Millerton deli fined for violating mask mandate: The face mask debate continues to brew, close to home

MILLERTON — Customers who walk up to the front door at the popular Talk of the Towne Deli at 208 Route 44 in Millerton any day of the week, barring Sunday (the only day the deli is closed), might be surprised by the sign that greets them. It reads, “Attention: Due to the fact that some A-hole keeps turning us into the Board of Health, please wear a mask. Some employees without masks have a medical issue, so if you don’t feel comfortable, stay home.” It’s signed with a cheerful smiley face.

The over-arching message from the deli owners Mary Hosier and her sister, Sandra Sherman? They don’t believe that face masks can protect the public from catching the deadly coronavirus in the midst of the current global pandemic that’s killed 1,555,535 people worldwide as of Tuesday, Dec. 8.

A non-believer

“I don’t believe in them because I know people who wore them and caught it anyway,” said Hosier, “and I totally don’t believe all the COVID deaths that are reported. All the sicknesses are not COVID.”

Hosier said that “COVID is no different than flu,” and that “more people die of flu than they do of this COVID,” when interviewed for this article on Saturday, Dec. 5.

“That’s just how I feel and I can make it known to anybody that’s how I feel,” she said frankly. “They’ve got everybody scared; they want to control everybody, the government does.”

Hosier’s Talk of the Towne Deli has been located in the small plaza next to the mini-golf  range for nine years; before that the deli was just up the road for six years. Previously Hosier owned the Millerton Diner from 1988 to 2000. She fears if the coronavirus forces businesses to shut down one more time, the local economy won’t be able to survive. This past March, Governor Andrew Cuomo put New York State on PAUSE with an Executive Order, mandating all non-essential businesses close along with schools and public gatherings in order to slow the spread of the virus. Restaurants were able to remain open by selling food and drinks curbside and by delivery.

Deli deals with masks

Despite not supporting the statewide mask mandate, Hosier said her five employees, including herself, have been wearing masks after being fined by the county’s Department of Health (DOH) about two months ago. The DOH fine was based on an anonymous tip. Fines start at $250 and can double on second violations, going as high as $1,000. 

But one Talk of the Towne customer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of there being a backlash, said when she went into the deli on Friday, Nov. 13, she was verbally assaulted by a fellow customer when she inquired about the deli’s mask policy. A Millbrook resident who works from home but often shops and does business in Millerton, she said experience was traumatic.

“My first warning should have been the hand-written sign on door,” she said, noting that although the women working behind the counter were wearing masks, a couple of men waiting for their orders were not. She was concerned, but they quickly went to sit at their table, and she let the matter go. She then noticed another man, whom she stood as far away from as possible, waiting for his food, as was she. He, too, was maskless. She asked the woman in charge how she decides when to say something to her customers about wearing masks. That’s when she heard from the maskless man.

“The guy said to mind your own f-ing business, and I said I wasn’t talking to you, but it’s everybody’s business,” said the customer.

“The woman shoves the order to me and rolls her eye toward the guy,” recounted the horrified customer, who said the man then said something extremely profane and aggressive to her. “He practically spit it out. He was maybe 30-ish. I just kept walking straight out the door… It was too scary. I was very shaken by it. It was the first time I had the nerve to say anything and it was the kind of reaction you read about. I really wasn’t expecting it. The sign on the door should have been my first warning… Such venom.” 

Hosier, when asked about the incident, said she hadn’t heard about it. 

“I’ve never had anybody tell me they had a problem, unless it was on my day off,” she said. When asked how she would have handled it had she been present, the deli owner said, “I think I would wait and see how it escalated until I intervened. But I sure would stop it.”

Restaurants in New York, including Dutchess County, the town of North East and the village of Millerton, must require employees and patrons to wear face masks (unless dining). 

“Face coverings have been, and continue to be, one of our most effective mitigations against the spread of COVID,” Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro told The Millerton News on Monday, Dec. 7. “It is critical we all continue to do our part to keep ourselves healthy and prevent spread in our communities and the data shows face coverings help us do that.  Now is not the time to give in to fatigue or impatience, now is the time for us to shore up defenses, do our part and come out stronger as a community.”

North East town Supervisor Chris Kennan echoed those sentiments; he sent out a COVID community update on Dec. 7.

