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Keith Hentzen
Age: 58
Family: Wife, Rose; two adult children; one grandchild
Occupation: Owner of Springfield Drug
Hentzen is an avid canoeist who enjoys learning to cook. He employs local students to help run the old-fashioned soda fountain. He says his small-town drugstore is a community center.
Visitors can fill prescriptions at Keith Hentzen's Sarpy County drugstore, but they can also view medicinal antiques, watch a soda jerk in action and spot some cartoon fun.
Hentzen's business is a 33-year staple in Springfield.
Customers entering Springfield Drug are greeted by life-sized replicas of the yellow-colored family from the popular TV cartoon “The Simpsons.” Attired this time of year in holiday costumes, the zany statues are holdovers from a national contest the town and Hentzen participated in two years ago in an unsuccessful effort to host the cartoon's movie premiere.
Hentzen's store also features an old-fashioned soda fountain. He says it offers a great way for Springfield residents and its visitors to socialize while enjoying a cold drink or snack.
“It's my pride and joy,” said the 58-year-old Hentzen, who grew up in Seward, Neb., resides in Gretna with his wife, Rose, but considers Springfield his home. “It's uniquely American.”
Hentzen employs half a dozen people. He often hires high school students. It's a chance, he said, to work with the community's young minds and help them.
Many students — most working as soda jerks — stay for two or three years until their graduation.
“During that time it's just so neat to see these young people grow,” Hentzen said.
The drugstore also serves as a museum of sorts. Hentzen displays his vast collection of medicinal antiques, including an arsenic bottle with a tiny human skull fastened on the top to remind of the danger inside, old medicine dispensers and glass jars with herbs or plants.
When he's not running his business, Hentzen relaxes by canoeing or taking cooking classes at Metropolitan Community College. He enjoys making breads, especially rye. He has twin adult children and one grandchild.
Springfield, a town of about 1,500, doesn't have a local medical clinic, and in many ways the drugstore helps meet a health need, Hentzen said.
“Over time, you really get to know the community,” he said.
“I don't have caller ID,” he said, with a laugh, “because I recognize their voices.”
Contact the writer:
444-3198, chip.olsen@owh.com
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