(JTA) — Ira “Bob” Born, the son of
the Russian Jewish immigrant who founded the company that makes Peeps
candies, has died. He was 98.
Born was the former president of Just Born Quality
Confections, the 100-year-old family-owned candy company in Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania, that makes Mike and Ikes, jelly beans and Goldenberg
Peanut Chews, but is probably best known for the marshmallow treats that
are staples in Easter baskets.
Just Born’s Jewish roots came as a surprise to this reporter, who in 2012 reported for the New Jersey Jewish News on the company’s acquisition of Goldenberg Peanut Chews,
a venerable Philadelphia brand that had recently dropped its kosher
“pareve” certification. Ross Born, Bob’s son and co-CEO of the company,
explained the difficulty in sourcing ingredients for the candies and
spoke about the family’s commitment to Jewish causes in the Lehigh
Valley and beyond. (Peanut Chews are kosher dairy; Peeps are not
kosher.)
He also spoke about his father’s innovations as head of the company,
which the elder Born joined in 1945 after graduating from Lehigh
University with a degree in engineering physics and service in the U.S.
Navy. Born had been accepted to medical school but fell in love with the
business.
After Just Born acquired a maker of marshmallow candies in 1953, Bob
Born devised a way to greatly speed the process. At the Bethlehem
factory, huge machines squirt armies of the chick-shaped confections
onto a conveyer belt, on which they glide past little guns that paint on
the eyes.
Bob Born also cut down on waste when he figured out what to do with
Mike and Ike candies that emerged misshapen in the manufacturing
process: He remelted the candies, added a hot cinnamon flavor to mask
their original taste, and repurposed them as Hot Tamales.
“That was his nature. He didn’t say, ‘No, we can’t do something.’ He
said ‘Well, we’ll figure it out,’” Ross Born told the Lehigh Valley
News.
Bob Born was born on Sept. 29, 1924, in New York City. His father,
Sam Born, had been a rabbinical student from Berdichev, Ukraine, before
his family fled to Paris, where he learned the art of chocolate-making.
After opening a factory and store in Brooklyn, Sam brought his
brothers-in-law, Irv and Jack Shaffer, into the business. A nephew,
David Shaffer, is currently board chair and co-CEO of Just Born.
Bob Born retired after almost 40 years at Just Born and moved to
Florida, where he was chairman of a literacy program in an underserved
community.
In addition to his talents as a candymaker, Born was a musician,
woodworker, chess player and photographer, according to his son. In
2019, the city of Bethlehem declared Feb. 15 as “Bob Born Day.”
Ross, a past president of the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley,
told the local newspaper that his father will be remembered as a “real
mensch” — Yiddish for a person of integrity and honor.
“He was a kind person, he was generous with his talents, sharing his
abilities. He was very fair minded: he wanted to embrace differences
rather than just tolerate them,” Ross Born said.
The family asked that contributions be made to the American Technion Society, Israel Guide Dog Center or any literacy program.
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