Parliamentary mention for bagel king
The memory of Mendel Glick the patriarch of the family responsible for Australia’s best-known bagel baker has been honoured in Victoria’s State Parliament.
Mendel Glick Photo: Jewish Care
Caulfield MP David Southwick told the parliament: “It does not matter what side of politics you are from, whether you are a Prime Minister, Premier or opposition leader aspiring to the top job, if you are visiting the bagel belt in my electorate, one of the first visits you make is to where the bagels come from, and that is Glick’s bakery in Carlisle Street, Balaclava.
Unfortunately the man behind Melbourne’s iconic bagel chain, Mendel Glick, passed away peacefully recently at the age of 92. Mr Glick was a true success story not only with his business but also with how he and his wife, Chaya, raised a family of nine children, and they did all this while giving back to the community. Mr Glick started his life in Australia with nothing, arriving in 1949 after spending six years in concentration camps from childhood until his teens. He often shared stories of close calls and near-death experiences escaping from the Nazis.
David Southwick speaks in parliament
I have always admired people who value the importance of hard work, and there was no harder worker than Mr Glick. He would be in his Carlisle Street bakery from night through the day, six days a week — as a proud observant Jew he would take the Sabbath off to attend shul with his family. When asked recently, ‘Some people say that you never go on holidays. Is that true?’, he answered, ‘Yes, it is’, with a smile. ‘Why would I? I have the job I love, and I have regular time to rest on Shabbos and Yom Tov. What can I say? I am a happy man!’.
Mr Glick is survived by 170 grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren. We wish his family and all who knew him a long life.”
