SHS Students In Charge at the Village Market

The Village Market (known as Vmart to the locals) has been a staple in Scituate for generations. Beyond supplying townspeople with groceries, this iconic establishment also provides jobs for many high school students. In fact, currently, there are over 20 SHS students working as cashiers, ten of whom are seniors. As one can imagine, at a grocery store staffed by teenagers who are employed in one of their first jobs, shifts can get interesting.

“Everyone kinda does what they feel like doing, and does their job–kind of,” said SHS junior Cole McNiece, adding, “and it works! It somehow works. Nothing goes wrong.”

If a customer were to check out at Vmart on a weekday afternoon or weekend, they would be greeted entirely by high school students. There’s very rarely a manager present at the registers, so keeping checkouts running smoothly is entirely the cashiers’ responsibility. For the most part, students who work there enjoy this responsibility. “I think the kids make Vmart into, you know, the grocery store that happened to win Scituate’s Best Business in 2018,” said junior Joe Secaur, another cashier. “We’ve got a lot of control over what goes on there.”

Most students working at Vmart don’t plan to spend the rest of their lives there. When asked about his post-Vmart plans, senior Ben Sturdy said he is joining the U.S. Marine Corps, but he also has long-term goals that include Vmart: “I plan on becoming president one day, and I’m gonna make Shaws illegal, Stop and Shop illegal…I’m gonna make Vmart an empire.”

Secaur’s plans involve staying close to home, at least for a little while. “I’m probably gonna stay at Vmart until I declare for the NBA draft in about two or three years from now. I’m guessing I’ll be a lottery pick, and once I get signed to the Celtics I’ll only work on weekends.”

Vmart provides a valuable workplace experience for SHS students, but it’s also an asset to a certain SHS teacher who happens to live right next door. “I live a stone’s throw away,” explained SHS math teacher Jonathon Schindler, who, as a loyal Vmart customer, can often be seen there on Sunday nights. Sharing high praise for the Market, he explained, “It is nice if I ever need anything–big tuna fish guy, I eat that a couple of times a week for lunch–it’s a good spot and the help is always great.”

Schindler’s assessment of the student staff of Vmart was also complimentary: “They really have an all-star line up at the front end, as well as in the back–whether it’s dairy, grocery, whatever.”

The Village Market has existed in Scituate under several different names; most notably, it was known as “Angelo’s” in the sixties and seventies. As the only Scituate grocery store, it has provided a place for Scituate teens to gain their first job experience, make some money for college, and find a way to have fun while they work. Scituate truly wouldn’t be the same without Vmart–or the students who keep it running.

The graduating seniors who are currently working at Vmart include Austin Fonseca, Ben Sturdy, Brendan Burke, Ella Bast, Evan Halevi, Kieran O’Sullivan, Liam Desmond, Lily Grazioso, Paul Hofmeister, Roan Finkle, and Will Seghezzi.