Steve & Natali Off The Air: Dave Dahl | Dave's Killer Bread & Second Chances

Dave Dahl’s story is one of Portland’s most remarkable tales of redemption and entrepreneurship. In this episode, the co-founder of Dave’s Killer Bread shares how he transformed his life after prison, built one of Oregon’s most successful brands, and became a powerful advocate for second chances.

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The ideas expressed in this program are those of the hosts and guests, not of the PNC Live Studio.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:04

Welcome back, everybody. Good to see you. Steve Dunn, Natalie Marmion. Always good to see you. It's nice to see you, too. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 0:10

We need little breaks here and there, but otherwise it's nice to see you again.

SPEAKER_03 0:13

Well, you know, we we have had some such great guests since we started this program. And today's is exceptional. And mainly because he has the most incredible story. Almost you think this has to be a movie at some point. We're going to talk to him about that. Is that a possibility?

SPEAKER_01 0:32

And to add to your little tease there, he's created something that you probably have in your house right now. This is my snack, by the way. So little props we'll get to. No. We do welcome you back. We are having so much fun because we have been talking to incredible guests throughout since we started this, but also throughout our careers. How long were you at K2, Steve?

SPEAKER_03 0:54

39. 39 years. It was really funny because uh when I announced I was leaving K 2, so many people came up and said, Come on, man, make it to 40. Right. Well, how could you not make it to 40?

SPEAKER_01 1:06

It's got to be a clean round number.

SPEAKER_03 1:07

No, absolutely not. It but it was a wonderful time there. So many friends I still have, still talk to, met you there, of course, and and uh that was a little strange. Marginal working through it. But uh other than that, no, just a just a wonderful time, and and I love that television station.

SPEAKER_01 1:25

Aaron Powell And throughout the years, because yes, he was your anchor, you'd invited him into your house for all those years. And they invited you, they chose to watch you. But you were also a great reporter, and you went on some really interesting stories. I mean, some of your favorite when I just asked you off the top, what was one or two of the most favorite things you did? Interesting anyway, what comes to mind?

SPEAKER_03 1:45

Aaron Powell The first Gulf War they sent us to Iraq, and we were um in a stayed in a burned out, blown-up Baghdad hotel on the rooftop. And every night the U.S. troops would fly over us with their helicopters and you're the da da da da da you know, you're sleeping in your sleeping bag, and they'd shine a spotlight on us. And we just kind of wave at them and then they'd they'd move on. And how scary was that? It was terribly frightening. It really was. You know, when you I was obviously a little bit younger then, and I was excited to take the trip. But about two days in, I'm thinking, what did I get myself into and when do I get to go home? Well, how long were you there? Um two weeks. Oh wow, which was about twelve days too long, to be honest with you. But we came out with some great stories, met some incredible people, and um it really was that one definitely stands out. We were also able to travel a lot for sports. Sure. Oregon Ducks played the national championship game. We would go there, go to the Rose Bowl and uh Trailblazers. Right. Got to cover the Trailblazers back in the day when they were against Detroit Pistons in the championship.

SPEAKER_01 2:50

So who were you cheering on, to be honest?

SPEAKER_03 2:52

Here's what's funny about that because when I went there, I was still a Detroit Piston fan. Right. Uh but then I heard a lot of people around me, because we were kind of sitting up in the in a little uh area where the press was in the middle of the stands. And people were going where is Portland? Some little podunk thing. Portland Maine, or they didn't know where it was. And I thought, wait a minute. And so all of a sudden, by the end of that series, I was polling for the Blazers and have ever since. If the Blazers play the Pistons today, I'll I'll root for the Portland Trail Blazers. By far. Well, you've been here long enough. This is home now, buddy. And they're my they're my team.

SPEAKER_01 3:29

They're your team, they're my team, too.

SPEAKER_03 3:31

You you're a Blazer fan, aren't you?

SPEAKER_01 3:32

100%.

SPEAKER_03 3:33

You know who else is?

SPEAKER_01 3:34

Tell me. Our guest today is a Blazer fan.

