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Business & Tech

From Politics to Owning an Ice Cream Shop

Fourteen years ago, former Highland Township supervisor Tom Dunleavy purchased the landmark Mr. C's Custom Cone Co.

Like many White Lake residents, Tom Dunleavy, owner of , is wishing away the cold weather. Mr. C’s opened its doors for the 2011 season on April 2, and Dunleavy’s hoping business will heat up along with the temperatures.

Although cold weather might not affect some businesses, it keeps people from seeking out an ice cream shop, he said. When he took over the business after buying it from Bob Clarkston in 1997, Dunleavy attempted to leave the shop open nearly all year long. He soon realized the business couldn’t battle Michigan winters, and he found himself waking up at 2 a.m. to go buy doughnuts and make fresh coffee in time to lure customers through the doors.

“I was totally shocked. I didn’t know any better,” Dunleavy said. “I like ice cream anytime.”

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Now, Dunleavy is happy that Mr. C’s operates only six months of the year. The other six months he gets to relax and play, he said.

Retiring to an ice cream shop

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Manning an ice cream shop wasn’t always a dream for the 64-year-old owner of Mr. C’s. In fact, Dunleavy was in politics for nearly 20 years prior to opening the shop, serving as supervisor for Highland Township. Even politics wasn’t something he sought out. Instead, he discovered he enjoyed it while working on political campaigns.

“I love it here. I enjoy coming to work, and I’m sorry I didn’t get into the business 30 years ago,” Dunleavy said of the ice cream business.

The people who come into Mr. C’s are his favorite part of owning the ice cream shop, just as the people he came in contact with as supervisor were why he coveted that position.

“I’ve met a lot of interesting people and saw a lot of interesting things in my lifetime,” Dunleavy said. “I’m scared to go to sleep at night because I’m afraid I’ll miss something.”

Notable places and faces

Dunleavy has lived in Michigan for most of his life. He grew up around eight siblings—five sisters and five brothers. When he was 9, his family moved from the Highland area back to Ireland, where both his parents were born and his father was raised. Dunleavy said their departure for Ireland aboard a boat drew media coverage because of the rarity of a family that size returning to its native land.

He resided in Ireland for nine years until the family decided to move back to its roots in Michigan. Tale has it, he said, that the movie The Quiet Man, starring John Wayne, was loosely based on his father purchasing a 153-acre farm in Ireland and the fuss it caused.

Dunleavy is proud of his Irish heritage and likes to retreat to Ireland when he can. He noted the residents there are the most hospitable people he has ever met.

Although he loves traveling to Ireland, he and his wife, Pat, also enjoy visiting new places as much as possible. One of the most notable vacations his family, which also includes children Ryan and Erin, ever took was to Lake Cumberland, KY, where they rented a houseboat for a week. 

Aside from his various travels, Dunleavy likes to reminisce about when he got the honor of eating dinner with Bob Hope backstage after a show at the Fox Theatre and when he ran into Dean Martin at a casino in Las Vegas.

Dunleavy has also associated with many professional football players throughout the years while playing the role of Santa Claus for the Detroit Lions. He has played Santa in some way or another for more than 30 years, he said, and has had a slew of football players sit on his lap. 

He even had the pleasure of meeting Steven Tyler of Aerosmith when the band made their way to taste Mr. C’s ice cream, after being told by a Townsend Hotel employee that they had the best in the area. The Townsend is located in Birmingham and Dunleavy was impressed Tyler was sent to his shop. Dunleavy chuckles while remembering that at the time, he didn’t even know who Tyler was. He just knew that his employees were swooning over him and a large crowd was starting to congregate around the shop.

“One of the girls who worked here took home his cup and framed it,” Dunleavy said.

Tyler stayed at the shop for about four hours, Dunleavy recalled. Aside from Tyler, it has been common for local professional athletes to come by and sneak a taste of what the shop has to offer.

Mr. Cs is all about variety

In Dunleavy’s opinion, the shops sells some of the highest-quality ice cream on the market and has endless amounts of flavors and concoctions to try. Some of the house favorites include yogurt, old-fashioned Italian sodas and Sanders hot fudge cream puffs. Dunleavy’s personal favorite ice creams are raspberry chip cheesecake and butter pecan.

For the employees, getting to eat ice cream whenever they want is the biggest perk to working at Mr. C’s.

“It’s the best job ever,” said Megan Brackins, 21, of Waterford. “We can eat all the ice cream we want.”

Dunleavy has built strong relationships with most of his past and present employees. He happily shows off pictures in his office of the girls and boys who have worked there, many of whom he has kept in contact with through the years.

“He’s a good boss, laid-back and really generous,” said employee Megan Scarlett, 19.

 Mr. C’s Custom Cone Co.'s hours of operation are 3-9 p.m. daily until the weather warms up. Then hours will change to 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

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