With great regret we are closing "FunnyBones Toys." The days of being the "ye' old toy shoppe" in the center of town will soon come to an end.

We viewed opening a business in Hampton as an exciting opportunity. We had great faith that by offering quality products and quality service, customers would support it and "FunnyBones Toys" would thrive — as it did for many years.

Historically we have seen businesses come and go around the Seacoast and we are always shocked when owners take parting shots, blaming others for their closure. We will not do that. In turn, we wish to thank the community for supporting us as they did. Sure things could be better in the downtown: parking, traffic control, relationships with the Chamber of Commerce and town government all could be better, but it is really the responsibility of the business owner to make sure that their endeavor survives.

Over the last seven years we took pride in providing a service to our customers. We assisted many a grandparent on which toy was best for their "exceptionally smart" grandchild. We made sure that families were happy with their purchase even if it meant sacrificing a bigger sale. When children had money "burning a hole in their pocket" we made sure that they did not spend it all in our store. There was always a reward for a child who presented a genuine and unsolicited "thank you."

If we did not have a product on our shelves we would guide customers to find it elsewhere (ala, sending them to Gimbals). We respected our customers, our competitors and hopefully we gained their respect in return.

Many might look at the departure of our store as a trend in a string of downtown business failures. We very strongly beg to differ. Your own newspaper recently wrote an article titled "Up on the Downtown" citing many exciting changes; taking place that will enhance the culture of the Hampton business community. We are sorry we cannot stick around to be part of it.

As for now all we can say is "Thanks Hampton ... it was fun!" Funnybones is now offering a "20-50% Off Sale" from now until the end of June.