Aurora ice cream shop celebrates sweet year of success
A small business in Aurora is celebrating a big milestone this weekend. Howdy Homemade Ice Cream is a sweet shop with a special staff, and Saturday marked its exciting one-year anniversary.
"We're happy to have had a successful first year, serving some really amazing ice cream that we make homemade, in our shop," said owner Troy Knuckles. "But, most importantly, serving our heroes and their families."
Heroes are what Howdy's hardworking employees are called, like Mae Robison. She's happily been a Hero since the ice cream shop opened in October 2021.
"I like talking to people and making people smile," she said. "Howdy's is a big part of my life. It's amazing!"
Not only is the shop's mission to serve great ice cream, but also creates jobs for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It's a business model Knuckles said he is proud of, and his team currently has 14 Heroes who happily come to work every day.
"We have zero turnover," he said. "We have amazing, loyal employees who show up to work every day and just love what they do."
In honor of that love and a year of success, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman and supporters from Kroenke Sports – including Colorado Avalanche mascot Bernie and some of the Denver Nuggets dancers -- stopped by to celebrate with the Howdy Heroes, their families, and other staff.
"I hope other businesses are encouraged to do what Howdy Homemade has done," Coffman said. "That is to make job opportunities available for these young people. It's so important that everybody who wants to work is given the dignity of a job."
And there are plenty of hero hopefuls out there. Much like this same time last year, Knuckles said there continues to be a waiting list of people who want to work at Howdy Homemade Ice Cream. It is his hope that leads to years of more smiles and success.
"This is the first of hopefully many locations because it's all about creating more jobs for these amazing people," he said.
Howdy Homemade also has a location in Colorado Springs, and there are plans to open others around the state.
