Twenty years ago, Lin and Brian Sean Perry took their wedding photo in front of their family’s comic book store in Johnson City. Both the Perrys and the store marked their anniversaries last week.
In a celebration at the store on Saturday, the Perrys showed off the photo. In it, the whole wedding party is in dresses and tuxedos, posed below bold print that reads Fat Cat Comics.
"We've been married half as long as the store's been around," Sean said (Perry goes by his middle name). On Saturday, he came to the store to celebrate the it’s 40th anniversary.
Through the years, the store has moved to a few different locations and changed ownership. Tawna Lewis owns it now. She was one of the first employees at Fat Cat. Lin Perry said it’s remained a family business because Tawna is family too.
"I still remember after [Tawna] relocated here," Lin recalled, "It was really funny. She called us one day and said, 'You know you still have a key to the store, right? You know he can stop by any time he wants to.'"
As Tawna sold me my comic books, she said she’s not sure how much longer she’ll be able to run the store.
"No, I don’t know how much longer I can do it," she said. When I ask her if there's someone who she can pass the store to, she replied "That’s something I’ll have to think about."
But she quickly moved on to the next customer. A busy day for Tawna Lewis on Fat Cat Comics’ 40th anniversary.