Homer Jackson and Melo-Cream Donuts

Dad was part of the Moline food dynasties, starting very early, when the big franchise company let go of their shop. Lagomarcino's was not far away, downtown. He sold to Hasty-Tasty, the only family restaurant in town, and we favored Whitey's Ice Cream, only two blocks from our house. Dairy Queen invented the DQ Blizzard in our home town, and the Medds still manufacture it there.

I was on the ground floor at DQ.

 My first birthday - one candle, one cake, one future baker.

He was born in 1910 and lived to be 85, finally paying for easy access to fresh dessert items, which included cookies, fudge, and the best peanut brittle in the world. He made bread donuts and cake donuts, experimenting with other items, like tiny pies that were easily made and quickly sampled on the way down to the basement. Danish rolls were exquisite.

At age 4 I symbolized the theme of flour power. This was on the annual Melo Cream calendar.

The secret to the products was the highest quality ingredients for whatever was made. If it was the highest quality chocolate, the best coconut, the finest peanuts, the finest flour - he used it rather than cheapen the taste for a little more profit. Besides that, if they were not properly fried, baked, or cooked, the finished items were tossed in the garbage.

We had an apple orchard near our home. I was chased up the tree by some angry Dobermans. Fortunately I took my donut, comic book, and film crew along. This was on the calendar too - no royalties.

Cleaning was as fastidious as the cooking, so I had the opportunity to help make the icings, the glazed donuts, the bread, the cookies, and the perfect peanut brittle. 

Dad experimented with peanut brittle until he could get right combination of hot corn syrup, raw peanuts, and baking soda. Not enough bubbles - harder than concrete. Too many bubbles - yuk. The hot syrup cooked the peanuts as long as everything went well. The end result was easily eaten but impossible to stop. Attempts from other sources were more like tooth breakers and stale besides.

I learned a lot about the best ingredients at Melo Cream long before Deming changed the auto industry. It applied to study and the exchange of ideas. Clowns and faddists are popular for a time, but they are soon forgotten after the thrill is gone.

We had a lot of laughs at the shop. I probably put in more years than anyone else named Jackson. I even recruited the future Mrs. Jackson when Dad wanted me to work Friday nights. I said, "Only if you put Christina on the payroll." He did but miffed her when he said we did not fold boxes enough one Friday. She said, "Let's bury the shop in boxes next Friday." When he came in for work Saturday, before dawn, he saw stacks of boxes covering -

1. The table for rolling out dough;
2. All the floor freezer tops;
3. All the normal places for towers of boxes;
4. The big sink drainage board;
5. The glazing vat, which was covered with boards.
6. Anything else close to horizontal.

He laughed and laughed and laughed, especially when he found out what prompted the towers of boxes. That was often brought up with more laughter.

Notre Dame,1982. The book on grit says PhDs have the highest grit score (5). I think it started at the donut shop and at home. Christina was always encouraging.