Dana Hall students have been enjoying ice cream and frozen yogurt at Truly’s for years. However, among the changes due to the global pandemic, one that affects Truly’s financially is that Dana Hall no longer has free periods.

Due to COVID-19, hybrid students are unable to leave and return to campus during the day, and they are required to be in study hall during all periods they aren’t in class. This has created a bump in the road for several businesses that Dana students are particularly fond of, including Truly’s. According to Seth Tobin, a high school employee of the business, a large proportion of their customers are Dana Hall students. Now, the lack of free periods has “negatively affected” their business, according to him. 

A number of students expressed how their visits to Truly’s has been affected due to the pandemic. Jana Husami ’23, Cat Carapezza ’23, and Kali  Gill ’23 all stated that they most frequently visited Truly’s during free periods. However, they have not visited the store since Dana Hall closed last spring. 

Businesses that are keeping their stores opened have to come up with protocols to ensure that their customers are safe and healthy. Before COVID-19, Truly’s standard setup was two small tables and chairs in the center of the shop, as well as barstool seating on the side wall. They now only allow customers to come in and place orders, but customers are required to eat outside of the store. Only two groups are allowed in the store at a time, one group ordering and one group paying. There are also physical boundaries that keep customers from touching the counters.

Tobin explained that the store shut down for twelve weeks in March when quarantine struck and later opened in the first week of June. When they reopened at the start of the summer, their customer rate was “actually the same, if not more,” and the store was “very busy.” 

However, once the school year started, customers were not seen as often during the day, in part because Dana Hall students were not stopping by the store. 

Truly Yogurt has been a staple of not only the town of Wellesley but also of the Dana Hall culture. Established in 1989, this neighborhood joint has been a hangout spot for Dana girls for years.