The Purple Cow

Gelett Burgess

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

I never saw a Purple Cow,
I never hope to see one,
But I can tell you, anyhow,
I'd rather see than be one!

Twelve years ago a new ice cream parlor came to town. It was called

Purple Cow after the illustration made by the owner's daughter when she was in pre-school (seen in the picture of us), and which hung in their kitchen for many years. This was the third ice cream parlor in town since we moved here in 2000. 

The first was Sunny's. It was located on Gordon, where Lawrenceville Treasures is now. Sunny wanted to be an actor and would close for auditions. We enjoyed hanging out there, but it never caught on.

After he closed, Peggy Sue's moved into the location. The owner brightened up the place with a 1950s theme. It, too, did not last long.

Then about 12 years ago Tom and Cindy opened the Purple Cow on Main Street in what had been a gift shop. They quickly became a favorite hang out place in town. Their first year they judged the Halloween contest. We won best group costume, and a gift card to The Purple Cow. Hard to believe that was 12 years ago! 

Last weekend we went for one last visit. Tom and Cindy decided it is time to move on with their lives. Cindy will continue working full-time. Their pre-schooler who drew the purple cow picture which inspired their name is now all grown up. She was a high school senior when they opened.

While Tom and Cindy are leaving the business, the good news is the Purple Cow will live on. Joanne, owner of the fan favorite bakery Gingered Peach located behind Purple Cow, has agreed to buy the shop and reopen it in the spring (they learned to close when The Lawrenceville School was closed as their students were a big part of their business). 

The closure brought back memories. We stopped going when Ashley had bad reactions to dairy (a problem that has since resolved), and I was trying to avoid sugar (a problem that also has since resolved, or at least steadied). 

When Ashley was in middle school we had her birthday party at the art studio next door (since closed) and had dessert at Purple Cow. After one of her plays we went with some friends to celebrate at Purple Cow (they even stayed open later for us). They were always donating gift cards to any organization that asked, sponsored Little League Teams, and were overall good neighbors. 

They will be missed.

However, perhaps we will see them more often. Now that they are not working every weekend, they hope to have time to go to (our) church and be part of the community.

We wish them all the best in their semi-retirement.