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Photograph by Skye Dunlap
Triple Treat: Frank Butterfield says that of the 31 options at B&R, he prefers Pralines and Cream--except when Nutty Coconut is available.
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WG ice cream man retires after scooping for three generations Frank Butterfield preferred the sweets-life to the corporate grind
By Jessica Lyons
It's a sunny Tuesday afternoon when 74-year-old Frank Butterfield sits down at the signature-pink Baskin-Robbins table to discuss some bittersweet news. After 27 years at his Willow Glen ice cream store, he's about to retire his blue Baskin-Robbins baseball cap and "Mr. B" name tag.
But old habits die hard, and before our interview has even begun, Mr. B is asking me what my favorite flavor is and how many scoops I would like. He doesn't stop until after I agree to one scoop of Pralines and Cream. That's Mr. B's favorite flavor, too, except when Nutty Coconut is in stock. "Nutty Coconut is without a doubt the best flavor in the world," he says earnestly.
For Butterfield, ice cream is more than a sweet temptation. It's a way of life. "Be good, have fun, and sell lots of ice cream," are his daily words of wisdom to his young employees. Mr. B, as his friends and co-workers call him, and his wife, Corinne, own the Baskin-Robbins at 1060 Willow St. After nearly 30 years and three stores, parting with the ice cream business will be a sweet sorrow.
"I can't think of any business I'd rather be in," Butterfield says thoughtfully. "People who come here are happy. I'm going to miss the customers. You have some that you see everyday, some that you see once in a while. They're all very friendly."
Butterfield, a longtime resident of Willow Glen, has played a prominent role in the community. Baskin-Robbins won't be the same without him, customers say.
"It will be different," says Lauren Morris, 17, a Lincoln High School senior who says she has been a regular customer as long as she can remember. "I'm used to coming here and seeing him. He's like a friend of the family." Morris says her grandfather used to bring her in to visit Mr. B. "I remember when you were this tall," he tells her every time she's in the store.
Butterfield hasn't always been Mr. B the ice cream man, however. For 20 years he worked behind a computer on the business side of Lockheed Missiles & Space Company, Inc. He and his wife bought a Sunnyvale Baskin-Robbins in 1971 to help put their three children through college. But after sampling life in the ice cream business, corporate America tasted bland. So at age 55, Butterfield quit his day job to work at Baskin-Robbins full-time. The couple also own a store in East San Jose.
Butterfield doesn't hesitate when asked what he will miss the most. "The kids," he says, motioning toward his employees scooping ice cream behind the counter. "I'm going to miss the kids who work here. I enjoy watching them grow up. I'm going to miss not having the kids to talk to. They're a good bunch of kids.
"I jokingly say I see my grandkids and they say 'Hi grandpa, see you later.' I come in here and the kids have to talk to me. You'd be surprised at how many come back and visit me."
With his gentle demeanor, kind eyes and a white Santa-esque beard, it's not difficult to picture Butterfield in a grandfather role. He has four grandchildren of his own, and--after watching nearly three generations of employees sample the 31 flavors--several surrogate ones as well.
"He reminds me of my grandpa," says 16-year-old Brandi Chavez. Two weeks ago the Willow Glen High School junior landed her first job as a "scooper" at Baskin-Robbins. But prior to being an employee, Chavez remembers visiting the ice cream store with her father--another one of Mr. B's "kids."
"It's a fun job," Chavez says. "Mr. B is great to work with. He teaches you stuff outside of working." Lessons about working with people, she says, and lessons in morality, such as giving your friends free ice cream is stealing.
Brandi's dad, Don Rapisarda, also worked for Butterfield when he was a teenager. In 1976, the two started the first annual Willow Glen Senior Night. For one night each year during basketball season, the employees closed down the cash register, worked for free, and donated all the money raised to the senior class at Willow Glen High School.
"We would raise between $800 and $1,000 for the senior class," Butterfield says. "There was always a teacher who would come down and make sure order was kept, but I never had any problems."
After nearly 10 years, the fundraisers stopped. But Butterfield's commitment to education continued.
"He is a very giving man," says Rapisarda, 41, who worked with Butterfield in the '70s. "He would fill in for you during finals week, or if you had a sporting event to go to. He and his wife would work for you so you could attend school functions. It was always a priority for Mr. Butterfield."
It still is a priority, say other employees.
"He's very flexible around our schedules," says 18-year-old Melida Martinez, a San Jose State freshman. "He's very big on school, and is always making sure we're keeping on top of our school work--and our social life as well. He's always offering to cut back our hours if we want him to."
Eric Villarreal, one of two managers at the Willow Glen store, agrees. "He's the nicest man you'll ever meet," say Villarreal, 19.
Mr. B says he doesn't have any definite plans for his retirement. He plans to do a lot of loafing, he says, as well as reading and watching TV. There is one more thing, he adds: "I'm going to smile a lot."
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
