How Did Leapin’ Lizards Espresso Get Its Name?
Did you ever wonder how the Leapin’ Lizards Espresso Drive-Thrus located in front of the Super Walmart in Fuquay-Varina and the Food Lion in Holly Springs, got their name? Liz Schroeder, the owner of these local institutions, has been asked to explain the origin of the name many, many times. In 2000, Liz’s brother, Ross, came to live with her, her husband, and their three children in Fuquay-Varina for a short period of time while he “decided what to do with his life.” An excellent scholar, he was faced with going to law school or pursuing a career to hone in on what he really wanted to do. While here, he played with his nieces and nephew, exercised obsessively, gardened with Liz, and worked at the various brew-pubs located in the warehouse district of Raleigh. One night at dinner, he started complaining that there were no drive-thru coffee shops to feed his voracious coffee addiction – like they have in Sonoma County, CA, where their parents live. Liz’s mind started churning – “I could do that – design and operate a drive-thru coffee shop.” The immediate question was, “What would you call it?” Without a moment’s hesitation, Liz answered, “Leapin’ Lizards, of course…”
All of her life, her family has referred to her as Lizard – Leapin’ Liz – starting with the youthful pronunciation of “Wiz” and “Wizard.” Her father still calls and leaves messages for “Lizard.” So, the decision was simple – but the road to opening the shops was not. With her three children in tow, Liz worked tirelessly to find a location in Wake County for her drive-thru kiosks. Her other brother, Jon, flew in from California and helped her with her logo and her mother was her financial angel. Almost a year and a half after her promise to her brother, Ross, to open a drive-thru coffee shop, Leapin’ Lizards opened its first drive-thru in Holly Springs on November 12, 2001. After her success in Holly Springs, another location in Fuquay-Varina became available. However, family ties were so important that Liz held off returning the lease for her Wal-Mart location until Ross could visit from Boston with his girlfriend – Liz wouldn’t send in the lease until Ross witnessed it. Five months later, Fuquay-Varina opened its arms to the second shop in May, 2001.
A year later, Ross visited, again. He had finally decided what to do with his life. He had been accepted to Boston Law School, and he was engaged to be married. The fiancés drove over three hundred miles out of their way to see the nieces and nephew, eat oysters at 42nd St. Oyster Bar with Liz and Warren, and spend some time at what Ross called his “second home,” before driving across the country to California where they were to be married later that summer. His fiancé had an internship with a law firm in San Fancisco for the summer, and Ross was training and racing to better his standings in road cycling. They left on a Sunday morning, grabbing two large Frozen Milky Ways from Liz at the Holly Springs location.
At 1 am on June 4th, Liz’s dad called with news that would forever change their lives. Ross, on a bicycle training ride, was hit from behind by an inattentive driver who wandered into the 12 foot wide bicycle lane going 55 mph. “Your brother is broken,” her father told her. Liz went to work - completing payroll, doing deliveries, and ordering supplies for the next week - until 5am that morning. She boarded a plane at 7am, believing that she was going to see her brother for the last time. The impact had disintegrated his helmet, and he had stopped breathing at the accident site. Through the heroic acts of passersby, Ross had survived, but his body and his brain truly were “broken.” A year of agonizing life-threatening surgeries, rehab, and difficult encounters with the medical establishment were to follow.
Liz had wanted to stop her business life, return to California for long visits to help care for her brother and her family, but her father’s words had stopped her – “I want you to be successful. Make Leapin’ Lizards the best you can – it’s Ross’ idea – make it live…be successful, and be the best momma to your kids…that’s what he would want.” So, at 3:45 am each morning, as she did her delivery rounds to the kiosks, depression seeping in around the edges of her sleepiness, she didn’t stop. She knew that the best way to honor her brother was by making his ideas a reality.
Today, Ross lives as a full-care patient in Glen Ellen, CA with their parents. His story can be read at www.rossdillon.com. Leapin’ Lizards is also going strong, having opened two new locations at WakeMed Raleigh Campus and WakeMed Cary Hospital (Western Wake) in March 2005. Additionally, Leapin' Lizards is expected to open its 5th location (a combo store with Bruegger's Bagels) in Apex in October of 2006 at Haddon Hall Commons Shopping Center. Leapin’ Lizards’ name originates from the childhood nickname Liz’s brothers had for her, but its heart and its longevity is firmly rooted in the love Liz feels for her family, and a deep sense of honor she feels toward Ross who continues to fight toward recovery each and every day.
