Morgan Hill Today 2014 03 Spring | Page 22

George and Alice Chiala

Food and Philanthropy Go Hand in Hand
By Robin Shepherd

When George and Alice Chiala first met in 1967 , they hit it off right from the start , but little did they know the amazing journey they would take together as parents , farming and food processing innovators , community leaders and philanthropists ,

Alice was working at her uncle ’ s corner drugstore in Morgan Hill while on summer break from San Jose State University where she was a Food Science major . George was studying business and economics at Santa Clara University and spending his summer working on his father Vito Chiala ’ s bountiful farm just a few blocks away . When he stopped by the drugstore one day for an ice cream cone , they got to talking and discovered they had a lot in common .
After college they got married and were working their way up the career ladder when George came home one day and confided to Alice that instead of a 9 to 5 office job , he wanted to start his own farm , They agreed to give it a go , and George Chiala Farms was established in 1972 .
“ It was hard at first ,” George said . “ We planted 20 acres of strawberries and nine acres of sugar beets , along with tomatoes and peppers , Then we began to experiment with sweet corn … lots of it . And after that , garlic .”
They joined a small grower co-op and a strawberry co-op , George also joined the Santa Clara County Farm Bureau where he was steadily promoted up the ranks to become its president .
“ We gained a lot of valuable advice and experience from these groups ,” George said . “ Mitch Mariani of Mariani Orchards was also a great mentor .”
During the 1970s and early 1980s , George focused on building the business while Alice worked as a substitute teacher and tutor and focused on raising their four children , Christy , Nicole , George Jr ., and Tim .
“ George and I were always working , so when they weren ’ t in school , the children helped out at the farm ,” Alice said . “ There
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