Wholly Guacamole....Where Persistence ACHIEVES

The week prior to father's day, my wife was following a contest on Face-Book offered by the folks at Wholly Guacamole. The marketing team was looking for some customer ideas towards a marketing slogan which got my attention as my wife continue to read posts by the many facebook fans that follow Wholly Guacamole.


After perhaps the forth or maybe fifth response, she started making comments of her own posting them where I found myself even becoming interested and getting involved. The contest lasted through the day and closed at noon the following day. As for my wife, she had several great ideas. Surely one of those inputs she made might just be a winner.

As the marketing members round table all the input headed by Tracey Altman, vice president of marketing Wholly Guacamole, they returned to post the winners sometime around 4:00 PM Central Standard Time. Well, my wife had some great ideas, nevertheless she had not won the slogan prize. They awarded a first place and a second place winner. However, some where in their conversations of round table, they found me to just be persistent also including me to receive a gift package.

The package arrived a few days later that included several free coupons of their products, Wholly Guacamole, Wholly Salsa and Wholly Queso. They also included an awesome T-Shirt, Barbecue Apron with the logo's and several other really cool marketing gifts. However, the package was only half of the great reward.

Father's Day came that weekend and to my surprise, my 12 year old son wanted to do something very special for the Daddy.  He has watch his "Daddy" mow the lawn, barbecue a thousand times, assist with Chuck Wagon cooking along with numerous things which I suppose he finds in me to be very proud of having me as his daddy. On the same note, my son Austin makes me proud too and he seems to be just growing up so fast.

He told his mother what he wanted to do and while "Daddy" worked that Sunday morning shift, I came home to a very wonderful surprise. My wife Tammy had assisted Austin with a party planner. What Austin wanted to do, how to do it and what was needed to complete the job. The meal, my favorite Tex-Mex cuisine, "Fajitas."

Fajitas are strips of meat "Skirt Steak" marinade over night normally in a lime juice and grilled or smoked whole. Austin did very good siring the meat at 400 degrees and watching until the juices begin to seep through on top. When this occurs, turn the meat over and sire the other side locking in the juice and flavor.

Once the meat is cooked, Austin did just what his daddy does, removes the meat, and place the cast iron fajita serving skillet on the grill to get hot while you cut the beef into long thin strips. He also grilled Onion and Bell Peppers that also are sliced thin. Then place the meat, onions and peppers all on the hot skillet to serve.

The meal included side dishes of Spanish Rice and Beans using large banana leaf as the table place cloth. Austin, this was the best tasting Fajita Diner your Daddy has ever eaten and trust me, being Texas born, I know my Fajitas and my son just out did my best.

Fajitas are served rolled into home made flour tortillas, along with the cooked onion and peppers smothered in guacamole and salsa. WHOLLY GUACAMOLE and SALSA which is as authentic to homemade guacamole your are ever going to get when purchasing any ready made avocado to your meal. Many other companies make guacamole dip but most are too runny or made with less than 10% real avocados reducing the great avocado flavor.

As Austin grilled the meat, he wore his prize Chef hat, the Wholly Guacamole Apron and we talked father to son. In this conversation, I talked to him about being a man and how as his father, I am very proud of him as he seems to be of me. I shared some manhood stories and that was the second part of the great package I received is that time spent parenting and seeing how he is turning out to be a greater person than myself.

I asked Austin if he knew how Wholly Guacamole got started? He replied, "Was it that guy on Shark Tank" referring to the ABC TV show that looks at entrepreneurs desiring to market products. I said, not exactly. "It starts with a man name Don Bowden". I explain to my son about working towards goals, success, and being persistent. "Never give up the ship" he said. Since I am retired Navy, "That's right" I replied.

"Don Bowden is the founder of  Fresherized Foods, Inc located in Ft Worth, Texas," as I continued. We had just visited that city too, where Austin rode a Texas Longhorn at the Stockyards that he is still so excited about. I went on to explain that Mr. Bowden started in one career field after college but soon realized that he did not enjoy his work which was with an OIL Company. I further continued that when Mr Bowden was 65 years old he created a special packaging that keep guacamole fresher than any other in the world.

Austin had completed a science project several years earlier on what would keep guacamole greener longer than anything else. His experiment used Lemon, lime and the seed. The seed did OK, but the acid in the lemon worked better and the lime work much better. As we reflected that, Austin's interest grew and asked, "What does Wholly Guacamole use to keep there's greener?"  Well, in short I concluded with an explanation about Don Bowden's Fresherized  system which has made him the success he is today. That education, continue to study, customer service, and always working to better a product are important life skills. We discussed failure of a products name and how it was re-marketed with a winning slogan. However, persistence often holds a greater value.

The best part of Fathers day was not just in a great meal of superb taste and presentation, but the wonderful company having spent it being the Dad to a remarkable young man.

Thank you Wholly Guacamole as the product was only part of the gift, the other is sharing the founder Don Bowdens work that perhaps one day will be the remembered seed mentoring a young mans future understanding that persistence plays an important ingredient to success.
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