Call of Leadership

The Call of Leadership

Linda Hundt thought she had everything in life. Until she woke up one day, suffering from real depression. With the help of God, she was able to fight her way back and find a sense of purpose. That is showing love for the world through her love of baking pies. From there, she would go on to win all kinds of national awards. This truly is a great and inspiring story.

Links:

Sweetie-Licious Website: http://www.sweetie-licious.com/

Sweetie-Licious Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweetieliciousbakery/

Looking for more inspiring stories? Join our email list at https://totalmichigan.com/join/

Transcript
Speaker:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery: I

never thought I was good at anything.

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I never thought I was special.

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and that's one reason I love to share

this story to, to let you know that if

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I'm special at something, so are you.

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And it doesn't mean you

have to open a pie shop.

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But it does mean that you

are gifted and that God gives

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us these gifts for a reason.

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Cliff Duvernois: Hello, everyone, and

welcome back to Total Michigan, where

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we interview ordinary people doing

some pretty extraordinary things.

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I'm your host, Cliff Duvernois.

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Today I am sitting outside of

Lansing in the ridiculously

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cute little town of DeWitt.

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And for today, I was very excited

that she agreed to be on the show

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because as a little kid, one of my

most favorite desserts in the world

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was when my mom would bake pie.

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And come to find out we've got a

national champion of a pie maker here

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who started a bakery who's got an

incredible story to share with us.

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So she has actually won the Food

Network Pie Challenge as well as the

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Crisco National Pie Championship.

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She has been featured in USA Today, Food

and Wine Magazine, and just about every

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other periodical that is out there.

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And we're going to talk all about that.

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ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the

owner of Sweetielicious Bakery and Cafe.

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That would be Linda Hunt.

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Linda, how are you?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

I'm good, Cliff.

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Thank

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Cliff Duvernois: I I might

just say that intro again.

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That is just absolutely incredible.

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Okay.

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so let's get to the good stuff.

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Tell me, where are you from?

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Where did you grow up?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

I live in DeWitt, just a

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mere five minutes away.

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In a little, cute little farmhouse.

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And, I grew up in Lansing.

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So just 15 minutes away.

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And I went to Michigan State.

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And that was another 15 minutes away.

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So I have not, we are too far

from where I was born actually.

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My, I have a twin sister.

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And she's lived all over the world.

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I'm just your basic little pie maker.

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Laughter

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What did you study at Michigan State?

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Education.

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Elementary Ed.

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Yeah.

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But that was back when there

were no jobs in the mid 80s.

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Everybody that I graduated with

moved to like California and Texas.

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And, I always wanted to be close

to my family, as they aged.

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and just to enjoy them and all of that.

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So I ended up in politics of all

things, just because it was a full

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time job, and I knew I wanted children.

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And so I hated every

second of being there.

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Although it's not, it was nothing like

it is now, that was over 30 years ago.

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but the people were amazing, and

still some of my dearest friends.

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And I have a lot of folks that

still come in here, from those days,

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Cliff Duvernois: Now, why did

you decide to go into education?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

My parents, my mom was a

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high school English teacher.

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My dad was elementary school principal.

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My grandmas and aunts were

one room school teachers.

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My brother was a teacher.

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my twin

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Cliff Duvernois: So it's clearly in your

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

It's clearly in my family.

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That and pie baking, And cooking

and baking in general really.

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yeah,

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Cliff Duvernois: Certainly.

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And then, So you get your, you get,

you got your degree in education,

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but you started working in politics?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

Because there were no jobs here.

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Ah.

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So I did not want, I had no desire to

move, to Dallas, Texas, or anything like

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that, and, which is where they were.

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So I, so yeah, I just found, just

like we all do, sometimes the

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path that you want isn't exactly,

God's plan and God's path for you.

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that was the first, big lightning

bolt that happened to me early on

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that, because, honestly, you can

look at it like, Oh, I hate politics.

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Why am I here?

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Or I can look at it like, Oh, my

gosh, the people are wonderful.

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And, I have a job with benefit,

all the other good things, which is

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what I chose to do for a long time.

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and then it, I knew that there was.

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Something else.

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Cliff Duvernois: Indeed.