SPEAKER_03 3:39

Why have we never all gone to a Blazer game then? But we should all be awesome. In fact, let's bring the play. Please welcome. Please welcome. All right, hold up your bread here.

SPEAKER_01 3:47

Yes, my snack.

SPEAKER_03 3:48

The man who started all of this, Dave's killer bread, Mr. Dave Dahl, is with us today.

SPEAKER_01 3:55

Sorry, Dave. We're so excited to talk to you. So excited.

SPEAKER_00 3:58

I am blown away. This is really cool. Just want to be with you guys.

SPEAKER_03 4:01

That voice is great. Tell Dave what your son said.

SPEAKER_01 4:05

Oh, yes. So we're having dinner with my 21, well, 22-year-old son the other day, and Steve mentioned we're going to be talking to you. How excited did he get?

SPEAKER_03 4:13

You could you I don't care who else you would have thrown out who wouldn't be nearly as excited as hearing you ronnie.

SPEAKER_01 4:18

I love his bread. I want to hear all about him. A 22-year-old young man can't wait to hear about you.

SPEAKER_00 4:24

Yeah. That's so funny because uh, I mean, it it happened so long ago, you know. So anybody who the youngsters, when they know me now, it's kind of a story.

SPEAKER_01 4:32

But you created a product.

SPEAKER_00 4:33

Yeah, they might know the product.

SPEAKER_01 4:34

That's that's right. And then they've they they've learned about you and your story through the product, right?

SPEAKER_00 4:40

But he's of course the stories are there's so many different versions now that they have AI.

SPEAKER_01 4:44

Well, we have you here now to tell us the truth. We're gonna work through all the AI and the myth or the legend.

SPEAKER_03 4:49

Let's go back to the beginning because as a teenager, no, your family had had a business, right? They were already doing some bakers. Yeah. You uh as a teenager, whole grain bakers. Whole grain, right. You weren't necessarily interested in that business. You were more interested in doing some other stuff. You started doing some drugs, got into some crime, what have you, lived at a few different places throughout the country. Tell us about that point in your life.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

Well, which point?

SPEAKER_01 5:17

Uh yeah, how old are you when things kind of change?

SPEAKER_00 5:20

Uh I you know, I grew up in a religious, very religious Seventh day Avenue home. And uh we went to Seventh Avenue schools uh and church, and so it was like our whole lives revolved around that. And uh I came to a point where I wasn't believing what I was told anymore, and I just fell off a cliff, so I was like probably 13 by that time, maybe. And uh because I was so confused about everything that I'd been taught, I I didn't know what I didn't have a compass. A direction I kind of fell off uh a cliff, and that's I think that's how I look at it.

SPEAKER_01 5:55

Yeah, I started to rebel against it.

SPEAKER_00 5:57

Rebel and just uh without a cause and without any comprehension of of the world, because uh some of the adventists, at least we were very, my mom would say n unworldly. We weren't worldly, um, and worldly things were bad things. So I had to go out and find out what worldly things were.

SPEAKER_03 6:18

When when did you first start doing drugs? How old were you? Do you remember that?

SPEAKER_00 6:22

Um Well, I I you know I experimented with drinking and smoking weed probably at that age, about 13. Um, but I didn't really get serious. I mean, I by the time I was fifteen, I was probably drinking a lot. I was drinking quite a bit, but it wasn't every day or anything like that.

SPEAKER_01 6:38

I mean, it was And you're born and raised here in Oregon. Yes. This is home for you. Okay, so that's all happening in the world.

SPEAKER_00 6:43

Gresham was at that time I was living in Gresham.

SPEAKER_01 6:46

So the family you have a history, a family history in baking. You start getting into trouble. I'm trying to then see where these three two things merge, and we have this product now. I mean, what happens? So you're 1350, and then I'm Well, you were in prison for a while.

SPEAKER_00 6:59

Yeah. I went to prison four times. Four times.

SPEAKER_03 7:02

And what'd you go to prison for?

SPEAKER_00 7:04

Um I went to prison first for burglary, then for uh armed robbery in Massachusetts. It's another place I hung out. Uh and then I went, then I had uh, see, what was it, robbery, unarmed robbery in in Portland, back in Portland. And then um finally assault, second degree assault, and uh delivery of control substance, and that got me my biggest sentence. So I did 15 years altogether.

