Owasso's golden arches at 76th street and Highway 169 are about to be dimmed for a while.
"This is the last day that we're going to be open," said owner Tim Rich.
Even so, smiling faces abound. You'd never know that 70 jobs were at stake for the next three months as a new McDonald's is built in it's place.
"We didn't want to lose any of them," he said.
Tim Rich owns two other stores, but there simply isn't enough work for everybody.
"At first I was sad I was like, 'Oh my gosh I love McDonald's,'" said employee Tekeyah Allen.
But then, as genuine as the smile from a happy meal...
"We made the decision, we set $120,000 aside to pay employees to go volunteer in our community," said Rich.
"You're really gonna do this?," asked a stunned Margaret Manley, who was on a lunch break from the Baptist Village Retirement Community.
"When I walked up to the counter they said we got a deal for you," she said.
And it wasn't an Angus Deluxe. It was 17 year-old Daniel Schwartz.
"Well my great grandma lives there and I just really like working with people," said Schwartz.
"What a difference they're gonna make in our residents lives and what a learning experience they'll get from our residents," she said.
"I was so excited," said Amanda Cadwell at the Pregnancy Resource Center. They're getting Tekeyah for three months.
"To be able to have somebody come in and this be treated like a job is a huge blessing to us," said Cadwell.
"I just enjoy helping people, you know?," said Allen.
In all some two dozen employees will be working at various good causes all the while getting their regular pay, after which they'll come back to the new restaurant. I know right? What's the catch?
"Well, the catch is, there is no catch," said Rich.
Sad to report that such a good deed raises skepticism. Happy to report that there are actually people like Tim Rich in this world.
"I think it's important for us as a business to develop strategies that help our communities. I think that helps my business and it helps my community," said Rich.
