Each month, dedicated volunteers or community partners will be recognized for the time and talents dedicated to Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS).
Jack Dailey, owner and operator of two local Philly Pretzel Factory locations, is a community partner of VBCPS and his pretzels can be seen across the division from football games to open houses.
Dailey learned about the possibility to volunteer and partner with the division by being an active participant in the Virginia Beach Education Foundation’s (VBEF) annual golf tournament. When he retired from his corporate positon at Avis Budget Group, Dailey decided to be a business owner and opened his first Philly Pretzel Factory location in March 2017.
“When I was retiring, I spoke with the VBEF because I wanted to work together and participate in fundraisers with my pretzels,” said Dailey. “They told me about the opportunity to partner with the school division and how I could be engaged in the community. With Kempsville High so close by and Tallwood is close by, we were asked to participate in fundraisers and we would agree. We wanted to be good neighbors and good citizens.”
Dailey did more than just fundraisers. He and his team allow students to shadow them for the day to learn about the ins and outs of being a business owner. In addition, Dailey loves sponsoring field trips to the Philly Pretzel Factory.
“The kids have a great time, because we do not spend a lot of time telling them what we do, but instead, set up tables and give them the opportunity to participate in a hands-on environment,” said Dailey. “We show them how the machines work, tell them some history behind the Philly Pretzel Factory and let them twist their own pretzels. What they twist, we bake and they take home. The kids learn about the business and what goes into having a business, but also have a lot of fun making their own pretzels.”
But, it’s not all work and no play at the Pretzel Factory.
“We try to make it fun. We don’t take ourselves too seriously here. When people come in to our shop, they already have an anticipatory smile on their face. Pretzels make people smile. We want kids to have a good time here.”
For Dailey, it is all about giving back to the community and passing along knowledge to those in the community.
“Any experience and knowledge you gained over your years, we owe it to people, especially younger people to pass our knowledge on to them. They are willing to listen. I’ve had people take an interest in my life and I always appreciated that. I understand how important that is now, so I want to pass that along,” said Dailey.
Become a volunteer or community partner today and make a difference in student’s lives. For more information on volunteering visit vbschools.com.
Jack provided a wonderful field trip for the second graders of Woodstock Elementary for their producers and consumers unit. It was educational, interactive, engaging, fun, and delicious! Thank you, Jack, and the Philly Pretzel Company.