SPEAKER_03 7:32

Fifteen years. So once you're released from prison in the early 2000s, you join your brother, right? Is that right? Yeah back with the bakery. Yeah. Is that where this whole thing began? Tell us about that.

SPEAKER_00 7:45

I did. Uh and you know, I think it's I'd like to talk uh at some point about with you about what led to that. Yes. But at that time, it was like a a great opportunity. I mean, I had come back a couple times to the bakery over the years, but I wasn't ready. I didn't I was wasn't done doing drugs. You know, meth was my thing, I loved it. And uh, I mean my first transformation in life was I call it my first transformation was when I started doing methamphetamine. Uh first time I ever felt good, you know. I was I was depressed, I was I was just I was suicidal um growing up, and the meth kind of helped me, so it it seemed to help me, but you know, it led to other things. And um I since I didn't have that compass, I I fell into a life of crime, you know, um to handle to you know to support my drug habit. And uh so I had a great epiphany in my fourth trip down where I um I was suicidal, and I uh I like to tell people I lost um yeah, I lost I didn't have any reason to live. I was every day I was like getting up. I I would go out and exercise and stuff, but that was the only time I felt good, and then the rest of the time I was I was struggling and and then I had really tough nights and just suicidal. And I finally uh I wrote out a kite, they call it, um, and make communication form to the authorities and to the psych services because I'm like, um, I always thought the reason I was miserable because life sucked, right? Life's garbage, so why wouldn't I be miserable? But it was the other way around. You know, I was I was I was I was thinking things, the wrong things, and my life became miserable. And it was just continually, I always proved to myself that life sucked, and I was a bad guy. And until I had that moment, I asked for help, put in a kite to psych services, and they um gave me some medication, which I didn't think would work, but it did. And uh then I went to school for drafting.

SPEAKER_01 10:00

For drafting.

SPEAKER_00 10:01

And that's what changed my life.

SPEAKER_01 10:02

In prison?

SPEAKER_00 10:03

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 10:04

Okay.

unknown 10:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:05

What so what time frame is this? How many years have passed? Like how old are you always? You're 38, I think.

SPEAKER_00 10:10

Yeah, a lot of years went by.

SPEAKER_01 10:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:12

Um, and uh, you know, all those things added up to that moment, and it was a just an amazing moment. From that time, even though I've had struggles in my life, bad truck times and made mistakes. I always overcome because I've been there, I know, I know how to do it. You know, I know how to stay on track or get back on track.

SPEAKER_03 10:34

You get out of prison, you go to the bakery with your brother. At what point does something click in? You're gonna make this cornmeal crusted bread? When does that happen?

SPEAKER_00 10:46

Well, while I was in there, drafting is a cool thing because um you know, you learn how to design. You learn how to begin with the end in mind, you learn how to use scientific method essentially to try one thing, try another thing, and just keep on this road toward a toward toward a goal. Um because of that, I got out already thinking I was gonna go to different markets around the country, more like the west side, like San Francisco, Seattle is what I was thinking. I'd go there, see what's selling there, replicate it, make a slightly different version of it, and bring it back and create my own thing, you know, and and create things that would sell. Because I didn't know any other way to do it. And but while I was doing that, my brother, and I was making cookies, my brother said, let's redesign um the cookies so that we had the cup family cookies that were being sold at Trader Joe's and things, but they had trans fats in them, and nobody wanted trans fats. So I had to you know reformulate them. And while I was at it, I went ahead and uh made them vegan too. It was and that made them popular amongst a certain uh group of people, and they were they were good. So I'm I'm going crazy on these cookies. I'm like, that's gonna be it would have been Dave's killer cookies or something.

