Marlene Schutte and Pat Skauge both worked at the A & W and 55 years later stood together at their granddaughters' graduation. (Submitted/ Sarah Szell)

By Nigel Maxwell

Lasting Memories

‘It was just kinda the place to be in Prince Albert’: former A & W employees saddened by restaurant fire

Jan 18, 2024 | 2:00 PM

For Prince Albert’s Marlene Schutte and Pat Skauge, the A & W restaurant in downtown Prince Albert that was ravaged by fire on Wednesday, represents the creation of lifelong memories and friendships.

Both women worked at the restaurant when it first opened in the late 1960s and were equally devastated when they heard the news about the fire. Schutte, who is now in her 70s, was only 18 when she worked there.

“We were all young then and it was just kinda the place to be in Prince Albert. It was sad to see that happen,” Schutte told paNOW.

Schutte recalled that when the restaurant first opened, the parking lot wasn’t even paved and owners took care of the female staff, even requiring a letter from them authorizing who could take them home. If they did not have a ride, the owners would take it upon themselves to provide one to ensure the girls’ safety.

(submitted photo/Prince Albert Historical Society, Album 37.3)

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Schutte’s late husband worked as a farmer and would visit the restaurant on rainy days.

“Of course, he was flirting with me, I think he liked a lady in uniform,” Marlene joked. “Because we all had to wear the little uniforms with caps on our heads.”

But it wasn’t long before Marlene would agree to go out with the persistent farm boy.

“On our first date, he asked me to marry him and I said what’s your last name? That’s kind of a family story.”

Marlene didn’t say yes right away, but she would marry Ed in the fall of 1970 and they were together nearly 40 years before Ed’s passing in 2009. The couple had two daughters and four grandchildren.

For Pat Skauge, the A & W represented her first job. She was 16 and started the day the restaurant opened.

“If you’ve ever seen that old TV show about Happy Days, that’s what it was kinda like. People all driving down central and up First Avenue and they were all teenagers, their music blasting and they would stop in at the A & W for refreshments and have a cold root beer or some fries,” she explained.

Recalling the days when it rained, Skauge, who also met her husband while working at the restaurant, described how she would be standing in a puddle while taking orders from the cars, only to return a short time later with a tray full of food she would place on the car’s window sill. She noted when she heard the news about the fire, her mind went immediately back to the days working at the restaurant and hanging out with all her friends.

“It’s sort of an era that’s gone by and it’s just sort of the end of it and it’s kinda sad,” she said.

While it’s believed Wednesday morning’s fire originated in the kitchen area, the actual cause is not yet known.

According to a statement issued to paNOW by A & W Canada, the restaurant will be temporarily closed until further notice while an investigation is underway and the damage can be fully assessed.

Last year the two women were re-united at their granddaughters’ graduation ceremony at the E.A. Rawlinson Centre.

“Someone said maybe you shouldn’t stand over there because I can see the A & W and we said that perfect because that’s where we met,” Skauge said.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell