Derek Neary
Northern News Services

Fort Providence (Oct 05/01) - Baker Bertha Landry defies logic.

"Everybody (asks) me, 'How come you're still skinny and working in a bakery?'" she said, smiling.

Bertha Landry pulls a tray of sausage rolls from the oven at Yamoria Grocery in Fort Providence. - Derek Neary/NNSL photo

As good as it smells in the Yamoria Grocery kitchen, Landry simply doesn't have a sweet tooth.

"Once in a while, if I don't go home for lunch, I'll grab a bite to eat," she admitted.

That makes her an exception in the community. Practically everyone else, including her children, loves to get their hands on the doughnuts, pies, strudels and cakes.

Landry works 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the week to keep the display case and countertop full of pastries. Some of the items come pre-made and only require heating "so it's kind of easy," she said. However, she makes the banana bread, pies and bannock from scratch. She also bakes cakes by hand and decorates them too. A large, intricate wedding cake can take the better part of a day to complete, she said.

Landry started working in the grocery store's bakery four years ago. At that time she filled an evening shift and did more packaging than baking. After going back to school at Aurora College last year, she returned to the grocery store and mentioned that she had previous baking experience.

"So (my boss) put me in here and I've been stuck here ever since," she laughed.

With help from an industrial oven, she goes all out on Fridays to try to keep up with the heavy weekend demand, especially for doughnuts.

"Usually everything's gone by the time I come back to work on Monday," she said. "And then I start all over again."

She also makes sandwiches, pizza and buns most days. Just don't expect her to do the same at home.

"I'm too tired when I get home," she said.