Bey’s operated from 1945 to about 1965 at the foot of Ludlam Drive in Miami Springs. In the 1950’s we bought penny candies & 3 cent cokes then went across the street to swim in the Ludlam canal. Have you ever heard the story on how Bey’s convenience store came to be located in Miami Springs? Here is a touching newspaper article written by David & Rosetta Bey’s adult daughter Nijimi Bey Snelgrove that appeared THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 1966 in the RECORD-EAGLE, TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN ” LENTEN GUIDEPOSTS:
“This Was Mama’s Dream By Nijimie Bey Snelgrove Miami Springs, Florida.
Mama picked up the last well-scrubbed plate, stacked it, and it held all nine of us children out of the door.
“Back by six, now!” she called after us.
I went back to help because I wanted to see if Mama was going to do it again. I knew, even if the younger children didn’t, that there was no food left in the house. Papa earned $15 a week as a meat cutter, and since Mama had paid a doctor’s bill that Monday, the money had simply run out. For two days we’d been eating peanut butter and oatmeal but now even that was gone. And still there was no sense of fear in the air.
Mama began to set the table. What a feeling that was, helping my mother set the table ‘ for nine children and two adults just as carefully as if the larder were full. She paused to straighten the two little signs that hung there just at eye level above the drain, “Jesus never fails,” one of them said. “Prayer changes things,” said the other.
A Neighbor
At four o’clock there was a knock on the door.
“Sister Bey?” I recognized the voice of Mrs. Allen, a lady who lived down the street. In walked our neighbor with a large paper bag under her arm.
“I was just wondering, Sister Bey,” said Mrs. Allen, “if you could use a few of these string beans from my garden. Seems like they’re all coming in at once.”
That night we sat down to a feast: delicious cups of bean Flavored broth as a soup course, followed by beans cooked in bacon drippings, topped off with a crisp bean salad.
Papa said a second blessing after the meal. Mama was always “setting a table” in this way.
I remember very clearly how she bought our family home with a down payment of $50.
In Furnished Rooms
We had been living In furnished rooms until then. My little sister took sick one day and the landlady said we’d have to’ get out. That night Mama told Papa she wanted a home of her own. Papa didn’t need to remind Mama that we had a hard time even paying the rent. Where were we going to get enough money to buy a house!
“Papa,” Mama said. “If the Lord and I work out the details will you sign the papers?”
The minute Papa agreed she marched down to Bartog Realty and told Mr. Bartog she knew the house she wanted. She wanted Mr. Bartog to take a down payment on the down payment.
“Will the owner let us move in for $50?”
Mr. Bartog laughed but he agreed to make the proposal. A few days later he arrived at our door all excited. He just couldn’t understand it, but the owner had agreed, and we could move in.
A Wink Mama was dusting, and I could have swo’n she winked at me as she passed her feather duster over the frame of the sign that said, “Prayer changes things.”
Our new home turned out to be just right. We lived there for 20 years, paid off the mortgage, and watched the value of the house and land double. But there was still one major crisis ahead. Papa, in the year he reached 60, came home one day with the news that he had been let go. He was too old. Papa found another job, but we could all see the signs: the day was coming when he would not be able to work as a meat cutter. “
Papa,” Mama said, “what we need is a little corner grocery store. Not too big. Not too small. If the Lord shows a store like that will you let me buy it?”
A Dream Papa agreed and Mama set out to find her little store by saying a prayer. “Lord,” she said, “somewhere in this city You have a little store that’s up for sale. Show me the store. Lord, won’t You?” And that night Mama had her dream. She saw herself floating down a river. She came to a rickety little footbridge and on the bank was a small store, low and long and painted white. Then; was a “For Sale” sign outside.
Mama knew this was her store. All she had to do was find it. She answered every store-for-sale ad; she placed ads of her own in the paper; she made the rounds of the real estate people asking if they knew of a store that fit her description.
Finally she met an agent who said, “You’ve already seen the property then? I have a listing like that.” They drove out to Miami Springs, and there it was. Just exactly as Mama had seen it in her dream.
Met Bills and Tithed
That was 20 years ago. Papa is 80 now, and Mama 73 and they are just getting around to thoughts of retiring. The little store has done very well by them. They built the gross up from $19 a day to over $100 a day. They bought a little land and two houses and put their children through school and watched their family grow until they had 33 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. They met their bills, and paid taxes and tithed to their little Pentecostal church and still they had money left over.
And where did all this come from?
We know, in our family, But it is likely to be Mama who puts it into words. “The answer to al’ our questions is right here,” says Mama, nodding toward the sign in her kitchen which says, “Jesus never fails.” “
The whole trick is finding enough faith to believe the good news.”
This photo shows Mr & Mrs Bey standing in front of their store.
Visit the Miami Springs Historical Society and Museum The Miami Springs Historical Society is located at 501 East Drive in Miami Springs.
Miami Springs Historical Society Museum
Address:
501 East Drive
Miami Springs, FL 33166
Directions:
From the Palmetto, exit at NW 36th Street and head East on NW 36th Street. Continue East on NW 36th Street and make a left hand turn (North) on East Drive. Continue North until you reach 501 East Drive.
From I-95, take I-95 to State Road 112 Westbound. Exit State Road 112 at NW 36th Street. Continue west on NW 36th Street until you reach East Drive. Make a right hand turn at East Drive (North). Continue North on East Drive until you reach 501 East Drive.
From Hialeah, take Okeechobee Road until you reach East 4th Avenue. Turn south on East 4th Avenue and cross the bridge into Miami Springs. Take the center lane and continue south onto East Drive. You’ll see Stafford Park on your left hand side and then the entrance to the Museum Parking lot at 501 East Drive.
Map to the Miami Springs Historical Society
Miami Springs Historical Museum Hours
The Museum is open each Saturday (except Christmas & New Years) from 12 Noon to 4 pm.
Entrance is FREE!
Donations are welcome.
