Have you met Lucy?

If you’ve ever visited our Newmarket Sunset Grill restaurant, you may have caught a glimpse of her at the front counter clutching her gratitude rock in a moment of quiet contemplation in between running breakfast orders and taking care of the team.

We love Lucy.

Lucy, Manager, Newmarket Sunset Grill.

“I absolutely love the customers, they feel like family,” she says. “Interacting with people is very big for me.”

Lucy came into the Sunset Grill brand on a full-time basis back in 2019 after starting out working part-time on weekends. It was a friend of hers that turned her onto the brand and one of their first shifts together was on Mother’s Day weekend.

“It was great to see the place so alive,” she exclaims. Lucy was only about a week into her training at that point and was loving every minute of it.

Now, she’s worked her way up the ranks and manages the restaurant alongside franchise owner Hemant. One day, she hopes to own the restaurant.

Lucy has been searching for her calling, for her purpose, for as long as she can remember. “I believe we all have a purpose in life,” she explains. “It was bugging me that I didn’t know what my purpose was.”

She’s worked corporate jobs in the past and even owned her own business, which she enjoyed, however, there was always something missing.

It was a crystalizing moment for her when, while on break at the restaurant chatting with her friend, she realized that serving others was what fulfilled her. “I know now that I am meant to take care of people. I am meant to serve.”

She hasn’t looked back since.

Lucy (left) and her daughter, Bianca (right).

“I’m here because I’m meant to be here,” says Lucy. “A lot of, if not all our regular customers, know me by name. That’s huge for me.”

They often ask Lucy why she’s always smiling. She always responds in the same way, “What do I have to not smile about? I woke up another day!”

It’s those everyday moments that keep her motivated. “I love the brand, it’s a great brand,” she says. “I like that homey feeling.”

The Bradford native is no stranger to hard work and early mornings – she grew up on a farm and attributes that experience to the strong work ethic she has today. Breakfast was a natural fit for Lucy.

She’s very much looking forward to working alongside her daughter this Mother’s Day.

Lucy’s three children are all in their 20s now. Her two sons, Eric, 28, and Adrian, 25, have moved out, and her daughter, Bianca, 23, is working her way through a Paralegal course while also serving at the restaurant on a casual basis.

“Family is everything,” says Lucy. “Mother’s Day is a day to celebrate all the hard work that, for me, my mom did. I wouldn’t be here or have the education I have if she didn’t immigrate here from another country with no family. She had to do it all on her own,” Lucy shares, while holding back tears.

“My mom is my best friend.”

When Lucy isn’t busy at the restaurant, you can find her relaxing by the fire in her backyard, on the trails (she loves to hike), doing yoga, or concocting her own natural household cleaners. She really is a woman who does it all.

“I want to know how to do everything,” she laughs. “I want to learn what our ancestors have learned to do, that we have kind of gotten away from.”

One day she hopes to own her own chicken farm and become an avid gardener, like her parents were.

“When you take a look at all that, we had it really easy being parents now compared to back then,” says Lucy. “Mother’s Day for me is just to thank the people that raised us.”

“Know that the lady that is raising you, stays awake many nights worried about you, and only wants the best for you. So, to all moms, thank you.”

The next time you’re in the area be sure to stop by our Newmarket Sunset Grill and say hi to Lucy and her amazing team!

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Lucy is part of this year’s Mother’s Day profile series highlighting Breakfast Moms – the strong and talented women that make up the many faces of the Sunset Grill community.

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