TEXARKANA - While most workplaces were closed Christmas Day, some of businesses, that are usually deemed 24-7 operations, went ahead and marked Christmas as a day on and not a day off.
Maryli Martinez, a hostess with the local International House of Pancakes, said Friday that Christmas is as busy a day for IHOP as any other day - and she loves it.
"I think the reason for this is that IHOP is able to draw business from all the other restaurants that don't bother to stay open for Christmas," she said. "We also provide people with breakfast, lunch and dinner - but mostly breakfast."
Martinez said she thinks IHOP will always be open on Christmas.
"People started coming in here at 6 a.m., this morning and that's great, because I like seeing people and meeting people the most," she said.
Just a few blocks west of IHOP's location at the intersection of Interstate 30 and State Line Avenue - Wanda Martin, unit manager for the 24-hour service Waffle House, spoke enthusiastic about the business her restaurant draws - not just on Christmas Day but throughout the holiday season and all year long.
"Waffle House has served people on Christmas Day ever since the company opened up the franchise 65 years ago back in 1955," she said. "Christmas is perhaps the busiest day we have, because people start coming in at 6 p.m., on Christmas Eve and it stays busy until 2 a.m.," she said. "I think we also do good business because most of the other restaurants stay closed on Christmas. But basically, people who travel just like to stop-off somewhere and eat - and they don't have to cook. We also make people feel important when they walk in here."
Martin said that she would just as soon spend Christmas at Waffle House.
"I've been here for 35 years, and I don't think I would know how to spend a holiday anywhere else," she said.
Besides restaurants, hotels and motels, like Super 8 on the Arkansas-side, basically operate 24-7 regardless of holidays, said A. J. Lad, the motel's manager.
"Right now, on Christmas Day, we aren't too busy, but we have rooms available, just in case anyone wants to stop - and we are always open on Christmas Day," he said.
The peak of the holiday season comes a few days before Christmas and a few days after, Lad said.
"That's when people are usually traveling back and forth between their home and visiting their family's home," he said. "Usually on their way back, they might stop here."
Apart from businesses, non-profit agencies, like the Randy Sams Shelter, stay ready to receive people.
"Right now, we have 42 residents here, but usually during Christmas, in years past, we have had as many as 80 people here," said Kitchen Manager Lori Petit. "This year COVID-19 has really cut into our numbers."