SPEAKER_01 12:07

It's not too late to make those. I would love to try one of those. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:11

But my brother goes, slow down, Turbo. We make bread. That's what we do. We've been making bread all these years. We're set up for bread. We can do things that the big guys can't do. Um, because it would take too much retooling and just a whole different philosophy making bread. And and so he he kind of eat, and that scared the hell out of me because bread, you know, is way harder than cookies. It's it's just more complicated, complex. Um, and so I had to start, I had to go out and see what the best breads were out there. And um, best, you know, whole grain, natural, uh, even organic. There really wasn't much organic out there at the time, but I was just looking for really special breads and how I could beat them. Because that's really all all I had. You know, I had to learn other people's things so I could go out, so I could say, well, this makes a great product. I'll make it better. Right.

SPEAKER_01 13:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:06

And I and that's that was the way.

SPEAKER_01 13:08

And is this the family history of baking that you had this knowledge to experiment with these things?

SPEAKER_00 13:12

No, I mean, my dad was was definitely an experimenter. He didn't do it my way. Um, I'm sure that to some degree he did, but and my brother did that too. Um, but I had the great experience in prison that was of drafting. And the drafting, people don't connect it. It's like drafting, baking, what's it, what, what's the thing? The commonality is the way you think about about creating, about how you you have to make a lot of mistakes to get to where you're going. You know, and that's my life too. So uh I just I did I came at it with a very scientific um method approach, and I was fortunate. My brother had this nutrition program, which and probably the only one in the world at the time, I mean, but it was very, you know, old style, analog, you know, you know, no digital nothing. It didn't have but it it was a great tool for formulating the bread. I'm like, well, if there was just one more tool that I could say, well, this has a certain nutrition profile. Um, if I do this, it's gonna and it was it also helps you replicate something else. If you can get the nutrition profile of another product, right? You can replicate it, it helps to replicate, and then you can create on top of it.

SPEAKER_03 14:30

I want to hold up his bread there for you, if you can. You just want to slice, don't you? I'm getting hungry.

SPEAKER_01 14:34

Let me just bring peanut butter.

SPEAKER_03 14:36

This this picture here.

SPEAKER_01 14:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:38

All right. You, uh guitar. This is you, obviously at a younger age. Uh, guitar says Dave's killer bread. How did that all come about, the Dave's killer bread part of it? And was there some controversy at first of whether you should put killer on there?

SPEAKER_00 14:52

Oh, big time. Yeah, you can imagine. Um, and my brother, you know, he never did like my bread, to be honest.

SPEAKER_01 15:00

But he was your brother never liked your bread.

SPEAKER_00 15:03

Well, he's like the first what he was really upset about or worried about was uh how much it costs to make. And nobody's gonna pay that, you know, that kind of thing. But no, he's just my brother's just old stodgy mofo. Um That's okay. You can say whatever you want. No, I'm just joking, Glenn. Just playing around. Um, no, he just had a way of thinking about bread, and I would thought about it differently.

SPEAKER_01 15:28

So uh how the name came about. How the name came about controversial.

SPEAKER_00 15:33

So the point is, my brother uh called me. He said, let's call Dave's bread. And I think the reason, uh and we've never talked about this, but it's gonna be out there now. I think the reason was just in case it really screwed up, and because I'm such a screw up.

SPEAKER_01 15:47

Oh, you don't think he was throwing you a bone, like let's put your name on this because it's so great. He was thinking it might fail.

SPEAKER_00 15:53

Yeah, just yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

There's a brother for you.

SPEAKER_00 15:57

I don't know. That's maybe not fair totally, but uh, he is kind of a he hedges his bets pretty good.

SPEAKER_03 16:02

So his bets. So when you how do you decide so you can decide on the killer part of the way?

SPEAKER_00 16:07

Well, I didn't just I didn't really think Dave's killer bread. It just uh I wanted to make a great product for the company that are for the for the family. Yeah, that's all I was thinking. Um my brother goes, um, it's called Dave's Bread. And I'm still thinking it's a nature bake product, you know, it's uh it's a family business product. Um cool. Uh I don't like the name Dave's Dave's bread, because then that puts me on the spot. It kind of makes me um makes it about me. And I was like, you know, I'm I'm working on this thing about in my life trying to transform, be better. And the more it's about me, the the more it's not, it it feels a little bit wrong to me.

