People see all the different flavors and ask, “Who makes your ice cream?” It makes us proud to say, “We do.”
— Kelly Larson, Temptations
“We are pretty lucky. I’m a lot like my mom and I—we are positive people. I don’t ever think that the stores aren’t going to make it. When the former city manager called me to tell me that Chinook Pier was going to be leveled, my first thought was, “Well, what are we going to do about it?” Temptations is a part of Grand Haven’s history, but to preserve that history, you also need to be willing to evolve and change—what can we do to get better and continue to be a piece of what draws people to Grand Haven? One of the parts of being better is that we make our own ice cream. People see all the different flavors and ask, “Who makes your ice cream?” It makes us proud to say, “We do.”
I’m super proud to have worked with my family to create something that has been around so long—we assume it’s going to be around long past us. It’s fun. My parents have eight grandchildren and they’ve all come through the stores. And the young people of Grand Haven—for many of them, this place is their first job, just like it was for me. Here they learn how to make change, how to be on time, how to look people in the eye, how to use their theater voice so that they can communicate. We think we do a really good job of helping them grow.”
– Kelly Larson, Temptations
“We bought Temptations because she so loved working down here. At that point, Chinook Pier was the fun part of Grand Haven. There was nothing on Washington that drew people down here, so people would come to Chinook Pier, and it was an exciting place to be for everybody.
And Kelly could teach us how to do it! I had never run a cash register. I’d never scooped an ice cream cone. So Kelly taught us all, and the older sister of hers.
We’ve always had people around who could help. Lots of employees, wonderful young people for all these years. People say to me, “Why are you not retired?” It’s because I really like working with these young people down here. It’s happy. It’s good.
And the friendships! I am amazed that society has changed and technology has changed, but the friendships these young people make cross generations and stick with them. They, who worked here 10 years ago, are friends with the people they worked with. And I hear about that and think, oh my goodness sakes, this is wonderful!
Well, I’m kind of amazed that Temptations has become what it is. I hope it stays forever. I might tear up here—but I think it’s just the best place in the world to come visit. “
—Diane Murray, Temptations
