Cashier Debbie Deussing rang up her last customer on Saturday, ending a 48-year career with Acme.
The staff at the Acme at 6640 Oxford Ave. threw her a party in the break room after her last shift.
“It’s time to be a full-time grandmom and do what I want when I want,” she said.
Deussing was living in Walton Park and attending Archbishop Ryan in the 1970s when she began working for a Burger King on Roosevelt Boulevard. That lasted for only a couple of months.
“My dad said, ‘You’re going to Acme,’ “ she said. “My whole family worked for Acme.”
Deussing originally worked for a small Acme on Bustleton Avenue in Somerton and then for the Acme at Bristol and Hulmeville roads in Bensalem before spending the final 30 years of her career at the store on Oxford Avenue.
Over the years, she was strictly a cashier, never having to be a bagger or cart collector.
“Girls were hired as cashiers,” she said.
Deussing was part time throughout her career, working up to 35 hours a week earlier in her tenure. More recently, she worked the 7 to 11 a.m. shift five days a week, with Wednesdays and Thursdays off.
The new retiree has seen changes over the years. The dress code has been relaxed a little, and cashiers for many years have scanned items rather than typing in a price found on a sticker placed on the product. At one time, she’d ask, “Paper or plastic.” Now, customers have to bring their own bags, and many of them now pay with credit and debit cards rather than cash.
Deussing, a grandmother of four who lives in the Villages at Pine Valley, enjoyed the ride.
“I’ve always loved my job and working with the public,” she said.
Coworkers gathered in the break room after Deussing turned off her cashier’s light and turned in her cash till for the final time. The room was decorated with balloons, and the feast included a cake, hot food, cookies and a fruit tray. She was given a bottle of wine, a money bouquet, flowers and other gifts.
Deussing will miss her colleagues.
“I’ve been fortunate to work with good people,” she said. ••
