answer both surprised, and pleased him.
“You know Dad, we like this lifestyle,”
they told their father. Considering the
decades of memories the Bonino family
have shared it’s easy to understand
their decision to continue the legacy. “I
remember one time, when I was playing
Little League and I looked up to see
Louie standing up on a hill watching,
completely covered with dirt,” Brent said.
“He had taken a break from driving the
tractor just so he could see me play. This
always meant so much to me.”
For Russ, one of his fondest memories
is his mom’s sandwiches. “We were always
the hit of the school because we always
had the best sandwiches in our lunch,”
he said. “I’ve got friends of mine now that
still come here and say, ‘Hey I’m kind of
hungry, do you think your mom would
make me a sandwich?’” A key component
of the family business continues to be
their customers.
“I just like to hear people
recommending us to other people. It kind
of feathers our hat a little bit,” Louie said.
“It’s kind of nice to see customers come
in, and they know you, and you know
them. It’s a place to do business, but
a friendly business. That’s kind of the
way I was brought up.” Judy echoed her
husband’s sentiments. “This is a family
business, so these people are family,
they’re not customers, they’re family.”
LJB Farms is located at 585 Fitzgerald
Avenue in San Martin, and is open from
early spring, through December 24. Their
hours are 9 am to 6 pm, seven days a
week. Contact them at 408-842-9755.
Brothers Russ (l) and Brent (r) Bonino
at family business, LJB Farms