{"id":256484,"date":"2026-05-03T11:05:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T11:05:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/256484\/"},"modified":"2026-05-03T11:05:20","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T11:05:20","slug":"st-marks-grocery-store-celebrates-3-years-since-reopening","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/256484\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Marks grocery store celebrates 3 years since reopening"},"content":{"rendered":"

WAKULLA COUNTY, FL \u2014 St. Marks is considered a food desert, with all of its population living more than 10 miles from the nearest supermarket or large grocery store. Bo Lynn’s Grocery <\/a>has served as a critical food resource for neighbors in town.<\/p>\n

WATCH FULL REPORT BELOW:<\/p>\n

St. Marks grocery store celebrates 3 years since reopening<\/p>\n

Bo Lynn’s Grocery has served the St. Marks community for almost 90 years, opening in 1936. After 85 years, it closed in 2021, leaving neighbors without a nearby food source and forcing them to travel dozens of miles to get groceries.<\/p>\n

According to the USDA, a food desert exists when at least 500 persons or at least 33% of a rural area’s population lives more than 10 miles from a supermarket or large grocery store. When Bo Lynn’s closed, neighbors had to drive at least 15 miles to reach a store, with the closest option roughly a 20-minute drive away.<\/p>\n

The closure also impacted the community beyond food access.<\/p>\n

Neighbor Lee Miller said, “It was a time where we were struggling just trying to have places to meet, communicate, and socialize. This is a big social part of our environment here, which is very important for the city of St. Mark’s.”<\/p>\n

The current owner reopened Bo Lynn’s in 2023, and it has been thriving since. <\/p>\n

Neighbor Chuck Harper says having a store with necessities close by makes a difference.<\/p>\n

“It’s nice to have a smaller establishment to go into, to be able to get your staple needs, having one closer, where Crawfordville is roughly six, eight miles away. It’s a little further to drive, where over here you can come down here and get if you had stuff you need,” Harper said.<\/p>\n

When Bo Lynn’s came back, the convenience and the community returned with it.<\/p>\n

“It was a big, big step in this community to put everything back together in this community,” Miller said.<\/p>\n

The owner recently thanked the community for their support, saying:<\/p>\n

“We are so grateful to the community for their support and rallying behind us when we opened Bo Lynn’s. They’re the reason we’re still here 3 years later, and we’re so thankful to do life here in St. Marks,” Rani Richardson said in a statement.<\/p>\n

Bo Lynn’s will celebrate three years since its reopening this Sunday at 1:00 p.m.<\/p>\n

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.<\/p>\n

Want to see more local news? Visit the WTXL ABC 27 Website. <\/a><\/p>\n

Stay in touch with us anywhere, anytime.<\/p>\n

Like us on Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n

Follow us on Instagram <\/a>and X.<\/a><\/p>\n