Granddaughter Revives a Calvert Market

In 1948, Bertie Buehler opened the family store, Buehler's Market, where produce, sundries and freshly cooked food were sold downstairs while she and her husband raised their seven children on the floor above.

After two years in limbo following Buehler's death, the St. Leonard store has gained new life with a third generation of family management. Maria Buehler, 23, the granddaughter of Bertie Buehler and daughter of former Calvert County commissioner Patrick M. Buehler (D-St. Leonard), purchased the property from her grandmother's estate last year and reopened the community fixture in late January.

For customers and Buehlers alike, it feels a lot like old times.

"I've always wanted to run the store," said Maria Buehler, who began stocking shelves in the market at age 12. "We're right back where we were. The same people are coming back, eating the same food. The reputation my father forged has held strong. It's pretty much exactly how it was."

Patrons of the country store seem to agree.

"It should've never closed in the first place," said customer Bobby Adams, 33. "I work in construction, so their breakfast sandwich and coffee are always important to me. With their food, you get more than just the ready-made sandwich you would at a lot of convenience stores, and they have different food every day."

Buehler and her employees arrive at 5 each morning to make the day's breakfast and lunch offerings, which tend toward hearty, home-style fare. The aisles are stocked neatly with canned goods, sweets, snacks and other market staples. Paper bags of peanuts are still sold.

"It's fantastic," said Tom Cratty, 48, of Port Republic, who has frequented the store since he was a child. "Their chicken's fantastic. Probably the best in the area. Their sausage, too."

While working at Stoney's on Broomes Island and as a manager at Solomons Pier Restaurant, Buehler attended George Mason University for four years, finishing a few credits short of graduation. She tried her hand at an office job, which enabled her to squirrel away some money, but she found the formal business culture not to her liking. Her long-standing desire to run the family business called her back.

"I worked in the city for a few years, and I just couldn't do the office thing," she said. "I like being able to interact with people."

When she bought Buehler's Market, Buehler could see it needed a face-lift before it could reopen. New tiles, light fixtures and a ceiling fan were installed. She said she doesn't envision any sweeping changes, except for an expansion of deli offerings. The rooms upstairs have been converted to apartments; the Buehlers moved out in 1968.

Patrick Buehler, who has been involved with the shop for 41 years, said he was thrilled when his daughter first expressed plans to reopen the market. He still lends a hand with running the store and gives advice on such tasks as placing orders. His wife, Beverly, is teaching their daughter accounting.

"I remember she would come out for holidays, snow days, all the time to make sure the store was open," Patrick Buehler said. "There were days we knew we wouldn't be able to get off the farm the next day because of snow, so we'd spend the night at the store."

Along with lifetime connections to the area and the business, Maria Buehler values the fact that it takes her just seven minutes to travel from the store to her house and then jump in bed, which is a comfort after a hectic day of running the market, she said.

"It's tiring, but I love it. Coming back to work here feels like coming home," she said.