SPEAKER_01 16:46

You felt like you were working with and for the family at that point. You didn't want the spotlight on you.

SPEAKER_00 16:50

Yeah, I discovered the very the great uh power, the uh concept of humility. I didn't understand what it meant until it hit me in the face, and it was the most powerful thing I ever learned. Um and so calling it Dave's bread sounded seemed like I was, you know, pulling myself, uh, which I am, but uh I I work on it all the time. Anyway, uh so he said that. But I made a product of my first product that I made was called uh blues bread, and that's the blue cornmeal. Right. It's not around anymore. If it is, it's a different version. But um, it was the first one I call it the mother of killer breads, and then a second one was called uh killer bread, and it was like blues on steroids. It was just a full of nuts and all the things.

SPEAKER_01 17:35

So why didn't that take off? Why isn't that around?

SPEAKER_00 17:37

Well, for a long time, but what happened was it had the nuts, which are allergens. And in order to, you know, uh produce everything we needed to produce, we needed to get everything out of there that was causing slowdowns in the in the line. So it'd be eventually didn't make it, but it was it was huge at the farmer's market. When we first went to the farmer's market, it was it was between that one and Goodseed, the mother of this. Um that were always neck and neck, and it's like which one's gonna win this week.

SPEAKER_03 18:07

We're gonna take a quick break, and when we come back, we're gonna talk about what he's doing now and why he ended up selling the company after this. Stay with us.

SPEAKER_01 18:20

We welcome you back. We are talking today with Dave Dahl, the creator of Dave's Killer Bread. And it's been such a fascinating conversation, Steve. We're learning so much. I mean, like we've been buying this product for a million years, so it's well, not a million years, Dave. How much when did it come out?

SPEAKER_00 18:35

2005.

SPEAKER_01 18:35

Since 2005, we've been buying this bread. I like the thin slice, by the way. But we are learning so much about your history and how this came to be. Um, but like you said, like where did we from the name, your history, and then you decide to sell the company? What happened you know, there's so much.

SPEAKER_00 18:53

Yeah, you you asked, I don't know what what you just asked me.

SPEAKER_01 18:56

Um, at what point you were talking about that, so you're making this bread, you have different varieties, it's going really well. Um why did you even consider selling the first time? What's happening in your world and your business?

SPEAKER_00 19:11

Yeah, that's a good question. We um we it was three guys, my brother, my nephew, and myself, my his son. And there's another great story there. But uh we all kind of thought things just thought differently about things. My brother was getting older, he was like ready to retire. He's always ready to sell. He's always ready, you know, it seemed like. And I don't blame him. I mean, he's tired. And he he put it, he he actually put his house up at one point um in 2007, eight, when we needed to move. And there was no there no bank would, even though we were successful as far as just incredibly growing so fast, we couldn't afford to grow. It cost a lot of money to do everything you gotta do. We had to move from uh 63rd and Halsey to Milwaukee, Bob's Red Mill's old uh facility, turned that into a bakery. And it was just crazy. And uh we needed this big loan, and nobody would give it to us. Uh we finally got it because partly because Glenn put up his house for that. So um, you know, that it was 2000, as uh as the years, so that 2009, after we got into this place in 2009, we were able to uh finally get into Costco in order to grow. We had to, you know, we had to build for Costco. And uh so we were starting in Costco, and those next couple years were incredible, hard, hard work.

SPEAKER_01 20:36

Uh and you guys are doing the work. You guys are showing up every day doing the work.

