LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commending Garro Drug Store upon the occasion of
its 100th Anniversary

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize those
businesses within the State of New York which contribute to the economic
health and vitality of the communities they serve; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-
standing traditions, it is the sense of this Legislative Body to commend
Garro Drug Store upon the occasion of its 100th Anniversary; and
WHEREAS, For the past century, there has been a drugstore at 704
Bleecker Street in East Utica, New York; and
WHEREAS, However, not the same business it was when Vincent deLalla
founded it in June 1910; Santo Garro, who has been a pharmacist at Garro
Drug Store since 1966, noticed that much has changed over the years; and
WHEREAS, By the 1940s, a second owner, Rocco Loudis, came in and ran
the store with some other pharmacists; Mr. Garro came on board in 1966,
after working locally for Vyner Drug, then Carl's Drug in Rome; in 1967,
he bought the store, then deLalla-Loudis Pharmacy, and has been there
ever since; and
WHEREAS, In the early days, Mr. Garro had to learn Italian to communi-
cate with many of his customers; in 1974, he changed the name to Garro
Drug Store; although he remodeled the 2,500-square-foot building, he
kept the 1940s-era neon sign in front; in addition, he recently added a
new outdoor sign with the word "pharmacy" spelled in eight languages to
cater to the changing ethnic population of the neighborhood; and
WHEREAS, Three years ago, Mr. Garro sold the business to E. Robert
Black, who also owns Randall's Pharmacy in New Hartford and Holland
Patent Pharmacy; in spite of that, Mr. Garro still works at the store 30
hours a week, filling prescriptions; and
WHEREAS, The biggest changes Mr. Garro has seen over the years are the
advent of computers, and of third-party payers, private insurance, Medi-
care and Medicaid; and
WHEREAS, Throughout its history, Garro Drug Store has maintained the
atmosphere of a family-neighborhood drug store; businesses such as Garro
Drug Store exert a strong, positive influence on the communities they
serve and are a crucial element in the economy of New York State; and
WHEREAS, It is with great pleasure that this Legislative Body acknowl-
edges this exceptional organization, fully confident that in its future,
it will enjoy the same success which has so characterized its past; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend Garro Drug Store upon the occasion of its 100th Anniversary; and
be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Garro Drug Store.