The beautiful lady I’m pictured with is Norma Weir Fagersten, and she owns the Leota Country Store in Scott County.

Leota is a small community of hardworking, good, honest country people. The Leota Country Store is the only remaining reminder of a community that once had several small businesses.

Norma’s father, H.E Weir, built the store in 1937 and opened a grocery business that thrived in the area until the 1950s.

H.E. built a basement in the building, and Norma can remember her father backing up his trucks to the basement doors, where he loaded them full of groceries before he delivered them to his customers in the area. While he was delivering to his customers, he also was picking up chickens and eggs from them and taking them to the Louisville Hay Market.

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After H.E. became sick in the 1950s, the store was vacant for a number of years. Then Norma’s mother, Ruby, opened up a quilting operation and operated it in the building for many years.

In the early 1980s, Norma opened a crafts and consignment business in the store. She now operates it as Better Quality Gifts and Florals. The store is a community fixture and is within a few feet of the Leota Covered Bridge.

For many, the store is a symbol of community pride. But to Norma, it’s a reminder of how hard her family worked to make a living mixed with great memories and love.

If you are visiting Leota, stop in and say hello to Norma. You can’t miss the store. It’s the one that will remind you of the good old days.