Baking&Snack - February 2013 - 23

SPECIAL REPO T
SPECIAL REPORT
PEC A REPORT
EC
EPO
2013 Baking Hall of Fame

Inspired Choices
The Baking Hall of Fame invites the industry to honor its own.

“The one defining characteristic that
distinguishes us as humans is our
capacity to inspire and be inspired,”
wrote Gary Brodsky when he introduced the first inductees to the
Baking Hall of Fame. “Inspiration
ignites the soul. It is the driving
force of the entrepreneurial spirit.”
Inspired by the examples set by
bakers and allied tradesmen who
came before him, Mr. Brodsky long
held the desire to recognize the
people who influenced the course
of today’s baking industry. He got
that opportunity in 2005 when he
helped the American Society of
Baking (ASB) create the Baking Hall
of Fame. The first class of honorees,
announced in 2006, included 13 individuals, a baker’s dozen. With this
year’s inductees — Ernest Nickles,
W. Clark Pulver and Torahiko
Hayashi — the total individuals
recognized now numbers 50.
Baking & Snack reviewed the significance of this continuing series
of awards with Mr. Brodsky, who is
chairman of ASB’s Baking Hall of
Fame Committee.

Baking & Snack: What is the
purpose of the Hall of Fame?
Gary Brodsky: In 2006, when I
chaired ASB, we considered a number of themes that would recognize
the past as it pointed to the future.
The Baking Hall of Fame does this.
I’ve been part of the industry
since 1970 and was fortunate to
meet and, in some cases, work with
many of its icons — the pioneers of
our modern baking industry. But I
noticed that a good number of new
people coming into the industry,
particularly in recent years, had no

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idea who these individuals were,
how they influenced the industry or
their contributions to the business
in which they now worked. Most of
the iconic names — Arnold, Baird,
Fleischmann, Thomas — were just
brands on a package to them.
ASB created the Baking Hall of
Fame to recognize the contribution such individuals made and
to immortalize the people so important to our industry. The companies they founded have mostly
been consolidated out of existence.
Only their brands remain, but the
influence of these individuals continues. Recognizing them is the
purpose of the Baking Hall of Fame
— remembering and recognizing
them so new people can know how
the industry started and what its
icons contributed.

How are individuals
nominated?
Anybody in the baking industry can
recommend someone for the Hall.
All you have to do is fill in the information sheet that ASB provides.
Nomination forms are available on
our website, www.asbe.org, and at
our annual meeting. Nominations
for the class of 2014 are due to ASB
by early October.
Most nominations come from
people who have or had established
working relationships with the
candidate or are family members or
members of ASB.

writing what contribution the individual made to the company, to the
industry, to the market. How does
he or she stand out from his or her
peers? What makes him or her different? Why should he or she be
recognized in the Hall?

What does this award mean
to its recipients and to you?
For many honorees and their families and colleagues, this is an emotional event. It’s gratifying to all
involved to witness fathers, mothers,
brothers, sisters, wives, husbands,
children and even grandchildren
seeing family members being immortalized in the industry. By
standing at the podium and handing
over the award, by seeing these sterling individuals being recognized, I
feel that I have been able to contribute something to the industry, too.
All these honors are long overdue.
Knowing the industry has acknowledged the accomplishments of such
worthy individuals makes me feel
good. I am very proud that I could
help make this happen, to ensure
that these people get the recognition
they deserve and that the industry
has embraced them for their efforts.
I am proud that ASB contributes
such a gift to the industry.

What advice can you give
to someone making a
nomination?
When you nominate someone for
the Hall, be specific. Put down in

February 2013 / Baking & Snack / 23

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Baking&Snack - February 2013

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