BY MELISSA PYLE
Special to the Telegraph
In the 21st century, when touchscreens, AI and online ordering have become so prevalent, many continued to rely on the personal touch of the CVS staff.
Sadly, the community will say goodbye to CVS in Starke on Aug. 21. The corner location at Madison Street and U.S. 301 holds over 40 years of pharmacy history, with it being an Eckerd Drugs prior to CVS.
Manager Sean Kennedy said they were not expecting the announcement and are extremely sad to say goodbye to their loyal customers. Despite the estimated 300 prescriptions filled every day by the pharmacy, this location was not keeping up retail sales and is part of the larger CVS plan to restructure and simplify the organization.
The pharmacy is the driving force behind the store’s foot traffic and with the scheduled closing, it leaves hundreds of customers without their trusted pharmacy team, led by Pharmacy Manager Andrea Weathington. Weathington has been a pharmacist at the Starke location for eight years and the pharmacy manager since 2021. She became emotional when speaking about her customers, many of whom have relied on her expertise and willingness to help them when faced with daunting tasks ranging from side effects to insurance coverage.
She said her customers are already saying very kind things. “Many have actually teared up in front of me. … We are just doing our job,” she said modestly. But she said she has very special customers in Starke whom she will miss when the store closes and she transfers to the Macclenny CVS.
Customers will automatically have prescriptions transferred to Walgreens unless they specify otherwise. Walgreens and CVS absorbed customers when the Winn-Dixie pharmacy closed in 2023. Customers do have the option to transfer their prescriptions to CVS locations in Keystone, Lake Butler or to a preferred local pharmacy, but they need to do so prior to the closing in August.
Kennedy said remaining store items will be moved to other CVS locations, but food products and perishable items will be marked down for quick sale during the next few weeks and encouraged shoppers to be on the lookout for these upcoming sales.
Both Kennedy and Weathington wished the best for all their Starke customers, who have made serving them more than a job, but a service to the community.
Currently, there are no announcements as to the future of the building after the CVS store is closed.
