A sweet memory was made for Bill Kelley of Winnetka when he appeared in Saturday’s North Chicago Community Days Parade as grand marshal.
Kelley, retired vice chairman of the Jelly Belly Candy Co., rode in the front passenger seat in an open-air convertible driven by son Brian of Northfield.
Bill Kelley and his wife of almost 54 years Joanie are also the parents of Meghan MacKinnon of Charleston, South Carolina.
Bill Kelley met U.S. President Ronald Reagan in January of 1981, and said being parade marshal in North Chicago was another of the biggest moments of his life.
“I’m humbled,” he said of the honor. “I was really tickled.”
North Chicago Mayor Leon Rockingham Jr., “called me and asked me if I would be the grand marshal of the Community Days Parade,” Kelley said, “and I was like, ‘Really?’ I was excited. It’s a thrill. Come on, this is great. Who gets to do this?”
Kelley’s paternal grandmother was part of the Goelitz family of candy-makers who became famous for perfecting common jelly bean candy into today’s Jelly Belly list of more than 100 flavors, including number-one seller Very Cherry, and number-two Buttered Popcorn.
“We were Goelitz Confectionery Company starting in 1898 in Cincinnati,” he said. “Then we moved to Chicago, and in 1913 we moved to North Chicago. We built the buildings still there today.”
“We sold it (on Nov. 30, 2023) to Ferrero SpA,” he continued. “It’s an Italian family-owned (company). They make Ferrero Rocher, Tic Tac.”
Kelly said it was, “absolutely bittersweet. We shed some tears over the sale of the company, no question about it. They’re closing the North Chicago factory. It’s a shame, but it’s an old factory.”
At the height of local Jelly Belly in the 1990s, there were about 150 employees including in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, he estimated.
“We were the first company to spend money on flavors,” he said. “Jelly beans, before we came along, they made them as cheaply as they possibly could. We put the flavor in the center. If you bite an old-fashioned jelly bean, the center’s clear. Our centers have flavor in them.
“The thing that stands out about Jelly Belly jelly beans is authenticity,” Kelley said.
Brian Kelley said his father being grand marshal of the parade was, “a really great honor. I found it humbling that they would think enough of my dad to give him this honor. It’s great.
“Our family’s run the factory here for 111 years,” he said. “North Chicago’s been a wonderful partner and community for over a century for our family and the company. I think it’s really an incredible day.”
Rockingham said, “Bill is very humble. He’s a very humble man. He was part of the community, and for this to be something that looks at him as a highlight, we thank him. Jelly Belly put North Chicago on the map.”
U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, said, “Bill Kelley’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. Jelly Belly here has been an institution. We’re sorry to see it leave.”
“(Kelley) was so excited to be grand marshal,” Schneider said with a smile. “It was very cool.”
Bill Kelley was a celebrity in the early 1980s, too.
“After the world found out that we made President Reagan’s jelly bean, we were swamped with orders and at the peak, we were 77 weeks behind in production,” he said.
Brian Kelley said, “It was a big deal when that all happened. We’d have reporters showing up at our doors sometimes during dinner, and I got used to seeing (my father) on TV, and in magazine articles. I mean, it changed our lives, there’s no question about it.”
Bill and Joanie Kelley flew to Washington, D.C. to give Reagan a Jelly Belly jar of assorted flavors at the White House.
Bill Kelley recalls his wife asking Reagan, “‘What’s your favorite flavor?’ and he said, ‘Oh, I just throw them in my mouth.’”
Asked if he was living his best life as grand marshal, Kelley said, “Ya think?”
