BLACKSVILLE — “It’s little but it’s mighty,” Bonny Neer said, looking at her 6-foot-by-12-foot food trailer.
Bonny found the trailer for sale in Kentucky, with the intention to create a quick place to get lunch in the town of Blacksville — she named it Lunch Ladies.
Her husband, George, took several months to strip the trailer down and make sure it was up to health code so Bonny could live her dream.
Bonny said she is so thankful for all of the work her husband put into the food truck. Since May, Bonny has been serving food to those around Blacksville.
Bonny was a nurse before she retired. She found herself bored at home, and said she needed something to do. Bonny’s sisters, Anita and Debbie, told her a food truck would be “perfect” for her.
“They always said ‘you only go through this life once, it’s not a rehearsal. If you’re going to do it, now is the time,’ ” Bonny said.
Her biggest inspiration came from her mother, Edith, who passed away 20 years ago. Bonny’s mother used to be a public school cook. The children struggled with saying her name, and settled on calling her “Lunch Lady,” which is how the name of Bonny’s business came to be.
“My mother inspired me more than anything,” Bonny said.
She said sometimes while she has her trailer parked for business, some people will approach it, look at Edith’s photograph on the side, and put their hands on it, and reminisce about the lunch lady who was well-known in the region.
Bonny said back when her mother was a lunch lady, she would give extra food to the children whose only meal would be at school. After her mother died, Bonny said several people came to her at the funeral and told her about her mother making sure they had enough to eat.
A majority of her customers are workers in the area who only have a few minutes to grab lunch, Bonny said. She said the community of Blacksville has been very supportive.
“It’s just been unreal — the support from the community,” Bonny said.
The menu includes pepperoni rolls, cheese fries and hot dogs. A majority of her menu items are homemade with family recipes. Several are from her mother’s cookbook. She also serves macaroni salad, potato salad and hobo beans — all from her mother’s recipes. A popular menu item is her Philly cheesesteak.
“The people around here love them. I got a call from a little old lady over in Pennsylvania, she said, ‘I’ve lived here 40 years, and I have never tasted anything like your Philly steak.’ That makes it all worth it,” Bonny said
Bonny has daily specials, and also provides free hot dogs to children once a month.
Bonny said without the support of the community, Lunch Ladies would not exist — “they’re what’s made me,” she said.
There was a “great need” for something in the area of Blacksville, Bonny said, and the support from everyone around her has been “awesome.”
Bobby Willard, who owns the property where her food truck sits from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday and Thursday, said he loves having Bonny in the area.
Dawn Brookover, Bonny’s daughter-in-law, helps Bonny. Bob Brookover, a Blacksville resident, said Bonny’s food is some of the best he has ever eaten. Both Dawn and Bob said Bonny’s energy is like no other.
“No one has that kind of energy,” Dawn said.
Bonny knows the photograph on the front of her trailer is what catches the eye of community members. They remember Edith. Bonny said a young man recently came up to her trailer and said, “I bet your food is good, but it will never be as good as that lady on your trailer.”
Bonny said those moments are what makes her time cooking worthwhile.
“I’ll never be the person she was … never — but I try every day,” Bonny said.
Bonny has learned to live without regrets. After finally living a dream she has always pushed onto the backburner, she is doing just that by continuing the legacy of her mother each Monday and Thursday, when she opens up at 9:30 a.m. with a smile.
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