Ella F. Hare, who operated a grocery store in Baltimore's Hampden neighborhood with her husband for more than three decades, died of a stroke Saturday at Memorial Hospital in Hollywood, Fla. She was 83.
Mrs. Hare was visiting relatives in nearby Hallandale when she was stricken. She had lived in New Freedom, Pa., since moving from Hampden two years ago.
Born Ella F. Jacobs in Chicago, she moved to Hampden with her family as an infant. She attended Baltimore public schools until leaving to help support her family.
"Her grandmother ran a bakery from her home on Miles Avenue and people would line up at the door to buy her baked goods. My mother even delivered pies from a wagon she pulled through the neighborhood," said daughter Elizabeth M. Childs of New Freedom.
In 1936, she married Leonard A. "Bud" Hare, and in 1953 the couple opened B & E Grocery -- for Bud and Ella -- in Remington.
They moved the business to the corner of Dellwood and Conduit avenues in Hampden a couple of years later.
The Hares operated the store until 1988, when it closed, and were known for the quality of their products and friendly personal service.
"Dad cut the meat, and she made all of the homemade salads. She also made all the snowball flavorings. They didn't have time for hobbies because they opened the store at 6 a.m. and closed at 10 at night," Mrs. Childs said.
The Hares extended credit to those who needed it, and didn't worry about overdue accounts, family members said.
And if a snowstorm interrupted milk delivery, Mr. Hare made sure families with babies or small children got their milk, which he personally delivered to their front door.
During the Korean War, the couple instituted a neighborhood bulletin board in the store where photographs and addresses of Hampden servicemen were posted so residents could write to them.
"At Christmastime, they sold trees and all the trimmings in front of the store while a loudspeaker played carols. Some folks called it Hare's Corner," Mrs. Childs said.
In an interview after her husband's death in 1996, Mrs. Hare recalled crowds gathering at the store around an oil drum fire keeping warm as they selected Christmas trees and greens.
"We had a fire pot on the corner and we all kept warm while selling those trees and greens," she said.
After closing the business, Mrs. Hare became a volunteer at Union Memorial Hospital, working on the information desk. She put in more than 10,000 volunteer hours.
"She loved people and she liked hearing all the gossip," Mrs. Childs said.
Mrs. Hare was a longtime communicant of St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church.
Services will be held at 10 a.m. today at Burgee-Henss-Seitz Funeral Home, 3631 Falls Road in Hampden.
In addition to her daughter, Mrs. Hare is survived by two sons, Leonard A. Hare Jr. of Baltimore and Lawrence A. Hare of New Freedom; five grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.