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And we're going to talk about that.

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Because dying of curiousity.

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So you actually got into pie baking or

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

baking in general

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Yeah, yep.

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Cliff Duvernois: Yeah,

talk to us about that.

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

Yeah, my twin sister and I, I think

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We got an easy bake

oven, the turquoise one.

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I think kids are still getting them.

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I know my granddaughter has one, so yeah.

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And I was just mesmerized.

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And, I have three older brothers.

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And I always tell this story.

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And it's so true.

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I didn't, you know how they had the little

brownie pack, and you had the light bulb,

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and you would look, and everything smelled

great, and it tasted good, as a kid.

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You need any type of baked goods Exactly.

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And I remember my three brothers coming

out of nowhere and saying what's that?

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what's baking?

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What's happening?

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And, and we would, I remember my mom,

would be burning hot from that light bulb.

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And my mom cutting it

in five little pieces.

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And my brothers were nice to me, for the

first time, for the first time in my life.

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And I really, I really at a young age

really realized the love, and probably

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with my brothers more so appreciation,

for, For baking and giving, I'm,

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I love to give it away if I can.

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You know what I mean?

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I love to be able to,

to make people happy.

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that's what always been my quest in life.

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And, so it all just came together,

full stop at one point, that this

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is what I need to do full time,

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Cliff Duvernois: Now,

was your mother a baker?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

Oh, yeah.

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Oh, they all were.

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My Aunt Margie, My cookbook

has all the stories about it.

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And I really wanted, and I know I'm

probably jumping around here, but

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this, each of the pies have a story.

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I wanted to, pay tribute to, these people,

whether they were school teachers, or

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secretaries, or stay at home moms, or

presidents of corporations, whatever it

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was, that their lives were, important

and worthy for, baking and cooking

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and making meals and making family

dinners and traditions important.

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And that's what I grew up on and

what I wanted to continue doing, not

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only for all my customers, but there

was all sorts of ways to do that.

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And that's why kind of the

different media things took off.

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Because I feel that's, a really

important tenet in life that

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sometimes gets forgotten between

soccer games and cell phones and

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all the things that can distract us

from the real essentials of life,

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Cliff Duvernois: things took So, you're

a little girl, you're experiencing mom,

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grandma, and aunt Margie, baking away.

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So what is maybe like some of the, when

they're teaching you, what is some of the

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key pieces of advice that they gave you?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

what is maybe like I Margie's farm

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and, my twin sister would stay a week

there and we literally were like Tom

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Sawyer painting the fence and doing the

whole farm life, feeding the chickens

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and same with my Grandma Farrell.

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And they were the, so farm life and that

I was very, I knew that was my dream.

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And then professionally baking was it

was not anything that entered my life

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at a young age, but I was certainly

influenced my I remember mom having, pies.

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She's always baking pies.

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And I remember there we'd get home

from school and again, she was

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a high school English teacher.

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So she wasn't there right away, and

I remember there'd be this pie in

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the refrigerator that said do not

eat For church circle tonight, and

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I'm like no way I always said, I

always when I teach baking classes

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or whatever television whenever doing

always bake two pies You know what?

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Never one.

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Because someone else needs that.

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And anyway, so that was,

it was always around.

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We always had Sunday dinners

after church, we had all of those.

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But one of the, I think, of

the big catalysts really was, I

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married my high school sweetheart.

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And he, we were talking about

coconut cream pie was his favorite.

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We were, I was probably 19 or so.

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And, I was gonna bake him his

favorite meal and have a picnic.

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And, I remember trying to make this crust.

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I was independent.

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And mom had, of course,

gazillion cookbooks.

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And she was teaching after

school, she wasn't home yet.

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And I was just in tears,

because my crust wasn't working.

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And, And I wanted to make this pie and

have it be super special for my boyfriend

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at the time, she walked me through

it, And, I, just the little things.

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Like the crust doesn't have to be perfect.

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It doesn't have to be this pizza dough,

You can piece it and make it together.

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And then when you put it in, you don't

know it and it's like a perfect pie.

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There's so many things about,

just the analogy of pies, in life.

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That really...

