Local bank takes chocolate deposit

Jan Lendi, the owner of Jan's Homemade Candies in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Florida found a novel way to keep her chocolate safe from the hot weather, she locked it in her local bank vault.

Two weeks ago her store's air conditioner stopped working and all of her chocolates started melting leading to a loss of $10,000. So imagine her dismay when Hurricane Katrina arrived and knocked out the power, putting another 2,000 pounds of chocolate at risk, and also her entire business because insurance would not cover the loss of the melted chocolates.

Lendi had no option but to call her local bank branch, Colonial Bank in Sea Ranch Lakes, and told the branch manager that she needed a loan because her chocolates were melting, and without it she may have to call it quits. The branch manager said 'No, you won't. Pack it up and bring it to the bank', which is exactly what she and her husband did, packing hundreds of bon-bons and chocolate bars into boxes.

In all, the Lendis 'deposited' 180 boxes of chocolate products, including gold coins and chocolate bills, in one of the banks air-conditioned vaults and the bank saved the day, as well as her business.

Jan's Homemade Candies is now officially back in business, and they are intending to buy a generator in time for the next hurricane season