Kansas Business Hall of Fame honors food pioneers

TOPEKA, KANSAS |

Roast turkey may have been on the menu at a legislative caucus organized by the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Industry Tuesday night, but world-famous pizza and chocolate were on center stage.

The founders Pizza Hut and Russell Stover Candies were inducted into the Kansas Business Hall of Fame, located at Emporia State University. The hall of fame recognizes historical contributors and present day business leaders in order to promote the state's rich heritage of business leadership.

"It is hard to travel anywhere in the modern world without seeing the peaked red roof of Pizza Hut," said ESU President Kay Schallenkamp, introducing Pizza Hut founders Dan and Frank Carney. The two brothers started their first pizza restaurant in Wichita with a $600 loan from their mother and grew it into a global enterprise spanning six continents.

"Franchises in 22 states and two countries were started by native Kansans who believed in our business model and wanted to spread it to other parts of the world," said Frank Carney, who called his brother a "partner, teacher, mentor and friend."

Scott Ward, CEO of Russell Stover Candies accepted the posthumous induction for Russell and Clara Stover. Russell was born in an Osborne County sod house in 1888. He met Clara at the University of Iowa and two created famous brands like the Eskimo Pie and Mrs. Stover's Bungalow Candies.

Ward pointed out that the Stovers almost went broke four times, surviving the Depression and the sugar rationing of World War II.

"In these hard economic times, you need to look to people like that," he said.

Russell Stover Candies provide 1,600 Kansas jobs and a $250 million investment in its Abilene and Iola factories.

Governor Kathleen Sebelius presented Ward and the Carney brothers a plaque to mark their induction into the hall of fame.

Last Updated July 2, 2007>