When the Manassas Journal hired its first paperboy, Dave already had a little side venture.
You may remember it.
Nathan’s Dairy Bar.
At first, Dave managed both.
He delivered papers through the Weems and Lomond neighborhoods, waking up extra early and working late to make time for Nathan’s Dairy Bar on Mathis Avenue.
Sadly, that arrangement has now come to an end.
Nathan’s Dairy Bar has taken off, and Dave now needs to give it his full attention.
We hate to lose Dave from the route.
But we understand.
Turns out, a paper route is pretty good business school.
Take care of your customers. Keep track of the money. Be on time. And when a few hundred papers are waiting to be rolled, bagged and delivered, you learn how to move quickly and efficiently.
Dave learned that years ago.
Now he’s putting it to work with ice cream.
And judging by the activity at Nathan’s, he has plenty to keep him busy.
For the Manassas Journal, Dave helped bring back something we hoped people might still enjoy: a local newspaper delivered by someone from the neighborhood.
For Nathan’s, he keeps doing something Manassas has known for years: giving people a place to stop, talk and smile.
So Dave’s return to the paper route may have been brief.
We’re still glad we got him back for a little while.
He helped us bring an old hometown tradition back to the neighborhood, and somewhere along the way reminded us that a paper route can still teach a thing or two.
To Dave and his son Nathan, thank you for all the smiles you have given Manassas over the years.
Here’s hoping there are many more papers to read, many more cones to serve and many more smiles still to come.
Sources / Further Reading
- Previous Manassas Journal coverage: Manassas Journal Hires Its First Paperboy
- Subscribe to the Manassas Journal: manassasjournal.com/subscribe
- Ice Cream, 8th Edition: H. Douglas Goff, Richard W. Hartel and Scott A. Rankin, Springer Nature, 2025. The reference includes a chapter on entrepreneurship, retailing and store operations. Springer Nature