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or real and true, that, the crust and

all the wonderful flavors inside, are

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another testament of, the more the better,

I always fill the pies to the very top.

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So we're not being scant in the sense

of, you need to live your life really

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full, and, I, I just think, her, she was

always, a perfectionist cook and baker.

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But she also never used recipes.

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And and there was always something

delicious, on the stove, even if

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she had conferences or whatever.

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And I just really felt, super,

super connected to that.

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When mom would get, her Good Housekeeping

magazines, Family Circle, Country Living,

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all of it, I would get it before she did.

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And I remember being 10 years

old and going, Family Circle used

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to have a menu in the middle.

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It was like a paper

menu of the whole month.

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And I would cross things

off and put things.

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And then I just started experimenting

with flavors and Just, I always loved

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trying to make, a lot of our, all of our

things here are based on vintage recipes.

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Whether it be my own or

from vintage cookbooks.

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And then, My job, I thought, is

to, aren't we always trying to

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make the next generation better

than we are in some way, right?

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We want them to be, I don't, I guess

better may be the wrong word, but

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enriched, and have a richer life, not

in money, but, or as rich as possible.

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As we have and blessed

and all of those things.

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So I always thought it was my job

that they, these pioneers of cookbooks

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from the turn of the century.

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I even have a couple of those,

that I based some of these on.

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But I wanted to make them my own, too, and

I wanted to make them even more flavorful

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and even, better than, so I really

experimented with that and kept doing that

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until I was called to have my own pie shop

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Cliff Duvernois: Sure, and before when

you're talking about cookbooks, I was

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just thinking that one of my mom's most

prized possessions is like a Betty Crocker

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cookbook that has been used so many times.

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The pages

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery: are

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falling.

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Yes,

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it's

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got

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the

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red

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yes, That's one of my all time favorites.

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Yes.

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Actually, yeah, that, is actually

a better home and garden.

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And then the Betty Crocker is just the

red, not to get technical with you,

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but I have the, I have, no, because the

better, is the red and white chalked.

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Cause that's the one I, my high

school girls when they graduate

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and they go on to college, I always

get the reproduction one like that.

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You can still buy it.

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Oh, really?

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Yeah, because you can't beat the

rhubarb pie, the bread and butter

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pickles in there, are still some

of my scalloped potatoes, yeah.

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Cliff Duvernois: we're going to have

a hard time stopping this interview.

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I can tell that right now because

I absolutely love this topic.

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for our audience, we're going to take

a quick break and thank our sponsors.

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When we come back, we're going to

talk about Linda's meteoric rise.

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And, when it comes to, baking pies,

we'll see you after the break.

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Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Total

Michigan, where we talk to ordinary people

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doing some pretty extraordinary things.

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I'm your host, Cliff Duvernois.

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Today, we're talking with

Linda Hunt, owner of the

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Sweetielicious Bakery and Cafe.

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Linda, before the break, we

were talking a lot about pie.

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And I am so hungry right now.

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the question that I got for you is,

when we left off on your life's journey,

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that you had gotten your degree in

education, you were now working in

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politics, you had a full time job.

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

children

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Cliff Duvernois: With children now?

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Yes, you married your

high school sweetheart.

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idyllic.

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Benny?

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Any stretch of the imagination?

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anybody would just be like,

perfectly content with that.

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But, something came up.

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Why don't you share with us

about what was happening?

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

out of nowhere, I got depression.

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And it back then, I'm so glad

that it's talked about now.

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And we just, no, it's still mental health.

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No mental health month

was September, I believe.

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but.

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But back then you didn't

really talk about it.

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So I certainly didn't share.

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And I was always known, and still am,

as the happy one, and the positive one.

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And I, that's who I felt who I was.

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So this was like this slap

on my face when it came.

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Slap on my face.

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in bed bawling my eyes

out of feeling unworthy.

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Unworthy of God's love and

worthy of anyone's love.

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And, especially his, and, so I would

sneak to therapy on, my lunch break.

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And, so no one knew and I

just, my family didn't know.

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I didn't want them to have any burden

of, so would cry on your way to

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work and cry in the shower and all

the typical things that one does.

