The owner of a bakery in Northern Virginia got a surprise this week from an unexpected fan of his sweet potato pecan pie -- President Barack Obama.
Obama published a Facebook shoutout to Brian Noyes, owner of the Fauquier County, Virginia, business Red Truck Rural Bakery.
In the post published on Monday, Pi Day, Obama posed with a slice of the pie and hailed Noyes' hard work and optimism in keeping his business going during the Great Recession.
Noyes told News4 he was delighted to be praised by the president.
"It meant a lot to us," he said, noting he saw a boost in business. "People who follow the president's Facebook page made a stop to the bakery on their way to D.C."
Noyes sent the president a letter in January saying his business survived the recession with the help of the Obama administration. He attributed his success with the businesses in Marshall, Virginia, and Warrenton, Virginia, to Obama's work to remedy the economic crisis. Noyes' business ships specialty desserts to customers all over the country and grew from a staff of 4 to a staff of 49, he said.
On Valentine's Day weekend, an Obama aide surprised Noyes by hand-delivering a letter from the president. The aide took back with him a pumpkin pie for Obama and a moonshine cake for the communications staff.
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Noyes was not in one of the bakeries when the aide dropped by, but he heard from him by email. The aide said White House staffers usually do not hand-deliver correspondence, but they made an exception because the president loves pie and loved Noyes' story.
Noyes said the President should taste his famous sweet potato and pecan pie, made with top-shelf bourbon, so he ran two pies over to the presidential aide's house.
Then, on Monday, Obama posted a picture of the letter exchange with Noyes, as well as a photo of him with a bite of pie on his fork.
Noyes said he would love to get the opportunity to thank -- and feed -- Obama in person.
"I'm sure he's busy, but it would be great if he could [stop by]," Noyes said. "We would welcome him anytime."
