Making potica (pronounced po-TEE-zaw) is a day-long, laborious task.  Freshly baked potica loaves filled with cinnamon, honey, butter and ground walnuts are a tradition enjoyed by Slovenians at holiday time or, in reality, any time they can get it.  My father (100% Slovenian) asked my Swedish/English mother to learn to make it and the recipe and technique has now passed down to me and my six siblings.  Every year at Christmas and Easter, our family wrestles with who will bake it for the family gathering….and often we simply buy it due to the lack of a volunteer.  Alas, it is never the same as homemade.

Imagine my surprise when I learned that a fellow WKS alumnus bakes and sells his homemade potica!  Meet Doug Johnson, WKS Class of 1993.  Camp Street Goods, his new potica-making venture, is now gearing up to take orders for the holiday season.

Doug was born and raised in Silver Bay, the son of two WKS alumni, Greg Johnson (Class of 1965) and Marilyn Biller Johnson (Class of 1967) and brother of Jessica Johnson Olson (Class of 1995).  He is part of an extended family that includes many more WKS graduates.  His childhood and young adulthood were filled with school, sports, friends, work and a big sense of community.  His favorite teacher, Mr. Mike Smrekar in 4^th grade, made learning fun and made him feel welcome in class each day.  He liked his small school classes which offered him opportunities for participation and leadership roles.  When the downturn of the local mining industry upended many, he was supported by his extended family and developed a closer relationship with many of them including his paternal grandmother, Vicki Peshel Johnson, a full-blooded Slovenian.

Years ago, Doug’s Grandma Vicki gave him a personal lesson in potica baking and he took detailed notes, which he still has.  As he made potica on his own, he would call her with questions.  She always had advice or an immediate solution to any problem.  “You have to stretch the dough super thin by hand! No rolling pins allowed!”, she said.  Walnuts were not cheap so, after you ground them with a hand grinder, you would follow with graham crackers to not waste a single walnut “and to add a little extra flavor”.  She also taught him to measure directly over the mixing bowl (usually a baker’s no-no) so if you spilled, the ingredient would not be wasted and “a little extra never hurts”.

I remember that my mother joined a group of women who made potica in the basement kitchen of Saint Mary’s Catholic Church for many years….and Vicki Johnson was a participant as well.  What I did not know was that Vicki was particular about her potica making and that my mother (and perhaps others) learned some techniques from her.  Doug has learned these techniques as well, and it shows up in his potica loaves.

It is not surprising then to hear that Doug is extremely interested in genealogy and family history…especially in preserving family heritage and traditions like potica baking.  He loves hearing stories about his family members who have died and has traveled extensively within the United States to trace their paths and see their graves.  Doug said, “I realized that memories like potica baking with Grandma Vicki, in addition to the recipes, had to be preserved.”

Doug attended UMD after his high school graduation and majored in accounting.  He obtained his CPA license and has worked at several organizations as an administrator of retirement plans.  He currently works as a Senior Client Service Manager at Principal Financial in Minneapolis, one of the largest providers of retirement plans in the nation and specializes in Employee Stock Ownership Plans.

A lover of sports and baseball in particular, Doug volunteered through the Rotary Club in Blaine, Minnesota to put on an “Opening Day” celebration for an organization that provides disabled youth the opportunity to play a game of baseball instead of just watch one from the stands.  He organized a crew to grill over 300 hotdogs/hamburgers for this celebration and continued to do so for several years.

Doug also loves gardening (peppers and tomatoes for salsa), canning, grilling, smoking meats and trying various homemade sauces and rubs on them.  It sounds like potica might be just the beginning for this new entrepreneur!

Camp Street Goods was named after the street that Grandma Vicki Johnson grew up on in Ely, Minnesota.  If you are curious, Camp Street Goods has a Facebook page that you could follow.  Currently, Doug is only able to sell at farmer’s markets, craft fairs and through hand delivery.  COVID has complicated those options as well, but I know he would be interested to hear from you if you would like to order a loaf or two.  His Grandma Vicki must be mighty proud!