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But one day, I have, and still do,

a stack on my nightstand filled with

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cookbooks and spiritual books, bible,

every kind of spiritual, but just,

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poetry, just everything that inspires

me, And I had read this particular

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one my friend had sent me, and it was

basically saying faith is, and all

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the wonderful things that faith is.

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And one of them had said, and I had read

this book many times, and read this quote.

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But I'm going to butcher it, but it

said something like, pain is knowing

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That, all the pain in your life is all

a part of God's perfect plan for you.

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The minute that I read that, I

got this warm, it was a flood.

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Yet it was slow.

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this flood of warmth and love that went

from my toes all the way to my heart.

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Through my body and the message

was you are loved and special.

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And you need to love people.

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And I can't, it didn't say the masses.

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But it was very clear, that's the

cool thing about the Holy Spirit.

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I.

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Just even saying it in words,

it doesn't seem worthy.

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But I always get teary when it

happened, because I can't believe

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to this day that happened to me.

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little me.

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Cliff Duvernois: Like God

reached down and touched you.

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

Yeah, in such a way.

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And when that happened, all of

these, and he had tried giving, these

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little hints to me all this time.

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And I just ignored them.

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I just didn't even put them together

of, and when it happened, it was almost

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like flashing your life and all the

things like a puzzle piece or I always

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refer to it as One of those things the

number things where you when you're

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a kid and you connect the numbers.

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That's exactly what it felt like.

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Every single things like flash in

my life of what was important to me.

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But not only that I had gifts.

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I never thought I was good at anything.

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I never thought I was special.

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I never thought that, and that's one

reason I love to share this story to

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people to, to let you know that if I'm

special at something, so are you, and it

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doesn't mean you have to open a pie shop.

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But it does mean that you

are gifted and that God gives

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us these gifts for a reason.

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So when that happened,

I never turned back.

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I had to quit my job.

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All of this was a huge financial burden.

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but I knew that when I connected the

dots, that, I didn't say this and I

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forgot to say it, but on my honeymoon in

:

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And I said aloud to my husband,

this is a dream of mine someday.

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But I never ever thought I'd get there.

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Because back then, when you graduated back

then, if you were to own a business, you

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obviously had to go to business school,

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That was really what was, exactly,

that's what it was taught.

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I never ever thought I was

ever smart enough to do this.

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and I never thought that I was,

whatever, this would ever really happen.

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But when the Holy Spirit talks

to you, then you don't give up.

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So that's where my drive came from.

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I don't have to say in

my shop, God loves you.

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I just hope that they get

that when they walk in.

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From not only the aromas, the smells

and the food itself, but the people

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that wait on you, the smiles, the

genuineness, but that's all love,

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and I've had so many stories.

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I wish I would have written

another book on that.

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How that, has made a

difference in people's lives.

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Our little teeny pie shop.

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And again, we're not moving mountains.

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We're just, moving little hills.

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And, but that's all any of us need to do.

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You know what I

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Cliff Duvernois: Sure.

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery: So

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Cliff Duvernois: So.

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you've had this experience

with God, you've had this

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epiphany, you've quit your job.

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Now you're going all in on pies.

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Now did you open up your store then

or did you run it on your home.

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Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

ran it out of her little farmhouse.

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I had a little actually That pie safe

over there was on my back porch, and I

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had an old refrigerator just like that.

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And I had a little bucket, and people used

to, feed my chickens and wander around.

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If I wasn't there, they would

just put the money in the bucket.

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I started the farm market here as well.

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And so I did it at the farm

market and high end restaurants.

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And these are those things,

like I would have to call

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these really nice restaurants.

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With, asking God to help me, to say,

drop off a pie, are you interested?

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The whole media thing, I would,

there was a radio personality here.

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And he, I went to his office and brought a

pie and I said I had this brilliant idea.

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The ideas were, like, crazy.

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The thoughts and concepts and pie

recipes would never stop in my mind.

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I had a really hard time sleeping and

every morning, woke up just energized to

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do this, and get this opportunity, like

when you ask, you know what my story is.

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And, and we talked about God

prior to us talking right now.

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And you ask if I'd mind if I shared.

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:

And I said, I want to share.

