Strong commitment to take turkey into tomorrow (click on the ad)

Fame of an unusual sort came calling for Jennifer Olson when she was 5 years old. One day she was Jennifer Olson, kid of Willmar, Minn., the next, she was Jennie-O. Her father's turkey company was born.

Photo by Richard Sennott, Star Tribune

Today, Jennifer Novak is a spokewoman for Jennie-O Turkey Store, a subsidiary of Hormel Foods. On Thanksgiving, she will be serving “a great turkey dinner” for her family, including her 91-year-old father, Earl B. Olson.

"It just always seemed part of my life," said Jennifer, now Jennifer Novak, mother of three, preschool teacher and spouse to husband Jay. How she became the namesake of one of America's most-recognized brands was simply a matter of the family business. Her father, Earl B. Olson, needed a new name for the poultry business he bought in 1949. His wife, Dorothy, Jennifer's mother, struck on the idea of naming the company after their one daughter.

It never seemed unusual to Jennie.

"There was a big billboard as you entered Willmar, 'Home of Jennie-O turkeys,' " said Jennifer, who now lives in suburban Minneapolis. "That was always kind of, when I saw it, kind of a moment of recognition that I was related to all that.

While her four brothers worked for the company in some capacity, she went to college for a degree in studio art. She later received a teaching degree from the Association Montessori Internationale and taught in Worthington.

Everyone in Willmar knew who she was. ("Everyone in Willmar calls me Jennie.") But Novak said it's never been more than a novelty in her family.

That changed this year when the company asked her to become a spokeswoman. "I thought, 'Why not?' "

The company is now known as Jennie-O Turkey Store, a subsidiary of Hormel Foods. It sells 1,500 items, employs 7,000 people, and, at 1.2 billion pounds this year, is the largest U.S. turkey processor.

As spokeswoman, she has an online video at the company website where she talks about fixing dinner. There's a contest for the best cooking ideas, won by an Omaha mother who recommended cooking potatoes ahead of time and refrigerating them.

She's also recommending a specific kind of Jennie-O turkey, the Oven Ready turkey that goes from the freezer to the oven. "It's kind of great for people who haven't cooked turkey before and don't know how to do it, or don't have time to put into a meal." The turkey cooks inside of a bag, speeding up the cooking time.

"My friends really got a kick out of the fact that she was Jennie-O," said Amanda Novak, Jennifer's 27-year-old daughter. "It's funny ... people will confess [to me] whether or not they bought a Jennie-O turkey."

Earl will be at the dinner this year. At 91, he still shows up for work at the company.

"It is a special time for us," said Jennifer Novak. "We pride ourselves on cooking a great turkey dinner."

Earl will help carve. Jennie-O will serve. And Minnesota's turkey family will sit down to another Thanksgiving meal.

Matt McKinney • 612-673-7329 • mckinney@startribune.com