SPEAKER_00 20:40

Oh, yeah, especially me. You know, I mean, I'm not I'm not gonna downplay anybody else's work, but I mean uh I was spiritheading this thing, and I I I had to be out to all the different markets of, you know, when we got into Seattle and and all that area, that was a lot of work, and nobody knew who we were, and they thought we were crazy throwing up all this, putting all this bread on the shelves. We had to fill the shelves up. Nobody knew that, so we couldn't sell it. I went from store to store with my wife now, um, girlfriend, then we and we did we faced the bread, we pulled the old bread, put new bread up, because nobody else would do it for us. And uh it was disheartening a little bit to see all the bread that didn't sell. And uh, you know, the Fred Meyer employees and stuff were saying, uh, yeah, this this bread's garbage, nobody wants this crap. Obviously, you you know, you haven't sold any. I mean, you'd get people like that that would just say, like, think I'm a jackass. And uh, but I would I would be going from store to store and doing demos, and people would, you know, they'd flip out. And eventually, and then when we got into Costco in 2009, we they let us do these road shows. They wanted us to do these road shows where we would set up a big uh 10 by 10 and uh and we were able to sample. All different products. I had 15 varieties at the time. I was able to sample them all. And the reason, even though they only had two there, the reason is because they want to support their the communities around them. It just makes sense from a business perspective not to put those people out of business. Those are, you know what I mean? So in fact, so uh that got and then plus I was speaking probably it got to be every day pretty much, sometimes three, four times in a day. Um, so that was it was just because people would ask me to come speak, and I'm like, well, if we have the bread there, I can afford to come there because I'm not getting paid to do it, but our company's got to pay for it. So anyway, that was part of the outreach. Um, and uh just constantly demoing, and so we worked very hard, like 70, 80 hours.

SPEAKER_03 22:52

That's incredible. I read somewhere that a third of your staff was ex-cons. Yes. So think about why your whole story and all the things you went through as a young kid. Do you ever look back and say, hey, maybe all this was worth it? This journey I went on was worth it to get us to the point where we are today. All these people have jobs large part because of me.

SPEAKER_00 23:16

It's beyond my um wildest dreams. It's that it's beyond anything I could have comprehended. And the fact that I was I'm able to make a difference in in around the world in my, you know, different ways that I've been able to do that, um, either financially or just by being there and uh helping people with my story and stuff, you know, it's been unbelievable. But the if you talk about those ex-cons, you know, I'm a guy that had a turnaround in my life. And not only did I f your heart says you want to help people do that, uh, but you also believe in these people. You know, you believe that if I can do it, they can do it. And they end up being some amazing people. It's uh it's not a charity thing. It's like they helped you, you helped them.

SPEAKER_01 24:07

Well, and you might be the first person that's believed in them in a long time. So you are giving them help. Yes, good point.

SPEAKER_00 24:11

Absolutely, yeah. We give we give them an opportunity, but they have to do the work, and that's always what I've said.

SPEAKER_03 24:16

You know, you sold the company for $275 million. Am I correct on that one?

SPEAKER_00 24:21

Yeah, that's a jump change nowadays, but it seemed like a lot then.

SPEAKER_03 24:24

Right. It still kind of seems like a lot. Yes. So what so tell the folks what you are doing now.

SPEAKER_00 24:33

Well, you know, I sold in two thousand we sold it in 2015. Um and you know, I w I kind of floundered around, you know, I've done a lot of things, but um struggled with with alcohol along the way here and there. Uh and bec what happened in 2013, everybody, most people know, if they don't know, they can find out really easy. But I had a really bad meltdown uh mental break. I didn't know I could be bipolar, and I discovered that I could be big time. I had a bad night with the cops, and uh it it just was totally misunderstood what happened by the cops, by me. I didn't know what I was doing. Um by the whole thing, it just was such a terrible thing. It was a tragedy, but it wasn't like I was back on a criminal path.

