OXFORD – Cathy Oleson isn’t wasting time grieving over the fire that destroyed her Route 26 Cozy Cat Country Store last week.

On Monday, she’ll reopen the Cozy Cat Redemption Center portion of her business at the M & M auto sales building at 258 Fore St.

“For the first couple of days, I was just in shock,” Oleson said Friday, of the fire that began in the back of the store and collapsed the old bow truss roof of the store. It was housed in part of an ell attached to the former Cummings family dairy barn.

“But my redemption center was doing good – and I’ve got to do something to get my money back,” she said. The hours will be the same as before, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday.

Oleson said that even though the redemption center space was not as heavily damaged as the store, she cannot relocate there because the entire 40- by 120-foot ell, owned by the Knightly estate, is considered a total loss.

A year ago last July, she reopened the former 3-D Kwik Stop owned by siblings Darrell, Dana and Diane Knightly. Oleson invested $100,000 in renovations with the intention of creating a mom and pop country store atmosphere.

“I had a three-year lease with option to buy,” she said.

Many offer to help

She had gained a following of loyal customers, begun a breakfast business, and was about to offer pizza when the fire occurred.

Officials from the State Fire Marshal’s office had not released the results of their investigation as of Friday afternoon. Fire Marshal investigator Ken Grimes was at the fire scene late Friday afternoon, said a state Fire Marshal’s office spokesperson.

Oleson said she had basic insurance for her inventory, but her insurance did not cover the cost of the renovations. She’d taken out a $65,000 loan to open the store, she said.

She said customers, neighboring businesses, “hundreds of people” have offered to help her.

Even the firefighters offered to help fetch boards needed to board up the store after the fire was put out.

“It was unbelievable what they did. I have never ever seen such courteous people,” she said of the 65 firefighters from four towns who responded.

Had it not been for a ladder truck from Mechanic Falls that trained water on a vent hole in the roof, the fire would very likely have spread to the adjacent Kall-Us Antiques store, firefighters said. Electrical power has still not been restored to the antiques business, owned by Don Dechene.

“I thank God they saved the antique store,” said Oleson.

Community response

Since opening the store, she and her employees had “built up the small link of community feeling,” she said. One older man came in every day and dusted for her. Others sat and talked at the tables about their lives, their families, their feelings.

“We were just overcome by the warmth of the customers,” said Oleson, who divided her time between the Oxford store and the family cleaning service in Ellsworth, owned by her and her husband, Bruce, who was disabled in an accident and not able to help run the store.

“There’s very few mom and pop stores now. We’re getting to be a very cold society,” she said.

Cozy Cat employee Ron Snow, who did the bookkeeping and closed the store each night for Oleson, said he will be helping her operate the redemption center at its new location.

The M & M Sales building, visible from Route 26 across from NAPA Auto Parts, is used for a used car business and is owned by Neal Cohen.

“When your life is shattered, you just try to rebuild and go from there,” she said.

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