance communication that they would be happening.
That’s part of the larger frustration.
Road work happens. Events happen. Closures are sometimes necessary. I understand all of that. But these decisions directly affect the businesses trying to operate here every day. A little communication and consideration would go a long way.
When customers can’t easily reach your business, or don’t know whether they can reach it, it impacts business. And when you’re already fighting all the challenges that come with keeping a small, independent business alive, these things matter.
We aren’t asking for everything to revolve around us. We’re simply asking to be considered and communicated with when decisions directly affect our ability to serve our customers.
And this is bigger than Parsons Drug Company.
When these locally owned small businesses eventually disappear, who is going to fill their role in this community?
Large corporations aren’t typically the ones buying an ad for the local yearbook, helping a church raise money for a trip to Caswell, supporting the memorial 5K, donating to the Ag Expo, helping provide school supplies, sponsoring a youth team, contributing to a fundraiser, or saying yes when somebody from the community walks through the door asking for help.
Small businesses do that.
We do it because these aren’t just customers walking through our doors. They’re our neighbors. They’re our employees’ families. They’re the teachers educating our children, our accountant’s family, the churches our patients attend, the organizations trying to make Anson County better, and the people we see at the grocery store after work.
That’s why supporting local businesses has to mean more than encouraging people to shop local. The community,and the government serving that community, also has to create an environment where those businesses have a reasonable opportunity to stay open and succeed.
Because once they’re gone, you don’t just lose another storefront. You lose another community partner.
Then we wonder why businesses leave.
So, after a lot of consideration, Parsons Drug Company will not open this Saturday, October 10.
With both surrounding roads scheduled to be closed and an entrance expected to be blocked, I don’t believe we can provide reasonable and safe access to our customers, especially our elderly and handicapped patients.
And for that, I am truly sorry. Our patients are the ones who ultimately suffer from this decision, and that bothers me more than anything. Many of you depend on us to be here on Saturdays, and you’ve done nothing to deserve the inconvenience.
Thankfully, this time we have enough advance notice to prepare. Please plan ahead this week. If you need prescriptions, refills, or anything else from us, please try to take care of those needs by Friday. We will do everything we reasonably can to make sure our patients are taken care of before Saturday.
I love this community. I want Wadesboro to succeed. I want events here. I want people walking around uptown, supporting businesses, and enjoying our town.
But I also want the businesses that invest in this community 52 weeks a year to be considered when those decisions are made.
We appreciate everyone who continues to support Parsons Drug Company and understands just how difficult running a small independent business can be.
Please plan ahead, stay safe, and know that we’re sorry for the inconvenience this causes you.
