Orrum Grocery and Grill, located at 1515 S. Creek Road in Orrum, opened Monday and will begin selling hot dogs, burgers and pizza once a health inspection is undertaken in the coming weeks. The store, formerly known as Orrum General Store, had been closed for more than a year, but is now under the ownership of Abraham Obaid, who manages 76 Gas Station near Lumberton High School.
Jessica Horne | The Robesonian
ORRUM — A staple of this small town has reopened its doors after they had been closed for more than a year.
Orrum Grocery and Grill, located at 1515 S. Creek Road, opened Monday and is once more offering gas and groceries to town residents. The convenience store, formerly known as Orrum General Store, now has a new look and ownership, as well as a new name.
The store closed shortly after the death in 2016 of former owner Robert Wilkes. And its new co-owner, Abraham Obaid, seeks to restore the town’s gathering place to its former glory.
Obaid and other business partners operate about 10 retail locations in Lumberton, Fayetteville, Shannon, Red Springs and Elizabethtown. Obaid said he and his brother Adam are passionate about finding and restoring older convenience stores that contain “a lot of history and pride.”
“I really love going in country stores like that,” Obaid said.
A grand opening ceremony will take place at a later date, once the health inspection is conducted and the store can open its grill, he said. Free food samples will be available during that event.
The store, which will employ five people, will begin selling hot dogs, burgers, pizza, fried chicken and other country foods in the coming weeks, he said.
And town residents are ready for workers to fire up the grill.
“The community really needs the store, and we’ve missed it since it’s shut down,” Mayor Wilton Caulder said.
He recalls stopping at Orrum General store daily for its lunch offerings, and anticipates sampling food from the new store, Caulder said.
Many town residents have stopped by to ask about the store’s opening during the past month, said Tabatha Chavis, who works at the 76 gas station near Lumberton High School that is managed by Obaid.
Chavis worked the Orrum store’s register Thursday morning as locals stopped in for groceries and gas.
“I’m glad to see it open, man. There’s a lot of people that’s glad to see it open,” said Gene Walters, an Orrum resident.
The gas is reasonably priced in comparison to gas stations in Lumberton, he said.
“Now it seems more like Orrum, doesn’t it, to have the store back open,” said Jeanette Walters, Gene’s wife.
Lumberton resident Jocelyn Perry stopped by the gas station on her way to work down the street at Community Innovation. She often stopped at the former store for lunch, instead of traveling to Fairmont or Lumberton on her lunch break, Perry said.
Perry called the store “more convenient” and said she looks forward to getting lunch there soon.
“It’s going to do real good,” Chavis said.
The store is currently in the hiring process. The store can be reached at its new number, 910-628-8573.
Reach Jessica Horne at 910-416-5165 or via email at [email protected]
