Wimpy's co-owner Frank Lewis dies Thursday at age 90

One of the owners of a Cape Girardeau fixture has died, but many remember the legacy he helped create.

Frank Lewis, who died Thursday at age 90, worked with his brothers for nearly 30 years at Wimpy's Drive-In, their restaurant/grocery store at 800 N. Kingshighway.

"My father was the most postive person you wanted to meet," said Lynette Williamson, one of Lewis' three children, who lives in St. Louis. "Everyone wanted to stay in touch with him. From the president at SEMO, to the person who would cut his grass, they all knew him by his first name."

Wimpy's was the place to be in the 1950s and 1960s, according to Lewis' brother, Freeman, of Cape Girardeau. Freeman Lewis said people would drive to Wimpy's on a Saturday night, then down Broadway, then back to Wimpy's. He said his brother always liked to speak with all the customers.

Cape Girardeau was growing and the Lewises decided to sell the land of the family business when a bank was interested in buying the property in 1973. Bill Lewis moved Wimpy's to South Kingshighway, where the business switched to serving breakfast and lunch only, until he closed the doors for good in 1997.

After serving in the U.S. Navy, Frank Lewis started working at Wimpy's in 1947, five years after it opened.

Lewis had other hobbies, including square dancing with his wife, Irene, and fishing at "secret ponds" throughout Cape Girardeau County.

The funeral for Frank Lewis will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Chapel. Friends may call the funeral home from 4 to 8 p.m. today. Burial will be in Cape County Memorial Park.

tkrakowiak@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137