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:

when I have this opportunity, I like

people to know, like what I just

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:

said, that we're all important, we're

all a part of his plan, which is

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:

sometimes really painful and hard.

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:

But, just opening the door for somebody,

acting, lovely to somebody, buying

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:

them a cookie, that happens all the

time here, people are constantly buying

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:

things, just like before when we got

here, they're, yeah, you I think,

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:

when you have that kind of energy

behind you, it, it just can't stop.

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:

There's so many times that we almost

didn't make it not only through

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:

COVID, but our, we were supposed

to do QVC and the all planned.

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:

I went to QVC school in Philadelphia,

to make sure I was good for television.

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:

It was supposed to be our big break.

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:

And then the freezer broke down

the night before with all 900 pies.

387

:

And I asked God, right then I said, I

don't know if I can keep doing this.

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:

I remember, cause I had to call QVC.

389

:

And of course, I didn't have enough

money to pay for any of that.

390

:

So I'm like, where are we

going to get this money?

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:

And weirdly, every single time I would

get a weird inheritance from, I'm

392

:

not kidding you, a weird inheritance.

393

:

Or somebody would, somebody from the

state or something would stop by and

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:

say, Hey, you might really apply for,

you need to apply for this grant.

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:

I don't know if you know about it.

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:

But every single time.

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:

And so I've always known that God wants

us to continue no matter what, and I

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:

love, we get to the people that work here.

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:

They just, everyone always said,

how do you get these people?

400

:

I had this gentleman.

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:

we do the Capital Farm Market, and

he ran across the capital lawn.

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:

You're not even supposed to do that.

403

:

And he came up to me and said, I've

been trying to, talk to you for years.

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:

He said, how do you do it?

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:

How do you?

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:

Every time I go into your shop,

everyone's so delightful, and the food

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:

is so good, and how, what are you doing?

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:

the atmosphere, what?

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:

And I said, that truly is a part

of God's plan for me, they come to

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:

me and then they love what they do.

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:

And they, so it's been this, the

media, I know you talked about that.

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:

that was the I would knock on doors,

so the radio personality, I went

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:

in with a pie and said, I had this

really good idea that I'll tell a

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:

story about a pie, and then your

listeners have to guess what pie it is.

415

:

And they would call in, and

I had a little pink princess

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:

phone, do you remember those?

417

:

So that was my phone at the time.

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:

And I would crawl down there.

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:

And I had a big sign up here

on the case, the pie case, that

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:

said, I'll be right with you.

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:

I'm on live radio show.

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:

and, The people would come in.

423

:

And then from that gig,

I would get others.

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:

I would go to the television people

and say, from Grand Rapids in Detroit,

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:

we didn't really have a local one.

426

:

And then they liked it.

427

:

And then that's how I won the

21 first places at the Crisco

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:

National Pie Championship.

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:

I hated competing.

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:

I hate competing.

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:

I hate it.

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:

But I knew I had to do that for

more people to know who we were,

433

:

because it is a destination.

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:

It was designed as a destination.

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:

Not everyone flies by, Dewitt every

day, but that allowed more people to

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:

come for me to share love with people,

and then once you get, You know the

437

:

Steve Harvey found out about us.

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:

And then he you know the we won the

best pie in Michigan Detroit Free Press.

439

:

We're Mitt Romney came And then we did we

were on the front of the New York Times,

440

:

and the Washington Post and William Sonoma

I used to get that catalog all the time.

441

:

I'm like what a dream You know I would

love to be able to have my pies, and

442

:

then they called me up and said you

know We would love to have your pies,

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:

which ended up being a nightmare.

444

:

I know, because, but it was a, so

it's all one thing leads to another.

445

:

The cookbook, I really worked,

I've always dreamed, because

446

:

cookbooks were my favorite.

447

:

My mom had gazillion.

448

:

And, I always dreamed of writing one,

and so I, back then, again, it's not

449

:

like it is now, where you can't even

find out who, literary agents are.

450

:

so I'd go in the back of cookbooks

I liked and try to find out who they

451

:

were and I would write them and lots

and lots of no's and then out of

452

:

nowhere someone believed in me, And so

then I had my cookbook of my dreams.

453

:

And then that won the

Michigan Notable Book Award.

