South Eugene store honors longtime owner with World Gavin Day tribute

Families, shoppers and staff filled Sundance Natural Foods on Twenty-Fourth Avenue in South Eugene on May 29 for World Gavin Day, turning a neighborhood grocery run into a public tribute to Gavin McComas. The gathering brought live music, tea samples and a raffle for Twitchy Tails Cat Rescue, a mix of celebration and remembrance that made clear how much the store meant beyond groceries.

McComas died Nov. 25, 2025, after owning Sundance Natural Foods for 40 years. For many South Eugene residents, that history is tied to the rhythm of the neighborhood itself, where the store became a place to bump into neighbors, stock up on food and feel connected to a local business that reflected Eugene values rather than chain-store sameness.

The tribute also pointed to the business decisions McComas made before his death. On Oct. 18, 2023, he donated his ownership of Sundance Natural Foods to the Sundance Perpetual Purpose Stewardship Trust, which now controls Sundance Natural Foods, Sundance Wine Cellars and Sundance Kitchen. The structure was built to keep the company from being sold to an outside entity, preserving the mission and values McComas wanted protected.

That mission was part of the draw for employees and customers alike. Sundance describes itself as specializing in whole, minimally processed organic foods, organically and wild-crafted locally grown produce, and cruelty-free body care products. In 2024, OPB reported that employees received health care benefits, profit-sharing checks and discounts on food and supplements, details that help explain why the store has been seen as more than a place to shop.

The World Gavin Day event linked that business model to the community that has supported it for decades. The raffle benefited Twitchy Tails Rescue, a volunteer-powered Eugene/Springfield cat rescue focused on abandoned, stray and special-needs cats. That gave the afternoon a local charitable purpose as well as a memorial one, tying McComas’ legacy to another organization working in the same community network.

For South Eugene, the event was about preserving a familiar place as much as honoring a person. Sundance’s survival under the trust means the store, along with Sundance Wine Cellars and Sundance Kitchen, remains anchored in Eugene, a fact many families at the celebration seemed to understand as they lingered for music, samples and a chance to support a business they consider part of the neighborhood’s identity.