2010 Baking Hall of Fame
T
he three Lewis brothers had to mortgage their
mother’s house in 1925 to
purchase a bakery in Anna, Ill.
The acquisition began a Hall of
Fame career for the youngest of
the three brothers, Jack Lewis Sr.,
then 16.
“Through
entrepreneurship
and hard work, he ran a business
and developed Bunny Bread and
truly touched the lives of many,
many people,” said his son, Jack
Lewis Jr. “He was my partner
and my friend through the many
years we worked together.”
Now, father and son are together in the 2010 class in the American Society of Baking’s Hall of
Fame. Jack Lewis Jr. accepted the
honor on behalf of himself and his late father March 1 at
A.S.B.’s BakingTech 2010 in Chicago.
“Dad would have been absolutely thrilled,” he said. “I
am absolutely thrilled to receive this honor.”
Lewis Bakeries, known for its signature Bunny Bread and
openness to innovation, now employs about 2,200 people
and delivers fresh bakery products in 13 states. The work
and vision of father and son sparked the 85 years of growth.
Jack Lewis Sr. worked at a
department store in 1925 while
Amos and Armold Lewis worked
at a bakery in Harrisburg, Ill.,
about 60 miles away from Anna.
The three brothers bought the
bakery in Anna and started daily
horse-and-wagon bread deliveries to homes nearby.
The brothers kept the business
alive during the Great Depression. The bakery survived World
War II, when sugar, needed for
baked foods, and tires, needed for
delivery trucks, were rationed.
Armold Lewis served in the
U.S. Navy during the war and
then left the family business.
When Amos Lewis died of cancer in 1944, Jack Lewis Sr. and his
wife, Josephine, purchased the bakery.
In the late 1940s, Jack Lewis Sr. began putting rabbit
head graphics on Butternut brand bread, Jack Lewis Jr.
said. People began asking for that “rabbit bread” or that
“bunny bread.” The “Bunny Bread” name eventually was
copyrighted.
Jack Lewis Jr., born in 1938, took part in the bakery’s
growth. While in elementary school, he stacked boxes on
Jack Lewis Sr. and
Jack Lewis Jr.
Jim Henley, left, and Jack Sr. at the Anna Bakery in 1959.
56 / April 20, 2010 Milling & Baking News
In 1955, Bunny was introduced by Guisti Baking Co. in New
Bedford, Mass. From left, Bunny Girl, Joe Guisti and Jack Sr.
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com
2010 Baking Hall of Fame
“I bought a number; dad
Saturdays. When he turned 15
bought a number,” Jack Lewis
and received his driver’s license,
Jr. said.
it was time to run truck delivery
The company’s product portroutes.
folio expanded, too. Lewis
After graduating with a deBakeries in 1991 introduced
gree in economics from Florida
Healthy Life Bread, a line of
State University in 1959, Jack
fat-free, reduced-calorie and
Lewis Jr. came back to work for
high fiber bread.
the family business. He asked
While the family business
his father what was expected of
grew, Jack Lewis Sr. stayed in
him. His father pointed to the
Anna and served on its city
financial books and told him to
council from 1952 to 1980. He
increase sales by 10% and dewas a member of the boards
crease stale products by 50%.
of directors of Anna National
“I said, ‘Dad, if I can do that, I’ll
Gary Brodsky, right, presented the award to
Bank, the Illinois State Chamfind a better job,’” Jack Lewis Jr.
Jack Jr.
ber of Commerce and Southern
said.
Illinois, Inc., a regional organiInstead, he stayed and helped
Lewis Bakeries become known for innovation. The com- zation that worked to attract industry to southern Illipany pioneered the use of liquid fermentation, polyeth- nois. He resided in Anna when he died at age 95 in 2001.
Within the industry, Jack Lewis Sr. was a founding
ylene bags, the continuous proof and bake system, the
development of six strap bread pans, and the use of I.T. member of the Independent Bakers Association and
worked with the American Bakers Cooperative.
systems in alternative bakery distribution.
“He loved the bakery business to the very last,” Jack
Acquiring other bakeries extended the company’s geographical marketing reach. A bakery acquired in Evans- Lewis Jr. said. “He was a true self-made American.”
Like his father, Jack Lewis Jr. has given his time to
ville, Ind., in 1963 became the company headquarters.
baking industry causes. He has served as chairman of
the American Bakers Association, the International Baking Industry Exposition, the American Bakery Cooperative, and as a board member of the WE Long and the
Quality Bakers Association.
“My experiences with the American Bakers Association in the 1980s were meaningful and exciting and rewarding,” Jack Lewis Jr. said.
He looks forward to the I.B.I.E. in Las Vegas in September.
“I think the Expo is going to be an ongoing, meaningful event for the industry, even more so that it is bringing all the different parts of the baking industry to the
Expo,” Mr. Lewis said.
In 1997 he was selected as Indiana Entrepreneur of
the Year. Jack Lewis Jr. now is president of Lewis Bakeries. His wife, Peggy, is executive vice-president of marketing.
The family-owned company has stayed alert to technological and computerized progress. Bunny Bread and
Healthy Life Bread each have their own respective Facebook pages. The baking company uses scan-based trading that allows it to own product until it is scanned at
the check-out counter of retail outlets.
“We own it all the way through,” Jack Lewis Jr. said.
The Lewis family, judging by the number of members
attending the Hall of Fame ceremony, seems ready to
stay involved in the baking business.
Jack Jr. and Jack Sr. on the cover of Bakery Production and
“The third generation is in (the business) pretty
Marketing in 1974.
heavy,” Jack Lewis Jr. said, while adding fourth-generation members attended the ceremony, too. MBN
58 / April 20, 2010 Milling & Baking News
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com