AMBOY – When Barb Harrison bought The Last Alarm on April 1, 2004, it wasn’t an April Fool’s Day joke.

When she sold the bar to Rachel Miller on April 1, 2024, it wasn’t a laughing matter either.

“It was perfect to the day, 20 years. I bought and sold The Last Alarm in exactly 20 years. I decided to sell a year ago,” said Harrison. “I started to look for the next buyer. I was asking people if they were interested. There was a lot of interest, which was a great thing because I had a lot of people to choose from. I had a list.

“As soon as Rachel said she was interested, she moved to the top of the list. She’s been an employee of mine for the last 11 years.”

At first, Miller was unsure if she wanted to buy the bar, but after further brainstorming and some in-house council, it became the right move for the 2005 Amboy High School graduate who has always lived in Amboy.

“Actually, my customers told me the bar was going up for sale before she did,” said Miller, who began forming a bond with Harrison at The Main Flower Barn which Harrison owned for 11 years and was an employee for a bit before she bought The Last Alarm. “Shortly after Depot Days 2023, Barb made the comment, ‘I don’t know how many more Depot Days I have left in me.’ It does take a lot out of someone to pull off a successful Depot Days in the bar. One of my customers said, ‘Barb might be slowing down, she may retire.’

“I went home and made a comment to my husband. He gave me confidence by telling me not to be scared and to ask Barb, so one morning I came in and asked her about the sale of The Last Alarm.

“She said absolutely.”

For Harrison, the sale was sweet.

The 20-year journey was fun. It brought pride and hardships like businesses tend to do.

Now she’s ready for retirement.

“It’s more sweet than bitter. It’s a lot of work and a lot of hours,” Harrison said. “I’m a florist by trade. Several years after I bought the bar, I started doing flowers on the side, at the bar, and my DIYs (do it yourself) at the bar. I was always busy with weddings on weekends and throughout the summer.

“I had a lot of irons in the fire and when it came time to quit, there really wasn’t any bitterness. I’m ready to slow down and concentrate more on my personal time and the volunteering I do for the community. I’m just retiring from receiving a paycheck.”

Along with The Last Alarm, Harrison has given up her floral design, except for her DIYS which she still plans to do a couple of times a month. Miller is excited to host Harrison and the flower group anytime they want.

When Miller was hired 11 years, she was on the schedule one day a week. In 2020, she took after the bar four days a week and became the daytime mainstay where she learned the ins and outs of running the bar.

Now, The Last Alarm has become part of her lifestyle and is excited for the future as the owner.

“I originally did this job to get out of the house. I have four children at home,” Miller said. “When someone mentioned Barb wanted to retire, I couldn’t imagine working for someone else because I knew I would be left to answer a lot of questions on how we do this or how do we do that. I kind of went into it as I either buy the bar or I’m not doing it at all.

“I had a goal to open that day, April 1. We were not going to be closed. We were a couple of hours off of when I wanted to open, but we were still able to open, and that made me extremely happy. Customers were asking if it was an April Fool’s Day joke because we didn’t tell anyone for a long thing. It was the best kept secret for about five months in the bar. It was driving residents crazy of who was going to buy the bar.

“We announced it at our Christmas party, which is a big shindig, and we had a packed house. They were all ecstatic to find out who was buying the bar.”

Many have asked if there are going to be changes.

Miller shakes her head no.

“It’s business as usual,” Miller said. “Queen of Hearts is still on Wednesday. Trivia is still on Tuesdays. Same workers. Same faces. Same specials.”