Calling the decision to close a difficult one, Shirley and Les McDowell, owners of Shirley’s Hallmark in Scarborough and Falmouth, have closed their local card and gift store after 22 years in business.

The last day for the store on Hannaford Drive in Scarborough was Sunday, May 11.

Les McDowell told the Current that the couple plans to keep the Falmouth location open, adding, “we will miss the wonderful employee family and the many long-term, loyal customers we have come to know so well in Scarborough.”

McDowell also said, “We want to thank the people of Scarborough, and all the others from southern Maine, who have shopped with us over the last 20-plus years. They have allowed us to share in their many special occasions and have enriched our lives in the process.”

According to McDowell, The Paper Store, which is the largest family owned and operated chain of specialty gift stores in New England, will take over the space at the Hannaford plaza being vacated by Shirley’s.

Like Shirley’s, The Paper Store sells Hallmark cards and gifts; however, according to the company website, it also offers everything from fashion accessories, bath and body items and home de?cor, to educational games and best-selling books.

McDowell said when he and his wife first opened Shirley’s Hallmark in Scarborough in 1992, “we had no idea where it would lead. For us (it was) a challenge building a business from scratch. It’s been a wonderful, rewarding and time-consuming process.”

The couple will continue to live in Scarborough and said that’s another reason why it was such a heart-wrenching decision to close the local store. McDowell said he and his wife opened the Falmouth shop, located at The Shops at Falmouth Village, in 2010.

It’s his hope that the couple’s Scarborough-based customers will patronize the Shirley’s in Falmouth. “I am sure some will come to our Falmouth store to shop knowing the level of customer service there is the same as they have been used to.”

The Paper Store first approached McDowell and his wife about selling their Scarborough store at a time when Shirley was “considering how to reduce her workload and start thinking about retirement,” he said.

“We went over the pros and cons and decided to see what kind of agreement could be worked out,” McDowell said. “(Then), as we were concluding the (purchase and sales) agreement, Shirley’s health became a major issue and the sale a necessity.”

According to the Shirley’s Hallmark website, the McDowells “believe in providing quality products at a reasonable price with excellent customer service.”

Before opening Shirley’s, Shirley McDowell worked installing displays and remodeling Hallmark stores, and Les McDowell worked in banking and corporate finance.

Initially Shirley’s Hallmark was “a small family-run gift and card shop,” according to the store’s website, and, the store sold cards, gifts, “and numerous other products.”

Also, the Scarborough store has consistently been voted as a favorite local gift shop in the Current newspaper’s annual “Best of Best” contest.

Karen Martin, president and executive director at the Scarborough Economic Development Corp., said she’s sorry to see Shirley’s go.

“That store is a community landmark and will be missed,” Martin said. “We always welcome new folks, but we hate to see long-term, legacy businesses like Shirley’s go.”

Martin said lots of people locally have strong connections to Shirley’s and said the store has “really been at the heart of the community for more than 20 years.”

“I have a soft spot for specialty retail stores like Shirley’s,” especially when they are locally owned, she added.

A spokeswoman for The Paper Store could not be reached for comment before deadline.