Whether telling bakery stories at the dinner table or shaping baguettes together, Chuck Conway, Carla Kevorkian and their kids have spent decades pouring their heart and soul into O Bread Bakery. The couple founded the bread company at Shelburne Farms in fall 1977 and were ahead of their time in their passion for organic ingredients. Their three children, Adam, Gregory and Sophie, grew up playing at the bakery — and sometimes baking, too.
Once a grand family estate, Shelburne Farms gradually transformed into a world-renowned education nonprofit open to the public. During that time, O Bread became a celebrated bakery of artisan, European-style organic breads made by hand and baked in a hearth oven. O Bread occupies a small corner of the five-story Farm Barn, a turreted fairy-tale castle of a building. In the summer, the smell of baking bread attracts hordes of tourists as they explore the farm.
For almost five decades, Chuck and Carla worked long hours and rarely took vacations. Now in their seventies, the couple are considering their succession plan.
Their children all spent time working at the bakery over the years. But Sophie and Adam both developed allergies to flour dust and no longer work there. Gregory, meanwhile, has labored there full time since 2018 and is the co-head baker and general manager. The family hopes he’ll take over the business, though the details of the transition are a work in progress. In the meantime, Carla and Chuck continue to knead dough. You can usually find them working Saturdays at the bakery with Gregory.
In the latest episode of “Stuck in Vermont,” Seven Days senior multimedia producer Eva Sollberger visited the beloved bakery on Valentine’s Day. A steady stream of customers picked up heart-shaped baguettes and chocolate-cherry brioche made by Chuck. Daughter Sophie and her baby, Calito Conway Amboise, were visiting, along with Craig Newman from Outreach for Earth Stewardship, who brought an Eastern screech owl. O Bread Bakery turns 50 next fall, and the family hopes to throw a party for former staff.
Music: Chris Haugen, “Easy Seas”
This episode of “Stuck in Vermont” was supported by the Vermont Community Foundation.
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This article appears in The Food Issue • 2026.
