A story about Douglas
I spy with my little eye, way in the background . . .
That’s me on the left standing next to Frank Perdue.
You’ve heard of him, right?
I’m proud to say that some months, I sell more Perdue product than any stand-alone store in the country.
Here’s my friend, Frank Giuffrida, from the Hilltop Steak House in Saugus. He has a butcher shop along with the restaurant. A few weeks ago, he called me in a panic because he lost one of his meat cutters. He asked me to refer someone to him.
I do have an excellent meat cutter working part time for me and part time at Star Market. Frank took my word and hired him. Well, now his butcher shop is humming again. People two and three deep all the time. Not as busy as the restaurant, but still busy. See the sign for the Hilltop Butcher Shop in the background?
So Frank just pulled up at Butcher’s Pride in a limo. He walked in with a set of bullhorns for me. He collects that kind of thing. I put them on the wall of Butcher’s Pride.
But now it’s time to say goodbye to the butcher business. It’s rough. I’ve got a butcher working for me who has a metal hook instead of a hand. All because of a meat grinder in his past. My own body is giving up on me. My early years as a meat-cutter were rough. Lots of hoisting very heavy meat onto hooks. And don’t forget my football years. I’ve gotten both shoulders and hips replaced, and I’ve had seven back surgeries this year. That’s all for me. But I’ve got a worthy buyer, George Melisi from Billerica.
— Special thanks to Lisa Vogel, daughter of Douglas MacArthur (1942-2021)
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Pretty sure that red n’ white Ford pickup truck photo is my former brother-in-law Dana Noyes and his then girlfriend now wife Linda. 😀
That sure is Dana and Linda and his famous pickup truck and I believe but I’m not 100% sure that Stephen Gallinose RIP on the Harley
Awesome account of a store my whole family patronized. My dear cousin, Paul Ficociello, worked at Butcher’s Pride in Burlington. Their meat was fantastic!
That was a great butcher shop and the people were so nice. I used to work with Doug’s wife, Jean, at the Lahey Clinic. I still miss her.
OMG!! First of all, I would love to get in touch with whomever put this post up or found these pictures, but I posted a few comments and photos a few months ago. I worked there for about five years right out of high school and Doug was like a father to me. Working at that butcher show up was the greatest experience in the world. It was tough, it was serious. The hours were just ongoing. We automatically worked whatever hours each week depending on how busy we were. If you couldn’t commit, you did not fit! But, nobody wanted to miss a shift! We worked very hard as a team. With Dougs guidance , along with his family, I, and I think we all learned a lot during impressionable years (late teens and plus ) about work, fun,responsibility and understanding……
Do you have any photos? Do you know what happened to Richie Fields (iron hook guy).
I don’t have any photos at the shop, but I do have a few photos of some of the company, outings and picnics that we would always have with everybody from the store and I don’t know what happened to Richie, but I’m guessing this may be you lol?
Is this you on FB? https://www.facebook.com/john.tkacs.319
I worked with Paul and actually would go to his home for dinner every once and awhile. He was a great guy and very funny !
That is me in the photo !!
Which one?
The one at the end of the deli case with all the hams !
Awesome writeup! Went to Butcher’s Pride as a kid with my parents! Also remember dropping of film to the Photomat in the picture above!
Hilltop Steak House, family home up for sale: https://www.boston.com/real-estate/on-the-market/2026/06/12/hilltop-steak-house-home-on-the-market-lynnfield/
I worked for Doug at Butchers Pride for a brief period in high School. Rest in peace
My parents would shop there, and I would always be given a big bone for my dog.