454

:

And so then, honestly, it,

when I look back at it's hard

455

:

to believe that's happened.

456

:

But I think when you have a

strong purpose, then things, and

457

:

you're true about it, obviously

it's not about the money for me,

458

:

because there's not any money.

459

:

Cliff Duvernois: Obviously,

460

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

but we pay our bills, And I get to meet

461

:

people from all over, just like you Cliff.

462

:

And I get to the stories that I've had

with people have just been unbelievable

463

:

that it would never have happened.

464

:

and the best part, to be honest,

is people take these pies and their

465

:

cookies or whatever it is, all over.

466

:

I hear it all the time.

467

:

This is going to our reunion in Kentucky.

468

:

This Thanksgiving pie is going to Denver.

469

:

people take them on planes,

people take them everywhere.

470

:

And that, That piece of pie

is part of all of our legacy,

471

:

the pies that we grew up on.

472

:

There's nothing, we don't put

anything artificial in them.

473

:

It is exactly like your mom

or your grandma, your aunt

474

:

or your wife or whoever.

475

:

That's what they taste like.

476

:

That's why everyone loves it.

477

:

Cause because they're.

478

:

It's like eating a piece of,

I say delicious memories,

479

:

And continuing that on.

480

:

And, there's, there's getting

less and less of the hometown

481

:

bakers around, the bakeries.

482

:

So I feel honored honored that

I've been able to do this.

483

:

Cliff Duvernois: And I know we just

covered a lot right there, talking

484

:

about, you starting your shop,

getting out there, all the different

485

:

opportunities that have become as of it.

486

:

I'm taking advantage of

that, which is extraordinary.

487

:

I wish we had more time

to go into all that.

488

:

But I do.

489

:

You made the comment.

490

:

I want to explore that for a little bit.

491

:

Because you've now been in this

particular location for how many years,

492

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

It'll be 19 next month.

493

:

Cliff Duvernois: 19 next month.

494

:

You were talking before

about the hometown bakers.

495

:

talk to us a little bit about the legacy

496

:

that's here.

497

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

My daughter Ellie started doing

498

:

the pies with me when she was 12.

499

:

We did our first wedding across

the street at their farmhouse.

500

:

And, granddaughter was getting married.

501

:

I have a picture of it somewhere.

502

:

and she, graduated from Michigan State

in:

503

:

And so she went to work for Marie

Callender and has the little pies and

504

:

little cakes that are in your freezer.

505

:

She developed and Banquet

and, she came back.

506

:

She ended up marrying a, local guy,

which my daughter just married.

507

:

His brother.

508

:

So it's sisters marrying brothers.

509

:

It's the cutest

510

:

thing.

511

:

It

512

:

Cliff Duvernois: old

fashioned right there.

513

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery: is.

514

:

Oh, and they're just

such a delightful family.

515

:

So blessed.

516

:

But, so she ended up doing that.

517

:

And I had some health issues.

518

:

And, she ended up taking over.

519

:

And, it was a gradual thing.

520

:

And.

521

:

I've often told her, I said, she could

be making four times what she makes

522

:

here, literally, as a food scientist.

523

:

And, I said, I never want you to ever

feel like George Bailey in It's a

524

:

Wonderful life, that you have to do this.

525

:

Because, no big deal, I

can close shop, sell it.

526

:

I just don't want you to ever

feel this is a burden to you.

527

:

And, she told me with,

we're, I was crying about it.

528

:

I don't remember how we got on the

subject and She started crying and

529

:

she said mom, but this is my dream,

too You know, you might have started

530

:

it, but I want to continue it.

531

:

You know, I have lots of things

that I want to do different.

532

:

I want to finish writing your cookbooks,

you know I want to write the cookie one.

533

:

And all of those things.

534

:

I can't get over how Blessed I

am, and what a wonderful spin

535

:

she's doing on things herself.

536

:

Making it her own.

537

:

At the same time, we have all the

regular goodies are still here.

538

:

And we would never change that.

539

:

at the same time as well, she's adding,

wonderful spins on things and adding

540

:

new cookies and adding youth, and

different, through Instagram and all

541

:

sorts of different kinds of social media

like that, bringing different people

542

:

in and celebrating different holidays

that I wouldn't have even thought of.

