Stories Published in AFMA Journal

John Kalil and Children Continue the Tradition at Kalil

AFMA Journal, July 2020

John Kalil Jr. and his four children, John, Nick, Kaley and Michael, are the new generation at Kalil Bottling in Arizona. His brother, George, guided the company for a half century until his death in July 2019. John’s father, Fred, and his father, Frank, began the company, a national leader in beverage distribution and a private bottler, in 1948. This is a family success story that begins with John’s grandfather coming to the United States from native Lebanon when he was 12. The stories about Pancho Villa, George’s love for University of Arizona basketball in Tucson and how a young Coach Lute Olson wouldn’t’ wait the team bus for him are classics. Classic, too, is the continuing respect for George Kalil. In writing the story, I asked for John; I called him “Mr. Kalil.” One of John’s associates corrected me, saying, “Well, we still reserve that name for George.”

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The Hings Save Money Market in Superior

AFMA Journal, June 2019

Every story written brings some enjoyment. This one brought stories and stories of enjoyment. The Hings are a fourth-generation grocery family living and doing business in Superior, about 30 miles from Mesa, Arizona. Theirs is a story of hard work, toughness and persistence through 100 years of providing the mining town with fresh provisions and other necessities. Michael Hing’s grandfather started the business in 1920, less than a decade since coming from China; next year, then, is the centennial; he befriended Eddie Basha Sr.’s dad, who started that Arizona grocery company in nearby Kearney. He was also friendly with Colonel Boyce Thompson, the Magma Copper owner who founded the beautiful Boyce Thompson Southwest Arboretum. Please come through these doors, shop a spell and read about a family that makes Arizona, and America, great.

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Ice King: ‘Chill Out, Be Cool’

AFMA Journal, March 2019

Some assignments have a chilling effect. A recent visit to Ice King did this, while also inspiring the final text. The small business produces ice products, such as blocks and cubes, for the Phoenix area. An early morning interview transpired during a winter chill that had brought wind and rain to the desert areas of the state and record snow to the high country. Starting out in the cool parking lot, we warmed to the snow-making machines that are hot in the sizzling Valley summers. Then we moved inside to a cooler space where giant cylinders harvested ice. Next was the inventory freezer, cooler still, and, finally, an especially frigid freezer set at 6 degrees. All the while, we met The Robot, which, undaunted by the cold, palleted the products, without so much as donning an Extra Large sweater. This piece is served un-neat for your sipping pleasure.

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St. Mary’s Food Bank Celebrates 50 Years

AFMA Journal, August 2017

Ten days into his job as president and CEO of now 50-year-old St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance in Phoenix, Tom Kertis received an e-mail from a man living near Tuba City on the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona. His brother had lost sight in his right eye and had had his right foot amputated; the loss of the other eye and foot was imminent. They were living week to week; they were hungry. “I am writing to ask if there is any way you can assist us with a little food; I am not talking about much,” the man continued. “I’ve never asked for help before.” St. Mary’s contacted the Sisters of St. Jude, an agency partner in the area, and arranged for that help. “If we’re not here, what happens to that man?” Kertis asks. “Does this man and his brother fall through the cracks? It hit me like a ton of bricks. We’re changing people’s lives –– maybe even saving people’s lives.”

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