Saffies History

 Although I used to visit Saffies Store as a child and I had met the Saffie family as countless customers had, I never really knew how unique this family and their store was until we started the demolition! As people gathered on that cold December morning to watch the building come down, they shared their stories. We realized that while the building was being replaced, the memories would stay and the Saffie legend would live on.

I realized then that I had a lot to learn from this incredible, entrepreneurial family.

Some interesting facts about Albert Beach and Saffies include:

• On his first exploration of the area, La Vérendrye and his party stopped at Albert Beach where they filled their kegs from a fast flowing spring. From there they portaged to the peninsula of Victoria Beach (Isle a la Biche) where they camped on the sandy beaches before venturing onto the waters of Lake Winnipeg.

• In the 1920s, the Saffie family, originally from Lebanon, came to Albert Beach to take up a homestead and set up a business.

• The original store was a log cabin. For decades there was a pot-bellied stove and a rocking chair in the middle of the store.

• Albert Beach was hooked up to Manitoba Power Commission’s electricity network (now Manitoba Hydro) in 1955.

• The Saffie family owned and ran the store for two generations. “Old Man Saffie” left the store to his son Leonard who continued the tradition of “convenience the old fashioned way” until the 1980s.

• Since then, Albert Beach residents have got to know the different owners who took over Saffie store and served the community with produce, gas and even adding DVD rentals.

We bought the store and land in December 2006 and have been working hard since to rebuild Saffies. We are depending on you to help us fill in the blanks and provide further detail and stories, not only of Saffies Store and the Saffie family but of Albert Beach too!