Adrian “Honey” Gregory-Criner operates a small business in downtown Manteca.

Her ‘Hello Luv,’ which specializes in personalized gift baskets, silk flower arrangements and more, had moved to 212 Yosemite Ave. Ste. A in the fall of 2019.

Little did she – nor anyone else for that matter – knew of the impending COVID-19 pandemic coupled with the state-ordered shutdowns that followed.

“If it wasn’t for God, I would have closed (Hello Luv),” said Gregory-Criner on Friday.

She trusted in her faith to keep the business afloat despite the lack of foot traffic along this well-traveled stretch of road for vehicles.

“Business is still slow,” Gregory-Criner said. “When we were closed (during the pandemic) we still had pay our bills, including rent.”

But even that didn’t stop her from donating to causes such as the American Cancer Society – she recently lost a family member to cancer.

Last May, Hello Luv was burglarized. An unspecified amount of money was taken from the till, according to Gregory-Criner. “They caught (the suspect) and we did go to court – but nothing came out of it,” she said.

There was some good news

Last October, Honey Gregory married her co-owner “Mr. D” Criner. They’ll be celebrating their first wedding anniversary on Oct. 3.

During that time, they’re also planning to do some fundraising, with some of the proceeds (25 percent) from sales going to St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, in particular, the Relay for Life team.

Gregory-Criner, who once worked for the Transportation Security Administration in Menlo Park – she’s since retired – enjoys the creativity associated with her small business. Online orders are available via email: Honeycriner1955@gmail.com.

The name of her business originated from her days working TSA – coworkers often greeted her with a “Hello, Love.”

Hello Luv is opened Thursdays through Saturdays, from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For more information, call 605.704.6970.