543

:

It's a absolutely beautiful thing, and

I can't believe how blessed I am that

544

:

it will continue, for, during COVID.

545

:

I didn't know if we were gonna survive.

546

:

people rallied around and kept coming in.

547

:

And even with the prices going

up with everything, people

548

:

are still willing to do that.

549

:

And I know I keep saying the word

blessed, but I am really blessed.

550

:

I'm really blessed that it's still

here, and that Ellie will be able

551

:

to So now, I she has two kids.

552

:

So I get to be grandma.

553

:

I get to be homemaker.

554

:

And I get to still come up here.

555

:

I'm the runner.

556

:

I still bake pies and

that kind of thing too.

557

:

Today I did dishes.

558

:

But I get to greet everybody

without pies burning.

559

:

I used to always be out here

talking and there'd be pies burning

560

:

in the Not literally, but I did

burn some lemon meringues once.

561

:

I will say that.

562

:

But I get to greet everybody, which

is one of my favorite things and

563

:

just talk to people and enjoy them.

564

:

Cliff Duvernois: Sure.

565

:

I bet you they really

appreciate that as well.

566

:

Linda, if somebody's

listening to this episode.

567

:

And they want to come and check out your

awesome smelling bakery, maybe partake

568

:

in some of the goodies that are here.

569

:

what's the best way for

them to connect to you?

570

:

How do they find you?

571

:

Instagram

572

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

we're Instagram people, which

573

:

I know not everybody's on.

574

:

But I love it because it's more pictures.

575

:

Facebook got too political for me

and just to and we didn't get as many

576

:

people on that as far as business.

577

:

so yeah, Instagram.

578

:

You get on our website.

579

:

You can, you can spend hours on that if

you want to get into all the pie stories.

580

:

but Yeah, we're in DeWitt.

581

:

You can't miss us when you if

you're looking for downtown DeWitt.

582

:

Yeah, I used to have a

runner that would run.

583

:

It was 20 miles.

584

:

He would run here.

585

:

And he was trying to lose weight.

586

:

And he said he would keep going around

the building over and over smell

587

:

all the food at five in the morning

because that's, that's our bakers hour.

588

:

So that's when pies were really rough,

wafting through the whole neighborhood.

589

:

Yeah, we love, our hours are 7.

590

:

30 to 2 during the week.

591

:

And 8 to 2 on Saturdays.

592

:

And we also have lunch.

593

:

People love our lunches.

594

:

homemade everything,

my mom's chicken salad.

595

:

Cliff Duvernois: I see I

got quiche on the menu.

596

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

you got quiche quiches.

597

:

I think we made 10 today for folks.

598

:

all different kinds of quiche.

599

:

And that's an, oh, the

flavors are just amazing.

600

:

And, yeah, we have.

601

:

We have.

602

:

I have this one.

603

:

These two gentlemen.

604

:

One comes from Metro Detroit

and one comes from Holland.

605

:

And they've I think they've been

here for started coming 18 years ago.

606

:

So they meet here and somehow

they saw me on TV of some sort,

607

:

and they've come here ever since.

608

:

And it's just been such a joy to see them.

609

:

So we have a lot of people that,

just love to come sit around.

610

:

Listen to Frank Sinatra music.

611

:

I have, I also listen to Bing.

612

:

we listen to anything old.

613

:

and then, just enjoy the clitter clatter

of dishes and all the wonderful aromas

614

:

that come from an old fashioned bakery,

615

:

Cliff Duvernois: And for our audience,

we'll make sure to have all those

616

:

links in the show notes down below.

617

:

Linda, no pun intended.

618

:

it's been a treat having

you on the show today.

619

:

I really appreciate it.

620

:

Linda Hundt, Sweetie-Licious Bakery:

No pun intended.

621

:

You're so sweet, Cliff.

622

:

Cliff Duvernois: And for our audience

roll on over to Total Michigan, you can

623

:

click on Linda's interview and get all

the information she mentioned there.

624

:

Join us next week when we

talk to Michigander doing some

625

:

pretty extraordinary things.

626

:

We'll see you then.