“The numbers continue to head in a negative direction,” he stated in the email notification. “A couple of months ago, the county was tracking 100 to 200 active infections on any particular day.  Today, Dutchess County is tracking 1,032 cases. That ten-fold increase speaks for itself, as does the increase in hospitalizations, which has gone from single digits to 91 today.”

Kennan also informed residents that he was just updated by Governor Andrew Cuomo. According to the supervisor, Cuomo said, “It will likely be months before a critical mass of vaccinations becomes available.”

That makes it more important than ever that people continue to wear their masks, according to Molinaro and Kennan.

On Thursday, Dec. 3, President Elect Joe Biden told CNN’s Jake Tapper that he wants every American to mask up for the first 100 days after he takes office.  

When asked if her customers are asked to wear masks, Hosier said a grudging yes. When asked if she enforces that rule when customers don’t abide the mandate, Hosier replied, “Nope.”  

A COVID victim weighs in

That’s caused some former patrons to steer clear of Talk of the Towne, including one Millerton resident who used to order from the deli frequently, but after becoming gravely ill with COVID-19 declared she would never return. She, too, spoke anonymously for fear of retribution.

“Somebody posted [on Facebook] how the [deli] got told on to the DOH,” said the customer, adding despite her concerns she still wants the deli to succeed. “I want them to stay open and have dine-in service. You need to help us do that by wearing masks and social distancing or we’re going to end up doing this again and this time your business may not survive, or you’re potentially infecting people who may not be able to spend money at your establishment because they end up like me or worse.

“When we don’t do these things we’re setting ourselves up to go on pause again and I don’t want to do that,” she added. “It’s like watching somebody say they want one thing as they do another. The masks are going to help us live through this until there’s a vaccine, and if we’re not wearing them, then what are we doing? It’s an act of love, an act of Christian love, to wear a mask… It’s OK to abandon political positions for public health.”

She added after suffering through the symptoms of the coronavirus, which began with her contracting pneumonia, complicated by asthma — around her 32nd birthday this past spring — during which time she had to deal with false negative tests, doctors not believing she had COVID despite being deathly ill, not being able to breathe, violent coughing fits, gastrointestinal troubles, high fever and then the psychological toll of having the virus — dealing with anti-maskers is especially tough. 

“I did not think I was going to live,” she said with emotion. “I feel like I have a responsibility to say something, but I don’t know how to appeal to people because it seems like they don’t care. I might cry just talking about that.”

She added she can’t now, or in the future, support a business that doesn’t support wearing masks, although Hosier said she doesn’t believe she’s losing customers because of her stance — in fact, she thinks she’s gaining support. 

Deli still has its base and its sign

“Our business is pretty good, knock on wood, thank God,” said Hosier. “I believe we are gaining business. We’re not sitting at the door taking temperatures, doing all kinds of stuff and making customers feel uncomfortable.”

The COVID patient, though, said she won’t be among those returning to the deli.

“Not only would I not go now, I’m going to remember who is acting like this because I won’t return ever,” she said. “Oakhurst Diner… I make a point of buying lunch there because they have done everything to the fullest extent of their ability. That is an example of being responsible and responsive — they did right by this community. What can you say that hasn’t been said? They fed the hungry, protected their workers, did everything they had to and then a little more. Those are the businesses that I’m going to spend money at.” 

Hosier, who said she “does believe [the coronavirus] is real,” pointed out that Talk of the Towne Deli has delivered food to frontline workers, purchased by people in the community at what she said was a “significant discount” to locations throughout the Tri-state region like Sharon Hospital and Sharon Pharmacy, among others, during the pandemic. 

She also said, bluntly, that customers who don’t feel comfortable with her sense of humor, or slant of politics, should dine elsewhere.

“Everybody has got to live their life and stop being so afraid. We keep everything clean here; everything is bleached, wiped down. We do our best to serve the community,” she said unapologetically. “Most people like it. If you don’t feel comfortable, please stay home. [Is the sign] aggressive? Yes. People come in laughing their butts off. Our signs are very offensive because they’re all jokes. If you don’t have a joking personality… we have wise-crack signs, it’s who we are; we’re genuine — you can be yourself around us. It’s who we are… And we’re not taking [the sign] down any time soon.”