unknown 25:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:29

I just but I because of that, instead of going to prison for something that was really I shouldn't have gone to prison for, I took a deal uh guilty except for insanity on a on assault charges because I ran my my Cadillac into three cars, three cop cars. And and it doesn't I I still don't remember it, you know. Uh it just I just know their stories, and I know their stories changed a lot, and they're not all, you know, cops or I don't have anything against cops. And I've had a lot of problems with cops, but I don't I don't blame cops for being, you know, I'm not that guy. Uh but those cops were pretty bad to me. So and I've got other stories that you wouldn't believe, but but that moment was life-changing for you, wasn't it? It was, yeah. Uh it was a it was dark, it was a super dark moment, and it took me a long time to recover from it just mentally. Uh bipolar, I was psychotic that night, meaning I was completely lost. But I wasn't up to no good. I just was having problems and um reacting is what I was doing. And so I ended up in Cedar Hills Hospital. After I went to jail for a couple days, and my my attorney goes, get yourself over, let's take you over to Cedar Hills Hospital, and you got a mental defense because you're mental. I was still mental. Uh I was hypomanic at that time, but really hypomanic, they call it. And uh I wasn't seeing things right. And uh so I went to the hospital the Cedar Hills for a couple three weeks, and I got out and I was still a little bit hypomanic, and then I was still happy, but that's the thing about hypomanic, you can be unrealistically happy for no reason. I was had nothing to be happy about. And they, you know, Wellam at Week had always been nice to me, you know, always for years. It sent done so many nice little things, stories, write-ups about it. Uh, my life and me and my bread. And uh all of a sudden they had this great big spread called Breaking Bread. And it had a breaking bad logo. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:46

Okay, we're cute.

SPEAKER_00 27:46

And I thought that's cute, that's funny. Yeah, and then I read it. Uh I'm like, nope, uh, it didn't happen like that. A lot of stuff didn't happen like that, but it now they now they they're looking at me differently. Everybody's I'm the bad boy now. You know, I'm back to being once a criminal, always a criminal, yeah, kind of thing. And so that was 2013, 14. And then I, you know, I I did a lot of, I played music, I did uh played with my band here and there. Um I did I guess what the the biggest thing I did was I got into African tribal art. And it was and now I have a warehouse uh about fifth 12,000 square feet that's full of it.

SPEAKER_03 28:34

But do you sell it or you just collect it?

SPEAKER_00 28:37

I don't really sell it. I thought I would, but nobody wants it. So I'm like, you know, I found out that I'm the only guy who likes this stuff.

SPEAKER_01 28:45

No, I mean people do, but you need to be involved in something, though. You need to be busy. I mean, I'm hearing this is the perfect time for Dave's killer cookies, is what I'm hearing in all this.

SPEAKER_00 28:55

Well, I don't think my I don't think the company's gonna like me to do that.

SPEAKER_01 28:58

Are you allowed when you sold it? Yeah, what are the parameters around that? Are you still are you allowed to bake ever again?

SPEAKER_00 29:03

Uh not really. I mean, I think I could um I certainly wouldn't start a bakery. You know, that's a real pain, you know, uh that I don't I don't feel like dealing with right now.

SPEAKER_03 29:16

When you walk into Safeway Elbertson's, whatever, and you see that bread on the shelf, how does that make you feel now?

SPEAKER_00 29:24

Um it feels good for the most part, but it's a lot of it's not my product anymore. This is this is a creation of mine. Um and the the good days of beautiful days of dealing with all the people that were all the all the all the customers, uh growing growing up on Facebook, you know, they having an opportunity to get to talk to thousands of people. Um when I used to talk to all these people at the farmers market, uh it was fascinating it was unbelievable. And um so that's been you know, Facebook was was a powerful um tool, and I don't feel that great about Facebook anymore, but at the time it was just amazing.

SPEAKER_01 30:13

Steve asked you a little bit, you know, reflecting now, thinking back through the years, through everything you've been through in your journey as you reflect and weigh in what was worth it, what wasn't. What are what are some of the things that you bring forward now that you, your biggest lessons in all of this that you are grateful for?

SPEAKER_00 30:30

Well, I'm grateful all the time. It's a it's a practice that I have. Uh I have so much to be grateful for. I have so many problems. Uh as I'm getting older, I have a lot of medical stuff that I would get, you know, I'm not gonna bore you with, but it's like the I I look around, but I rem I'm reminded every day of, you know, like it's nice day, you know. I'm up on my I have a I have a penthouse on the top floor of the Benson Tower, uh that's 360 views. I s I love to see Portland from up there where you can't see the reality of it, you know. And it's uh I have that, I have a farm, I have my wife. Um lovely wife, by the way.

SPEAKER_03 31:15

You know my wife, you've got absolutely for a number of years. Great, great lady.

