Charles Edward "Charlie" Entenmann, who helped expand his family's Long Island, New York, bakery from a local delivery service to a household name, died on February 24, 2022, in Florida, according to his obituary. He was 92.

After serving in the Army, Charlie and his brothers Robert and William, along with his mother, Martha, expanded the family business, Entenmann's Bakery, from Main Street, Bay Shore, NY to groceries across the country. 

Entenmann's was originally opened by Charlie Entenmann's grandfather, William, in Brooklyn in 1898, according to the company's website. William, a German immigrant, would deliver his baked goods to houses in a horse-drawn wagon.

In 1900, the family moved the bakery to Bay Shore, Long Island, after William's son became sick and needed medical care there. The bakery kept the same delivery format.

After the death of his father in 1951, Charlie, his brothers, and his mother decided to start selling their baked goods to supermarkets. The company built a baking facility on five acres in Bay Shore, which was later expanded to 14 acres. The company was sold in 1978 and has changed hands a few times since then; it is now opened by Bimbo Bakeries USA.

Entenmann supported the Great South Bay YMCA in Bay Shore; funded research to improve water quality and habitats in the Great South Bay; and also, with the help of his brothers, funded Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, establishing the Entenmann Family Cardiac Center. 

After he retired, he started Biolife LLC, a company that produces healthcare products to stop bleeding. 

“Nobody knows how he got so smart. He never went to school,” Entenmann's son, Charles W. Entenmann, told Newsday. “I don’t think he ever forgot anything he read.”

Entenmann is survived by two children, seven grandchildren, and a "plethora" of great-grandchildren, according to his obituary. He was buried in early March 2022 in Bay Shore.

Source: Charles Entenmann, who helped bring baked goods to supermarkets, dies at 92