Less then 24-hours after a fire ripped through the rear storage areas of Angelo’s Smokehouse at 2700 Old Adobe Road, Angelo Ibleto was back at work, preparing meats,jerky and all the products he has produced in four decades of business.
“We’ll be OK. We’ll live,” said Angelo, who came to Petaluma in 1962 from Sesta Godano, Genoa in the Northern provinces of Italy.
According to Rancho Adobe Fire District Chief Frank Treanor, the fire began on Monday afternoon when sparks from a grinder Angelo was using to sharpen knives were blown by heavy winds into grease traps with other flammable liquids.
Within minutes the entire storage area behind his retail store was engulfed in flames. Firefighters from three different districts showed up quickly after the first call and had the fire contained within 30 minutes.
“Those guys were amazing,” said Angela Ibleto-Dellinger, Angelo’s daughter and the manager of the smokehouse. “The firemen kept this place from being completely destroyed. They were so professional. ”
In fact, when word got out that Angelo’s Smokehouse had caught fire, not only did Petaluma firefighters arrive to help, but neighbors, friends, family and people Angela had never met before arrived to help.
“We are a full service fire department and we are part of this community,” said Treanor. “All of us ask ourselves, ‘What would we need if we were in this situation at our own homes or businesses’ and then we jump in to help.”
“The firemen and even some of the media were helping us carry out meat and trying to save our business,” said Angela. “We were getting calls from people who knew my dad and his business. There were calls from everywhere, even out of the country,” said Angela.
“You can’t keep nothing secret,” Angelo joked, noting that it was impossible to keep a secret with Facebook and other forms of social media available.
Angela said her father has become a legend in the meat industry, with fans and business colleagues alike. One of those fans is Randy Blackwell of Vacaville. Camping at Doran Beach with his wife Janae and their 7-year old granddaughter Makiala, Blackwell, Randy said he’d heard about Angelo for years. The next morning after the fire, Blackwell and his family came to shop at Angelo’s store.
“I like to make beef jerky myself as a hobby. But I’ve heard about this guy forever and we were in the area so I said to myself ‘I have to meet the man’,” said Blackwell, who retired after a 30-year career as a corrections officer.
Another of Angelo’s fans expressing their support for him and his work was the U.S. Army National Guard’s 235th Engineer Company. Angelo’s Smokehouse has been sending the Petaluma based troops care packages of beef jerky and other food for several years. Angelo keeps a jar out on his register counter for folks to contribute to supporting the troops -many of whom have served in Afghanistan. Angela said the jar is almost always filled with donations from her customers.
“The California Guard starts and ends with community, and the longstanding support of businesses like Angelo’s Meats speaks to our community roots,” said Capt. William Martin, Deputy Director of Public Affairs for the California Military Department. “Our soldiers live and work in the communities they serve. When our soldiers are overseas in Iraq or Afghanistan, the care packages they receive are a huge boost to morale. It reminds us we’re not forgotten; that the folks back home have our backs and we’re in this fight together. As our communities go, so go the Guard. We need patriotic businesses like Angelo’s in our corner, and they need to know when troubles comes, we have their backs as well.”
The fire may have destroyed some of their merchandise, but Angela, who also drives a school bus for the Petaluma City Schools, said that in an ironic way, the fire was ultimately a positive experience.
“This was the worst thing that has happened to us, but when you’re tested like this, you find out a lot about yourself,” said Angela. “We all deal with problems, both little and big, all the time in our lives. But then you have a real emergency like this and you find your strength. All of us here forgot our problems and did what we had to do to save this place. We didn’t crumble. We switched gears and did what had to be done. I know I get that myself from my parents, but all of us got that from my dad’s example.”
For Angelo and his business, what happens tomorrow is what has happened all his life since that day he first stepped onto American soil. He gets back to work.
“My dad and mom raised us with a strong work ethic,” said Angela, who noted that her mother, Frances Corda-Ibleto, of the long-standing Corda family in Petaluma, died two years ago. “They both made us realize that when things get hard, you have to step up. My father is still the most creative guy I know. He is always coming up with new ideas for this business. This weekend we will catering the Napa Wine Industry Network’s Bowling Tournament. We won’t let this slow us down.”
(Contact E.A. Barrera at ernesto.barrera@arguscourier.com)
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