Life in the Time of Coronavirus
The Grocery Store Manager Who Is Keeping His Doors Open No Matter What
A series about how this pandemic affects our lives, our loved ones, our work, and our way of life
Life in the Time of Coronavirus is a new GEN series where we are interviewing people across the country who have had their lives upended or are experiencing the stress of the unknown.
Nader Widdi, 25, is a manager of Foodtown Prospect Heights, a family-run supermarket in Brooklyn. He has been working 13 hours a day, seven days a week, over the past three weeks.
My father and uncle opened our supermarket in 1983. They’ve been through it all: blizzards, 9/11, Hurricane Sandy. But recently, my sister called my father. “I know you’ve seen everything, but have you ever seen something like this?” she asked. My father said, “I’ve never seen anything like this.”
This is New York City. Everybody here hustles, no matter what, but the city is just totally shutting down. At our store, the craziness started Wednesday, March 11. I did double my normal sales that night. My customers told me they were working from home, keeping their kids out of school, no longer taking public transport or eating at restaurants; they needed more…
