SPOKANE, Wash. – For Starsha Thorp, Sparky’s Subs marks a new beginning. A recovering alcoholic, Thorp has been sober for 10 years, ever since starting her job at Sparky’s in 2014.
“I’ve got pictures of my family up because I’m here more than at my own home,” Thorp said. “People laugh and say ‘when are you gonna put your cot in the back Starsha?’”
The restaurant is a family affair, after Thorp’s daughter bought the store a couple years ago. It’s also a family affair because Thorp considers her customers to be family.
“(They’ve) been my rock for 10 years,” she said. “They’ve gotten me throughout some of the hardest times.”
On Thursday night, multiple regulars visited the store with Thorp in the dark to give her emotional support after an electrical fire destroyed nearly everything inside. Now, Thorp and her regulars feel like they’re without a home.
“I want people to have a place that they can come to and they don’t have to feel like they’re a nuisance. Or a single mom doesn’t have to come in here and worry about ‘Did I just spend my last dime on a meal?’ I don’t want nobody to feel like that.” she said. “It’s not about money, it’s about the relationship that you have with your customers and I don’t have that right now.”
