In January there were changes at probably the most important place in the village for many people, namely, the Pharmacy in Forest Drive. The popular owner and principal pharmacist Sailesh Dawda decided to take a well -earned retirement after some 33 years running the shop in Theydon Bois. The business was purchased by Sailesh and his pharmacist wife Raksha in 1988 from a Mr McFarlane.
Since then the shop has been refitted twice, resulting today in it being almost three times the size of the original shop. Unfortunately Raksha has suffered from health problems in the last few years and after a difficult 18 months dealing with the pandemic as well as Raksha’s health difficulties, Sailesh decided to retire. He told us that the pandemic has Sailesh recently been extremely hard for all pharmacies, none more than his own. It has been extremely challenging but very rewarding. Sailesh told Village News
“It has been a real pleasure to live and work here and I’ve enjoyed getting to know and serving our customers over the years. Raksha and our family have been really happy in the village and have made some lifelong friends. We really appreciate the support and loyalty we have had from all in the village.”
Sailesh said that the current staff will be remaining with the new owners and he encourages people to come in, meet and welcome them to the community. There’s no doubt that during their time in Theydon Sailesh & Raksha went above and beyond the call of duty and also rose to the constant challenges of being a vital bridge between patient, doctor and hospital.
We will all miss them.
