The Gospel Book Store will be under new ownership
Eli and Vesta Hochstetler, left, are selling the Gospel Book Store to Dawn and Merv Stoltzfus, who will take over ownership in early August. The Hochstetlers have owned the book store for 44 years.
Forty-four years ago, Eli and Vesta Hochstetler did something they weren’t exactly sure about. It turned out Vesta Hochstetler’s intuition couldn’t have been more spot on.
In 1975 Vesta Hochstetler convinced her husband Eli “Small” Hochstetler that purchasing the Gospel Book Store from Abe and Fran Mast would be a great venture. Nearly half a century later, it turns out she was right.
“Small came home late from getting ads for The Bargain Hunter one night 44 years ago, and I was teaching school at the time, so I’d get home early afternoons,” Vesta Hochstetler said. “I made the statement that maybe we should buy the store because I love to read.”
At that time Eli Hochstetler was a columnist and salesperson at The Bargain Hunter.
It was a simple comment from the heart. More than 40 years later, books have become their lives.
After 44 years of pouring themselves into the book store, the Hochstetlers are in the process of selling it to Merv and Dawn Stoltzfus, who will take ownership of the store on Aug. 1.
For four decades the Hochstetlers have been a huge part of the Berlin landscape. They have sold books and Bibles, music, and other religious memorabilia, but even more than that, they have promoted Berlin and Amish Country and have shared their faith as part of their book store ministry.
“We have a culture here that is like none other,” Eli Hochstetler said. “People who come to this area expect us to talk about Christ and our faith right off the bat. That is extremely unique.”
Whether it was out in the community or in the confines of the book store, the Hochstetlers have made their passion for serving and their faith a part of their business.
Less than a year ago, Merv Stoltzfus, who works for Choice Books, contacted Eli Hochstetler and asked him if he had ever considered selling the store. Hochstetler said he paused at the question, and his answer surprised him a bit.
“I said, ‘Well, I have now,’” Hochstetler said. “The rest is history, and Vesta and I both agree it is the right time to do this.”
The Hochstetlers have seen many authors come and go through the years. In addition Eli Hochstetler has been instrumental in convincing a number of people in the area to write and publish their own books.
“This is our next adventure in life,” Eli Hochstetler said. “This has been incredibly fun. We have made an incredible number of friends and met a lot of wonderful people through this store.”
“We have been processing this opportunity since they contacted us last summer, and we have thought a lot about it, and it seemed to be the right time,” Vesta Hochstetler said. “This has been an amazing 44 years with all of the opportunities we have had to share with people. Because of all of the conventions we went to, we met so many great people over the years. The employees we have had have been wonderful, and this has been such a blessing to us.”
Together the Hochstetlers have worked side by side, something Vesta Hochstetler said was a true blessing. One thing that has comforted them is that they feel very good about turning what has been their passion over to the Stoltzfuses.
The Stoltzfuses have plenty of rich history in books too. Merv Stoltzfus served as the vice president of operations for Choice Books in Northern Virginia, which is the largest distributor among the seven Choice Books distribution centers.
Dawn (Falb) Stoltzfus was born and raised in Kidron, so this marks a sort of homecoming for her. She owned a bakery and organic bulk food store and did some catering in Northern Virginia before selling it.
“We are hoping to bring our love of retail and the ministry part of this that books provide to the store,” Dawn Stoltzfus said. “People come to a book store like this for various reasons. Some are broken-hearted while others have bends or are seeking inspiration. I believe that God has opened the door for us to be here, and we look forward to continuing that same vision Small and Vesta have shared with this community for so long.”
Merv Stoltzfus said they didn’t know the Hochstetlers personally, although they had met them on different occasions at book conventions. Like the Hochstetlers, it was Dawn who first mentioned the idea of owning a bookstore, and the Gospel Book Store was one that interested them.
“I called Small out of the blue and really caught him off guard,” Merv Stoltzfus said. “There was this long pause before he said he had never given it any thought. That started this dialogue that led us to where we are today.”
In fact, when Hochstetler hung up, he talked to his wife about the call. His description of the call went something like “this Charlie Brown out of nowhere calls me out of the blue.” They all shared a laugh when Merv Stoltzfus referred to himself as that “Charlie Brown out of nowhere” guy.
The two couples have spent the past several weeks getting to know each other better. That is something that is especially valuable to the Stoltzfuses, who have enjoyed getting to recognize why the Hochstetlers are so passionate about what they do and what they have built over the years.
“It’s an exciting transition for us, one that we have been looking forward to for some time now,” Merv Stoltzfus said. “We obviously have big shoes to fill, but we do have some new and what we believe are exciting ideas that we want to add to what they have here. This kind of opportunity is one in which we can share our faith and hopefully be a blessing to others. One thing we are excited about is getting to know the people of this community more closely.”
He said any bookstore in today’s world of internet purchasing has to rethink and reinvent ways to bring people in.
The Stoltzfuses want to create a place where people can come in and connect as well as purchase items. They hope to have children’s story hours, a summer reading program that rewards kids and story-telling events for adults where locals come in and speak about life, growing up and things they have learned.
In early August it will be their choice as to what they want to implement. That is something they are both relishing as they assume a role that has belonged solely to Eli and Vesta Hochstetler for decades.