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Wishing Jimmy Bonenfant well as he retires from the grocery business

West Bend, Wi – The produce department at Pick ‘n Save north in West Bend, Wi, will never be the same after Friday, as Jimmy Bonenfant will be officially retired.
The 64-year-old has been in the grocery business in West Bend and Washington County, WI, for nearly five decades. “My brother has been bothering me to retire for a while,” said Bonenfant. “You only live once and people say, ‘life’s too short’ so I’m going to step out while I can still enjoy mine.”
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Jimmy Bonenfant started in the grocery business at 16

Bonenfant’s career started with stores like United Foods, Cash n’ Carry, and Sir Donut.

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“I’d deliver the Milwaukee Sentinel to my customers in the Town of Barton,” said Bonenfant. “And I worked at Sir Donut making people breakfast before going to school.”

The grocery business began when Bonenfant was around 16. “I started at United Foods and then that switched over to Cash ‘n Carry.”

Bonenfant recalled a lot of people worked at Cash ‘n Carry over the years. “They had the old box corral where you could throw your boxes in, and people would load up there, and then you had to have the crayon and write your price on the product with the crayon,” he said.

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Years passed and Bonenfant worked almost every position from stock crew, to produce, to the meat department and that memorable day with the brats. “One week, we did 25,000 pounds of bratwurst for 99 cents a pound,” he said. “My hands were so flipping cold, I thought they were going to fall off. And my manager just slapped me on the back and said, ‘You’ll be okay. Get back in there.’”

It was the produce department that ended up stealing his heart. Jim Hanley, the produce manager, saw something in Bonenfant and gave him his first shot at management. “He got me a job as a produce manager in Germantown, at Rooney’s. That was where the Walgreens is now.”

Through the years, Bonenfant’s grocery journey took him across Wisconsin—Germantown, Beaver Dam, Milwaukee, Menomonee Falls, Sussex. Primarily the stores were in the Pick ‘n Save chain.

Bonenfant recalled working for George Prescott for a short time. “I worked for him at the Super Value, when that was over across from ShopKo,” he said. “George always remembered your name.”

The industry quirks were also something Bonenfant won’t soon forget.

“Back at United Foods, we had to stamp every single can. After the ad expired, we’d go back and erase the price with this eradicator—it was like rubbing alcohol. By the time you were out of that aisle, you were half buzzed from the fumes.”

Bonenfant also recalled the famous incinerator at Cash ‘n Carry. “OSHA would’ve had a fit if they saw how it worked,” he said. “We’d throw boxes in, step on the handle, and the door would fly open with fire roaring out. If there was a lot of cardboard in there, it’d get so hot it’d singe your eyebrows.”

Through all the years, all the stores, all the changes, the one thing that remained the same was the people. Customers, coworkers, managers—so many faces had come and gone, yet some still remained fresh in his mind.

“I had a clerk who worked for me in Germantown. Years later, I ran into him in Brookfield. He was a dentist with his own practice by then. Said he learned a lot working in produce.” Bonenfant said, “I guess bagging apples can teach you more than you think.”

Bonenfant’s last day will be Friday. He said sometimes he’d work 50 to 60 hours a week, but he liked the cycle of change with the produce and the seasons – spring asparagus, summer peaches, autumn pumpkins.

Now, just like those seasons, it is time for Bonenfant’s change… Best of luck Jimmy.

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