New owners add warmth to a cool Keyport shop BY TAMMY MCKILLIP Correspondent TAMMY MCKILLIP Debi and Bob Ciecierski held a grand opening last month for their new business, Debi's Seashore Delights, Keyport. KEYPORT - Borough native Bob Ciecierski said his childhood summertime memories are of family gatherings at the local malt shop, eating ice cream cones and sipping soda fountain drinks. The volunteer firefighter and soon-to-be retired computer programmer for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority said it was a more innocent time then, a time when families hung out together. People shared experiences, he said, and there were plenty of places where kids could sit and relax with their folks. "I've lived in Keyport all my life," he said. "I remember when I was growing up, we used to have the little mom and pop ice cream stores or soda fountains where you could go and have an ice cream cone and sit at a soda fountain and drink a soda or milkshake. That piece of Keyport history had gone by the wayside. Keyport needs someplace where families can come and sit and relax and enjoy. You don't find that nowadays in today's society. You know, families don't have a lot of places where they can go and relax together." So when the opportunity to purchase a seasonal outdoor corner ice cream shop presented itself to he and his wife, Debi, the couple jumped right in, and a newly envisioned business and a few new dreams, were born. He had always dreamed of opening his own restaurant, he said, but the stresses and demands of running a full-menu, full-time establishment seemed like too much trouble at this stage in his life. Opening the ice cream place has reawakened his desire to recreate the sort of place he remembers so fondly from his past. "We want to make sure that we can master what we have here first, and then we are thinking about opening a true old-fashioned ice cream store someplace here in Keyport," he said. "I remember my mom and dad going down to a place on First Street called Emily's. They used to get pre-grocery store half-gallons of ice cream. In those days it was called 'bulk ice cream.' You would be able to get a pint of hand-dipped ice cream right in a Chinese take-out container, and you'd take it home, and you'd have it with the family. That's what my goal would be." In the meantime, Debi's Seashore Delights serves soft serve Welsh's Farms ice cream, frozen bananas and - for the weight-conscious - frozen fruit bars from their roadside location at 261 Broadway. The establishment's six family-sized picnic tables are bedecked by colorful umbrellas, and the atmosphere is Jersey Shore kitsch, with giant papier-mâché ice cream cones beckoning Route 35 drivers. Ciecierski said Mayor Robert Bergen and Councilwoman Christian Bolte attended Debi's grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 26. "We had a little party here, with giveaways for all the kids," he said. "That's the other thing that I see us doing over the summer. We plan on hosting family-type events - kid-oriented, like a Firefighter's Day¿ where we'll have maybe one or two firetrucks here for the kids to see up close, as well as a couple of firefighters to talk to them." He credits his wife and two grown sons with getting Debi's open and running. He said he not only couldn't have done it without them, he hopes someday to leave the legacy behind to his grandchildren. Until then, he's planning to chill out¿ and enjoy running his retirement company. Debi's Seashore Delights is located at 291 Broadway in Keyport. The store is open seven days a week, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.