SPEAKER_00 31:19

Yeah, she is a good good woman. And uh and there's another whole book there, but uh she's so there's just so much going on. And I look at you know how fortunate I am, even with all my mistakes and all the disasters that have happened. Uh one of the things to answer your question, uh, that I really am happy about is that um I think that I've made a difference. You know, I made a difference in my life, and then I was able to expand that difference out in the world because each person, I realize each person that I can help to overcome their demons, uh just be a part of that, you know, that that person goes out and think of the ripple effect of each of that those people, their families, their community, the economy. I just look at it as just incredible to be a part of that.

SPEAKER_01 32:12

Why you're even willing to share your story now is to share, you know, there's always hope. Keep working. There is. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 32:19

You made a big difference. You really have. More than just bread. You look at the people now and you think to the because a lot of those folks, are they still working in the bread company then?

SPEAKER_00 32:33

Uh in Milwaukee. And uh, you know, I've been unfortunately estranged from the company ever since 2000, everything the incident. But um it's great to see these these people. They were, you know, when they see me, they they love me. Of course.

SPEAKER_03 32:51

Well, you've made a big impact on this community. You absolutely have. And this is why Natalie and I, when we first talked about getting you on here, both of us were excited. Her son was even more excited.

SPEAKER_01 33:03

Multi-generational.

SPEAKER_00 33:05

I love that. I love the youngsters when I love when I when I hear that.

SPEAKER_01 33:09

Yeah. Well, next time he's in town, we'll have to introduce him to the entrepreneur tour entrepreneur as well. So he'll want to talk to you about all your health stuff. Please don't suggest he goes to prison for four different times, though, to get him on his way. Let me ask you that.

SPEAKER_00 33:22

Well, that's what I would usually tell people when I was I I spoke a lot, and I'm gonna be speaking in Stockton uh this week, first time in quite a while. I'm doing a uh keynote speech, and it's a re-entry conference. But I'm looking forward to that. I'm trying to, you know, do a lot of things right now and and and still work on the speech. Um, but you know, what I tell people all the time is is that that you know I've overcome, you can, you know, I've done it, you can do it. Um I already forgot the uh I kind of lost the train of thought.

SPEAKER_03 34:00

Well, that right there. I mean you just say to someone, if I can do it, absolutely you can do it after everything you've been through. No question.

SPEAKER_00 34:09

It's great to to actually think that my life, and you asked about you all the I think somebody asked all the things that I've been through. Yes, they're very much worth it. I wouldn't do it again. Most of it. But uh if I did if I could do it again, I would do it a lot differently. But I am very um happy, uh satisfied with everything. Uh there's regrets, but I don't dwell on them.

SPEAKER_01 34:40

Can I ask? Do you eat bread?

SPEAKER_00 34:42

I eat a lot. Do you eat that bread? I eat the uh regular good seed. Regular good thin slice. I don't mess around.

SPEAKER_03 34:48

Oh, I like the thin slice. I love I love that bread. I just had some, honestly, I had some last night. It is so delicious. I like that thin slice.

SPEAKER_01 34:56

Take my loaf of bread, won't you?

SPEAKER_03 34:57

Well, you may not see it slip into my jacket here on the way out. Dave Dahl, it's been such a pleasure having you on.

SPEAKER_01 35:03

Thanks so much.

SPEAKER_03 35:04

Yeah, I hope I'll learn your stories.

SPEAKER_00 35:06

I would love to come back if you guys didn't even get started.

SPEAKER_03 35:09

Right? I didn't get started. No, we got lots more to talk about with you. There's no question about it. And as long as Natalie brings more bread with me.

SPEAKER_01 35:16

I will bring more bread. I'm gonna bring what why didn't you bring us bread?

SPEAKER_00 35:18

Oh because I don't know. I don't work in the bakery anymore, so I have to stop the stories like you do. Yeah, but I just didn't know. I thought it was just you. I didn't know you had a better half.

SPEAKER_01 35:30

No, she is a good man.

SPEAKER_03 35:33

She's the only reason this show is still on the air. And it's not thank you, Dave Doll. Great to see you, my friend. Thank you. All right. Thanks for watching, everybody.

SPEAKER_01 35:41

See you next time.