Chimo Guns: End of an Era
Contributed by Carmen Pell
1976 to 2026! After 50 years of serving our amazing community, Chimo Guns is closing its doors. Chimo’s first location was in the Airport Shopping Center, which is now the Value Village Mall. This was before Carrs, Fred Meyers, or Walmart, and for those who remember, even before the Cottonwood Creek Mall. It is among the oldest businesses currently operating in the Wasilla area. Initially opened by Roy Wallis and his brother.
The store operated in its initial location for 6 years, then moved to its current location in 1982, where it shared the condo with Napa Auto Parts. In 1986, Roy’s brother left the business and Roy and his wife, Nancy, kept it running through the booms and busts of Alaska’s tumultuous economy. Roy went on to meet the Lord in 2012, Nancy and her daughter and son-in-law, Craig and Carmen Pell, have continued the Chimo legacy of a small local family-owned business.
That legacy started with Roy and Nancy making one of those life-changing decisions that actually wasn’t all that uncommon in 1976. They would drive up the Alcan Highway from California with a truck, an 8-foot cab over camper, 2 kids, a dog, and three 8-track tapes, Jim Croce, Johnny Cash, and Johnny Horton. Their “North to Alaska” adventure came with no clear plan, just a dream of a new start in the vast land of the Last Frontier that they had vacationed in the year prior. An outdoorsman’s paradise! After several campgrounds and different ideas of what kind of new adventure they might like to embark on, they settled on Wasilla and a gun store. Offering the community a full-service store focused on guns, ammo, and all things outdoor. Starting small at first, then expanding into fishing and archery, then as the community grew, they scaled it back to continue to be a viable community resource.
As only a small business can, over the years the store has not just provided the material goods of firearms and accessories, but it has served as a gathering place. A place to tell tall tales of fantastic hunting and fishing prowess. A place for the infirmed to come and sit just to get out of the house. A place to find a friendly face or a listening ear.
It is with mixed emotions and much prayer that the decision was made to close the doors. Nancy is closing in on 79 and is ready to rest from the daily grind of opening the doors. For Craig and Carmen, it is an end of an era and an opportunity to start new adventures.
While traveling through Canada, Roy was greeted with the word Chimo, it is a greeting for indigenous peoples similar to “aloha” in Hawaii. It can mean hello, goodbye, or peace be with you. With that in mind the Chimo family would like to say “Chimo” to Wasilla and the surrounding Mat-Su Valley communities. Thank you for supporting us and allowing us to serve you these last 50 years.
If you’re looking to get one last thing from Chimos, the final going out of business sale will start April 15th with tentative plans to run through June 15th. Any interest in leasing the space? Stop in and chat with Craig.