Page 6 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JANUARY 22, 2021 Oil Burner Service • Oil Filter • Cleaning • Tune-Up $140 Call 781-324-2770 AUTOTECH 1989 SINCE CA$H FOR YOUR CAR! DRIVE IT - PUSH IT - TOW IT! Cold Hard Cash For Your Car, Truck or SUV! 2013 KIA SORRENTO 4X4 Remote Start, Third Row Seating, Premium Sound System, One Owner, Only 73K Miles, One Owner, Warranty! PRICE REDUCED! $10,500 Easy Financing Available! 2013 HYUNDAI SANTA FE Sport Package, 4X4, Leather Interior, Loaded, One Owner, 105K Miles, Excellent Condition, Warranty! PRICE REDUCED! $10,500 781-321-8841 1236 EasternAve • Malden EddiesAutotech.com Like us on Facebook advocate newspaper Facebook.com/Advocate.news.ma We Pay Cash For Your Vehicle! The Banana Boat –pictured with co-owners Avri Schena and Amora Schena-Callahan and their employees – offi cially closed on December 31, 2020, after 43 years of serving its famous soft serve ice cream. (Photo provided by the Schena Family) By Marianne Salza A fter 43 years of serving the community, Revere Beach’s legendary Banana Boat offi cially closed on December 31, 2020. Since posting the announcement on social media, sisters and co-owners, Avri Schena and Amora Schena-Callahan, have been receiving an outpouring of nostalgic memories and sincere notes of appreciation from customers and friends. Employees who worked at the ice cream parlor some 20 years ago responded with gratitude for treating them like family (and teaching them how to clean). “It’s made it harder because we feel bad,” explained Avri, who now displays the turquoise anchor that had crested the Banana Boat in her entryway. “So many people enjoyed the Banana Boat. It’s overwhelming.” Word about a gambling casino being built on the beach inspired Avri and Amora’s parents, Tony and Ann Schena, and their mother’s brother, Bobby Fanara, and his wife, Maureen, to establish an ice cream stand. Designed by Ann to resemble the ocean and built by Tony and his family, the Banana Boat was constructed like a fortress on the corner of Beach Street and Ocean Avenue, Revere, in six weeks. Avri and Amora’s parents instilled the morals of generosity, kindness, and the importance of serving quality products. “Our parents would be proud of us, because after my mom passed away, we continued the business,” said Avri, whose sister added, “and made it a fun place to be.” Avri and Amora, like countless customers, will always remember the sweet taste of the Banana Boat: hot fudge, bananas and candy. The ladies reminisced about their daily routine of cleaning the picnic tables, stocking the shelves, opening the window latches and breathing the smell of bleach and water when they opened in the morning. “This year, we couldn’t have benches or anyone sitting outside,” Amora mentioned about the Coronavirus pandemic. “The city had regulations and didn’t want anyone sitting on the wall. They had to buy their ice cream and go home.” That may have upset customers who were eager to dig in, but Avri and Amora laughed about crossing the cleaning of melted ice cream and cherry syrup off their chores list. The sisters recalled the year their family pinned hundreds of customer photographs to their outside board and window frames in the 1980s. “They loved looking at their pictures,” boasted Avri, who began working at the Banana Boat at 21 years old. “It was a lot of fun.” One of Amora’s fondest memories is how children loved receiving American fl ags on their ice cream. Sometimes, little ones would race to the counter just for the fl ags. “I will always remember watching the little kids light up when they were handed their ice cream with rainbow jimmies. Sometimes the poor kid would cry when the ice cream fell off ,” chuckled Amora, who began working at the Banana Boat at age 18. “We always gave them another scoop with no charge.” While removing their belongings, Avri and Amora discovered the original 1977 building permit in their mother’s fi ling cabinet, as well as her handwritten menus from the 1970s, when burgers and seafood were briefl y sold at the Banana Boat. Among many keepsakes, like the hot fudge warmer that Amora saved, they each brought a picnic table home with them. “We never had a chance to enjoy summers,” admitted Avri, who believes that a garage will be erected on the property to accommodate MGH Revere Healthcare Center patients. “I’m not a spring chick anymore, and I wanted to retire.” Avri and Amora are looking forward to traveling, spending time with family during the warm months and utilizing their brother’s new pool that he installed in his Cape Code home. “I don’t want to retire,” blurted Amora. “I want to work at an ice cream store. I’m married and have children. My husband would like going on a vacation together. I’ve always wanted to go to Niagara Falls.” Glancing at one another for affi rmation that it was no longer a “cardinal sin,” as Avri pointed out, the Schena sisters revealed that the secret ingredient (its absence would have resulted in “blah” soft serve ice cream, according to Amora) was vanilla extract. Banana Boat closes after 43 years
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