Today we’d like to introduce you to Joe Rogers Jr.
Hi Joe, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
First and foremost, I am a very proud and devoted family man with tremendous admiration for my wife of thirty-one years, four children (daughter and three sons) and eight grandchildren (one girl and seven boys), three siblings (two sisters and one brother) and a host of family, extended family and lifelong friendships. Kind of a shy guy that thrives being outgoing, cartoon super hero/comic book enthusiast, a tear shedder at a good human-interest story, a collector of watches and ties, and most of all….an eternal “glass half full” optimist. This is Joe.
My life journey begins in Annapolis, Michigan February 19, 1961.
My mother and I moved to Fort Worth, Texas in 1963 when I was about eighteen months old after ending a volatile and abusive relationship with my biological father. She eventually got her life together here and remarried.
Yet at times, there were some unfavorably trying instances and conditions in that relationship. To know how we grew up in that household with food and amenity availabilities, maximizing any/every asset was crucial. My mother trying to ensure we all had enough was not always successful, however we eventually got what we needed, which was just the normal.
These instances really impacted the way that I developed the mindset to how I would shape my future life.
Fast forward to years later, about five years ago, there was a joke amongst three of our four children and a play son, a comment was made about the way I would meal prep our dinners. The food items really sounded like they did not go together, yet the banter around our home as the siblings were growing up was I would prepare no-name recipes that all enjoyed. It got to a point that my children’s friends would actually call and wanted to know when we were doing another “potluck,” LOL. One of my sons jokingly called me a potluckpapi, and thus the name stuck. Since those guys were heavy into technology etc., they thought this would be a great social media name. Once the children left home for school or into their own ventures, even today, they will still call and inquire on how to prepare whatever with what they have.
During the early COVID years, a lot of individuals/families were unable to secure their normal choice of food provisions. It was my youngest son Jerald who made the pitch from a marketing standpoint originally to offer this service to several of his friends and their parents. And because a few of them were still in the area, he proposed we collaborate and expand first via through the grapevine and through the likes of platforms as Instagram. Our opportunities have progressed from there.
Being regularly employed by Target Corporation seventeen years in various positions, most recent working as a Quality Control Technician specializing in food safety certification, completing a yearly course in food handling to promote our clean preparation environment with @potluckpapi just made sense.
Working both full-time and part-time employment for several years now still allowed me to manage @potluckpapi on a small scale. And though our services are not the same as full-service catering establishments, we can provide full-time amenities just as effective while perfecting my “taste to the next level” slogan on every single order as a sustained vendor.
Completing individual request versus mass production and hoping to sell allows me to give my personal attention to every order. I have done several local events for a couple of non-profit local chapter organizations, a local private catholic high school, etc. just to mention a few.
I am humbled and thankful for their inclusion and besides all of the fun being had, @potluckpapi has allowed me to build some pretty meaningful relationships along the way which is what I cherish much. I admit that I feel I do have a basic flair for taste, and I try to incorporate that in every meal, be it professionally or personally.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Using all that I learned from the past has definitely been my inspiration to do the best at all times. As mentioned, to know how I grew up in that household, maximizing every opportunity was crucial. Providing for my own family since then and now is just the normal. Society today has gotten away from being about each other, and I want nothing more than to be the best about others as I am about myself.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have been so fortunate to have been, or be corporate employed three times in the past almost forty-three years (14 with The DANNON Corporation, 12 with International Paper Company, and 16 with Target Corporation). My role with Target Corporation as Quality Control Technician has allowed me the opportunity to learn much in the field of food safety and regulations to better service not just for the Target Guest, but for my own personal buying preferences with meats and produce. In all of my employment opportunities there is much experience in customer service that I have applied to my personal endeavors.
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
My private life has much satisfaction while learning still how to trust Christ in my everyday walk. Worshipping as a family together definitely has its advantages and all success be it minor or enormous is credited to the family lifeline throughout all of this, and that acceptance of God in my life.
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord.
As my golden years and corporate America employment days are approaching swiftly, possible plans to enhance the @potluckpapi trademark have gotten pretty interesting with every event. As a core and by design, this is not unique, yet by choice it is kept simple. These experiences have been very beneficial and who knows what this venture may bring from here on, but it has been a good ride thus far.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @potluckpapi
- Email: potluckpapi@gmail.com
- Linkedin: Joe Rogers Jr
