BY
KEITH LACEY
After working for 60 years - including almost 50 in the rough
and tumble bar business - May Gudrunas says she's more than
ready for a much-deserved Caribbean holiday.
"I very much want to go on a Caribbean cruise and I'm going to
go," said Gudrunas, the longtime owner of May's Tavern, which
she recently sold. The new owners take over the week before
Christmas.
There haven't been many full houses in the past few years at
May's Tavern, which was known as The Prospect Hotel when she
took over as owner in the mid-1980s. But, a huge crowd is
expected to say goodbye when staff and friends hold a
retirement party for Gudrunas on Saturday, Dec. 16.
Gudrunas, 75, said she considered selling the Elgin Street
watering hole numerous times over the past decade, but made a
more concerted effort this past spring by bringing in a real
estate agent.
She knew the timing was right to sell while she was still young
enought to enjoy her retirement.
Gudrunas started her own business at age 15 running a lunch
counter at the former Mine Mill Hall on Regent Street (which
was sold a few years ago to the Navy League of Canada).
She began working as a waitress as a teenager at the former
Sheraton Caswell Hotel and worked at numerous establishments as
a waitress before getting married.
She comes from a family of four brothers and four sisters.
"Back then, many teenagers didn't go to school and had to get a
job to help mom and dad out," she said.
Her husband, Vic Gudrunas, who she married back in 1971, bought
the Coulson Hotel. They purchased The Prospect Tavern back in
the mid-1980s. She changed the name to May's Tavern 20 years
ago.
Back in its heyday, Gudrunas admits May's Tavern was a pretty
wild place, but a very popular watering hole.
"We had strippers in here for a few years and then we had live
bands and we used to just pack them in here," she said smiling.
"I used to work from morning to night those first few years,
but I didn't mind because I was young and this place was just
booming."
Live entertainment was halted in 1996 and the past decade has
been rather quiet as more competitors opened drinking
establishments, particularly in the downtown core, said
Gudrunas.
Things got particularly bad when Monique "Chico" Landers, a
popular waitress, passed away in July of 1998.
Business was slowing down to a crawl and she had to lay off
several loyal staff members, said Gudrunas.
Instead of focusing on the past few years, Gudrunas prefers to
think about the glory days when her bar was packed and people
shared a lot of laughs and a lot of drinks.
"Most of the clientele used to be Inco workers and miners who'd
drop in after work for a couple of drinks and end up staying a
lot longer than they planned," she said. "It was a very social
place...to this day it's still a place where people can come in
and feel comfortable and talk to each other without having to
yell."
Gudrunas has a theory why her establishment has a bad
reputation with many people.
"I just think the owners of some of the other neighbourhood
bars knew how well we were doing, so they bad-mouthed us to try
and keep people away and keep them at their own bars," she
said.
Bartender Kim Manion, the last surviving staff member from a
decade ago, also recalls some of the good ol' days at
May's.
"We have an old moose head sticking out of the wall over the
bar and if that moose could talk, what stories he could tell,"
she said smiling. "That moose has had panties and bras and a
lot of cigars and cigarettes in its mouth. I don't want to tell
you all the stories he's heard because it might get us all in
trouble."
People who have never been inside have always considered the
bar, located right in the middle of the Elgin Street
strip, as a "dive" where there was constant trouble and endless
fights, said Manion.
They don't know what they're talking about, she said.
"It's always been a very friendly place and still is," she
said. "People don't judge each other here and everyone gets
along. We've survived the past few years because of the
regulars...this is like a second home to a lot of them."
There was the odd physical confrontation and scuffle through
the years, but that wouldn't be unlike any other bar in Sudbury
that attracted big crowds, she said.
She remembers being hired by Gudrunas and being petrified the
first few weeks on the job 20 years ago, she said.
"At the time, May was like a dragon lady and ruled this place
with an iron fist," she said. "She was very strict because the
bar was always packed and she wanted her staff to be on top of
everything.
"Once I got to know her, I realized just how much she knew
about this business. She's the person I credit for turning me
into what I consider to be a pretty good bartender."
Gudrunas says a "big thrill" for her was the day a film crew
shot a movie about country music superstar Shania Twain's life
three years ago.
Gudrunas could be seen in a clip standing near the bar.
"That was just an exciting thing to be part of," she said.
Last year, a local filmmaker shot a few scenes for an upcoming
film called Barstool Words and she's looking forward to that
release as well.
Gudrunas says not being able to see her regular patrons as
often as she'd like is going to be the toughest thing about
stepping aside into retirement.
"I'll really miss certain people a lot," she said. "I've met
some truly wonderful, wonderful people here. Many of my best
friends are the people I've met because of this bar."
Manion says she's also leaving because she's ready after 25
years of bartending and because she will no longer be able to
call Gudrunas her boss.
"I just don't want to work here anymore without May being in charge," she said. "May is just a fantastic woman and she's been a great boss."
Gudrunas says she's booking a long Caribbean cruise early in
the new year.
"I went on one other cruise many years ago and I can't wait to
go back," she said. "I'm getting older and I want to be able to
enjoy myself.
"I've been working since I was a kid and I want some time to
travel and relax and that's just what I'm going to do."
Regular customer Margaret Lahti, 53, said she's been going to
The Prospect/May's Tavern for more than 35 years and considers
Gudrunas "like a second mom."
"This place has always been like a home away from home," she said. "It had a bad reputation around town, but once you came in here and meet the people, your opinion would change.
"The staff have always made everyone feel at home...and man
there were some good times back when this place was busy and
rocking six days a week."
Lahti is confident there will be a huge crowd on hand to say
goodbye to Gudrunas on Dec. 16.
Everyone is welcome to attend. The fun starts after 7 pm.
