Frank H. Sobey

Frank H. Sobey. . ”The Town of Stellarton always meant a lot to me” , , Frank H. Sobey, Stellarton Town Square was the site of the Jubilee Theatre and the first Sobeys Food Store, built in 1912 by John William Sobey to expand his meat delivery business to a modern meat service counter and local produce provider. , J.W. Sobey's eldest son, Frank H. Sobey, left school and joined his father at the age of 15. By 1924, Frank persuaded his father to expand the family business to a full line of groceries; two years later, the father and son team became partners. As their business began to thrive, Frank and his wife Irene (MacDonald) embraced family life in Stellarton, settling down on Allan Avenue and raising their children, Bill, David, Donald and Dianne., Frank H. Sobey was a busy man in the 1930s and 40s, growing the Sobeys' chain of stores, purchasing the Jubilee Theatre, and becoming Stellarton's youngest mayor in 1937 at the age of 35 , an office he held until his retirement 22 years later. Although the town was broke, under-serviced and under-developed when he took office, Frank successfully modernized and beautified Stellarton during his tenure, all the while shepherding the community through the demise of coal mining by attracting new opportunities to the area. Full of vitality and ideas, he ran the town like his businesses., Frank was admired for his outgoing nature and down-to-earth personality, despite his growing high profile in the larger world. He truly loved his home town and took pride in being friendly with everyone in the community.