Friend of mine was living on SF during the 1989 earthquake. She had actually been on her way to the ATM and the store to pick up a couple of things when it happened. Power was out for awhile and she had no cash. She didn't have a credit card at the time. The mom and pop store at the corner took her check when the big stores were not. She patronized them for years afterwards, even though they were more expensive, solely because of that.