Natural foods store treats its customers to vegan barbecue

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By Paula J. Owen CORRESPONDENT

 

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LEOMINSTER— At the sixth annual Rootsfest, Roots Natural Foods’ owners showed how much they appreciate their customers Saturday by offering a vegan and vegetarian barbecue, massages, Reiki sessions, tarot readings, iridology sessions, samples of vitamins, foods and natural products, music and educational workshops — all free. Co-owners Ellen H. Jonkers and her daughter, Marieki J.J. Cormier, know what a strong customer base means to a business. After all, Mrs. Jonkers has been in the natural foods and therapies industry for more than 30 years, starting when it wasn’t as hip and trendy as it is now, as the original owner of Gardner’s Happy Trails. The business owner rode out tougher times over the years. She said one of the main ingredients to the success of Roots Natural Foods, and what has kept some of her customers loyal and brought in new ones, is a keen ear to what ails them.

 

 

 

“People are getting sicker,†she said. “They are desperate. They need help and need people to listen to them. “When you go into the doctor’s office, you only get about 10 minutes. We spend a lot of time with people and they give you the details from birth to death. They become your family. I feel like I have a really large family.†Mrs. Jonkers, originally from the Netherlands, said the business attracts people from a large area because she and her employees really care about people. Michael A. and Alysa B. Pasqua from Manchester, N.H., brought sons Luke A. Pasqua, 5, and Evan J. Pasqua, 7, to the event.

“It is a great community event from the heart,†Mr. Pasqua said. “It is also a great way to put good products into people’s hands and mouths.†Mrs. Pasqua said she learned a lot about different natural products, including a detoxifying deodorant that is said to take aluminum out of one’s system, and a homeopathic, anti-inflammatory treatment she could use for her carpal tunnel syndrome. Taking three pain relievers the night before did not help it, she said. Mrs. Pasqua, a special education elementary school teacher, also took advantage of the free massages given by therapist Kimberly Goral. Outside at the barbecue, artist Eleonora L. Halstead and her husband, Evan K. Halstead, from Leominster, enjoyed vegan salads and burgers. The couple said they are 100 percent vegan. “It’s nice because we are so strict with our diet,†Mrs. Halstead said. “It is unusual to come across an organic, vegan

barbecue. It’s a real treat.†Others were enjoying the barbecued salmon, available for those who didn’t want a vegan dish. Mrs. Cormier used to live in Alaska and said she knows exactly where the salmon the business buys for its customers is coming from. “We buy it from a small fishing company that fishes on the river near where I lived in Juneau,†she said. “They are also working on using the fish heads and other parts for biofuel.†U.S. Army Capt. Dani S. Williams, 32, from Fitchburg waited for her Reiki session with Merit Mailloux, while her mother, Sharon P. Mahonen, watched her daughter, Emma L. Williams, 3. Mrs. Williams has been deployed three times, first to Kuwait, then Iraq and most recently to Qatar for 16 months. She is dealing with frequent migraines, she said, and her mother referred her to Mrs. Mailloux after having several Reiki sessions herself. Reiki, pronounced

“RAY-key,†is an ancient Eastern form of therapy for relaxation and stress reduction, Mrs. Mailloux explained. The body needs to be in a relaxed state to heal, she said. “If you are stressed, it relaxes you,†Mrs. Mailloux said. “People have healing experiences as a result. It brings different things to different people.†After her session, Mrs. Williams said she felt very relaxed. “I wanted to try it to see if it will help with my migraines,†she said. “It helped me relax and find a neutral place.â€

 

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