BY MIKE FUHRMAN

Josh Cockerham didn’t know exactly what he had after he purchased the old Union Grove schoolhouse in 2009.

After being moved across W. Memorial Highway to make room for the new school, the vacant building had previously housed a small grocery store and service station run by Zeb and Betty Speece.

Cockerham bought the 100-plus-year-old structure mostly as a “hangout place” because it was next door to his successful mulch business. There was a tree on the roof, and it needed a lot of work.

“It was falling in,” he said.

Friends repeatedly asked if they were going to open a store, but that was never the plan.

However, after some much-needed repair work was underway, Cockerham opened the doors for a pottery sale. There was no heat or plumbing, but that didn’t keep folks away.

“It was freezing cold,” he remembers. “I think we sold about $3,000 worth of pottery.”

That’s when Cockerham started to believe he had something. A year later, the Union Grove General Store was open for business.

It’s been a family affair since day one. Cockerham, his wife Nannette, and their four sons –Taylor, Ryan, William and Andrew — have all contributed to the business over the years and his father-in-law, Ed Chenevey, even works four shifts a week.

Although the store got its start with local arts and crafts and pottery sold on consignment, it has evolved into a full-fledged store with a wide array of products for sale.

“I looked at Ed one day and said, ‘We’ve got a lot of girl stuff. We need some guy stuff,’ ” Cockerham said. “That’s how we got started with pocketknives.”

Case pocketknives – and there are hundreds on display throughout the store – are a major draw.

But like any good “general store,” Cockerham’s shop is filled with everything from T-shirts and sandals to emo hammocks, pickleball sets and Simply Southern handbags. There’s also Silly Putty, DeLuxe ice cream and AC’s Yummy Jerky. And if you have a sudden craving for an Orange or Grape Nehi – drinks are only $1.50 — and a Moon Pie, you’ve come to the right place.

Cockerham still showcases pottery created by Aaron Blackwelder and Bruce Jordan, and handcrafted crosses made by a Wilkesboro artisan are also popular with regulars and folks passing northern Iredell County.

“We’re blessed,” Cockerham said. “The community has been such a support since we opened our store in 2010. It’s been awesome.”

The icing on the cake has been all of the family time that comes with running a family business.

“Saturdays it’s great when I look around and our entire family is here,” Cockerham said.

The Union Grove General Store is open Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the May edition of “IFN Monthly.”