BY HAILEY MINTON

Tracy Drollinger’s mother, Sue Wallace, worked for 7-Eleven for 45 years and paved the way for all her children, including Tracy, for careers in management.

In 1975, her mother wanted to work part-time, so she started working for 7-Eleven. She was the type of woman who didn’t drive and had never written a check; her husband took care of that. She worked 75 hours in her first two weeks and, suddenly, her manager was getting promoted and needed her to fill the location’s role as store manager. “7-Eleven has been a great company for women,” explained Tracy. “This was back in the mid 70’s when the women’s movement was really going.” Her mother managed that store and then became supervisor over nine other stores. She was responsible for paperwork, HR, and the daily deposits for each store. Eventually, she wanted to go back into management, and in 1993, she moved to the 7-Eleven in Ogden at 32nd and Harrison. In 2005, 7-Eleven started franchising, so Sue purchased that location in Ogden. Nine years ago, they bought the 7-Eleven franchise in North Ogden, and Tracy enjoys getting to know the people who come in every day. “North Ogden is such a tight-knit community. The customers are amazing.”

“She is a funny lady, very likable, honest, and true to her word,” said Tracy, describing her mother. There was one time she had to terminate one of her employees, and he came out of the meeting thanking her. “Her intuition about people and situations are spot on,” said Tracy.

Tracy started working at the Ogden location when she was 23, and her mother taught her everything she knew about running a store. After working there about six years, she floated around to help other 7-Eleven franchises get started. For a time, 7-Eleven was franchising a ton of stores to people who had never worked for 7-Eleven before, so they didn’t know the process. Tracy trained them. She is the top franchisee in the northern area, so people come to her when they want advice to help manage their own stores. Her parents have since retired, but her dad still loves to come in, make the coffee, and chat with customers. “The people love them and continue to ask about them.” Tracy is dedicated and really cares about the business. “It’s more than just a job, I want to work to make mom proud and carry on her legacy.”