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Since Dairyland opened in 1955 in Fergus Falls, teenagers have been borrowing the family car to drive to the local strip with friends. They’d stop at Dairyland drive-in for a burger or a shake, maybe getting their order taken by a carhop.

Today, those teenagers are grandparents. And instead of visiting the restaurant with friends, they’re bringing their grandkids.

Owner Pat Connelly said he never wanted to be driven by corporate American principles, “where people put profit before people.”

“I don't want that,” he said. “I want people to be able to come on this property and just have that warm feeling that they've had for the last 70 years.”

But Dairyland is at an inflection point. Connelly and his wife Jean announced their plans to leave the 70-year-old business after this season. Now the search is on for someone to pick up the mantle to continue Dairyland's legacy for the next generation. 

Connelly started working here when he was 14. And his family took over in 1982.

“I got to be the prep cook, help make stuff. That was the fun part. I worked up front in customer service,” he said. “And believe it or not, by the time I was 15, I got to be, in essence, a little bit of a store manager.”

His wife Jean says when she was a little kid, she remembers longing to go to Dairyland but being too poor to do so.

“The bus would come by here every, every day. And I would see all these people in the store just having ice cream and stuff, and they just all looked so happy,” she said. “And I remember thinking that when I grow up, I'm gonna stop there every day, and now I'm here every day.”

But now about 30 years into running it themselves, the Connellys are feeling like they need to pass the baton.

"Once we made that decision, the reality started to set in, that as I walk away myself, this is three quarters of my life, of being here, my wife being here half of her life,” he said. “When you start looking at things like that, how we've been immersed within the community, that's hard.”

He said health issues are a growing concern, musing that even people at the top of their game have to throw in the towel eventually.

“Michael Jordan was one heck of a basketball player, but he had to walk away because he just no longer had it in him,” he said.

But as the family near the end of an era, Connelly hopes Dairyland could see a new one begin. He said the goal is to pass the Dairyland torch to a new owner. If that doesn't happen soon, he said they might be back next year with limited hours. 

One of Dairyland’s customers, Mark Ebbighausen, is really torn up about the restaurant potentially changing hands. He was born in 1955, the same year Dairyland opened. And he said he’s been a lifelong customer who stops in whenever he has the money to. 

Ebbighausen said the Connelleys are part of what makes Dairyland so special. 

"It's how they serve the people, and they're generally kind to everybody,” he said. “They’ve got a great sense of humor. These are sweet people.”

Madison Denoble, who works at the restaurant, said she would hate to see the restaurant close altogether, noting how large the place looms in the town. 

“The food, the people you meet here, the friends, the family, the support, just everything like that,” she said.

Jean Connelly says since announcing they want to sell, they've received an outpouring of support.

She said a young woman brought in cupcakes decorated with a Snoopy theme to match the Peanuts statues outside the restaurant. The cupcakes were decorated red and white, like the exterior of the restaurant. 

Connelly said the girl had tears in her eyes, and said “‘This is for you guys, but it's also for me too.”

“She’s going to miss Dairyland,” Connelly said.

Dairyland will be open for the remainder of the season until some time in October.

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Mathew Holding Eagle III

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Pat and Jean Connelly want to retire. The goal is to pass the Dairyland torch to a new owner.

Owners of iconic Fergus Falls restaurant Dairyland signal end of an era

Exterior shot of Dairyland, a bright red, barn-shaped building. Large statues of "Peanuts" characters are in front.

Mathew Holding Eagle III | MPR News

An employee in a white apron talks through the drive-thru window to a customer in their car.

A young man in a white apron flips hamburgers on a flat-top grill.

A man in a red baseball tee and cap stands in front of the Dairyland sign.

Through a window, we see the Dairyland sign. It reads, "Cool off with a slush..."

Owners of iconic Fergus Falls restaurant Dairyland signal end of an era

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