by Rachel Coleman
Buddy Valastro, more commonly known as the Cake Boss, says he learned so much from his father through example. Both of Buddy’s grandfathers were bakers born in New York City. They moved back to Sicily after earning some money, but times were tough in Italy during World War II. The family dinner often consisted of fish heads and a single shared orange.
Buddy’s father was thirteen when he came back to the United States in search of a better life and the American Dream. He thought bread baking as a career was hard on the family because you had to get up at midnight to start the next day’s dough. He wanted a better life for his family, but baking was in his DNA, so he found a job at a cake bakery where he worked as a pot washer for the owner. When the owner retired, he financed a business loan for Buddy’s father to buy the bakery on the condition that Buddy’s father would keep the name of the bakery, Carlo’s Bakery.
Buddy’s father knew what it meant to be hungry. During the holidays, Buddy’s father would load up their delivery truck with any leftover cake and take it to the homeless shelter. On a trip back to Sicily, Buddy watched his father give $100 tips to street kids who offered to take their luggage. When Buddy confronted his father about it, his father said, “That was me once.” His father’s compassion left a lasting impression on Buddy, who now takes his kids to help in homeless shelters too. “I want them to know how to give back and to know some people have nothing,” he says.
Buddy got into a bit of trouble when he was eleven for playing with matches in the woods. His father told him it was time to come to work with him. On the way there, Buddy envisioned baking beautiful wedding cakes all day. However, when they arrived at the bakery, Buddy’s father led him to the bathroom and pointed at the toilet. “Clean that,” he said. His father never said he had to be a baker, but he wanted him to develop a work ethic, know how to wake up early every morning, and to understand all his employees if he did decide to take over the bakery.
Buddy graduated to washing dishes, and eventually to baking the pastries. He loved it. When he was 17, tragedy struck. His father died. He was a man who was deeply revered by the entire community but especially his employees. Buddy had gigantic shoes to fill but had no idea what he was doing. He was so inexperienced. He decided that no matter what it took, he was going to make the bakery a success based on the values he learned from his father and grandfathers. They had taught him that if you work hard and are good to people, you can provide a good life for your children. As he met with failures and successes, Buddy often remembered his father’s words, “When you work, your blood’s gotta boil. You set the beat around you.”
Buddy expanded the company from 30 employees to over 1200. Despite all his financial success, Buddy believes his greatest success is his family. Their lives are centered around food. The family can often be found engaged in conversation around the dinner table—no cell phones allowed—talking about the world, sharing family stories, and learning from each other what it means to put your heart and soul into your work.
Your ancestors may have been shoemakers, sailors, coal miners, seamstresses, or so much more! Find out how you can learn about your ancestors' occupations through census records and other sources.
by Rachel Coleman The Bakers made their business a family affair, even though they experienced several changes in occupation. Henry Calvin B…
| 
by Rachel Coleman Kathryn Papa Melzer has teaching in her DNA. Her great-great-great-great-grandfather was Orson Spencer, first Chancellor o…
|
Ever wonder if your family tree was filled with sturdy, salt-of-the-earth farmers; skilled, meticulous craftsmen; hardworking laborers; or p…
| 
What did you want to be when you grew up? An astronaut? A princess? What about a wharfinger or a ragpicker? There are dozens of wacky jobs t…
|
