Hempfield Italian bakery owner known for work ethic, devotion to family, love of sports

David Linsenbigler was devoted to his Greensburg- area Italian bakery business, but even more so to his family.

“Regardless of how hardworking he was, we always came first,” said daughter Peydon, one of the Hempfield man’s three children. “He always wanted to be there to support us.”

That included volunteering to help coach when his son, Dawson, played in local youth baseball, basketball and football programs.

More recently, David Linsenbigler stopped by to watch his oldest daughter, Devin, carry on the tradition — coaching the Greensburg Salem girls’ volleyball team.

“He was always wanting to be with us and know what we were doing,” she said.

The retired owner of Biscotti Brothers, the 58-year-old Hempfield man died Sunday in a West Virginia hospital, a day after he was found submerged in a Maryland lake with a side-by-side all-terrain vehicle he was riding as a passenger.

Whether he was a participant or a spectator, sports and other outdoor activities were a lifelong interest for Linsenbigler, who grew up in the Hempfield community of Grapeville.

“When he was young, he loved baseball, football and wrestling,” said his older brother, Ed.

Nephew Chase Linsenbigler recalled his uncle’s enthusiasm for family games: “At my grandparents’ house, we would often have Wiffle ball gamesm and all the uncles would be getting into it. They made it so fun for the kids.”

David Linsenbigler also joined annual family trips to Canton, Ohio, during Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week.

”It was like a boys’ trip,” said Chase Linsenbigler. “We’d play pickup football, go through the Hall of Fame and watch the people get inducted.“

He said his uncle had been looking forward to a trip to Ireland during the upcoming NFL season, to see the Steelers play in Dublin.

On annual vacations to Topsail Island, off the North Carolina coast, David Linsenbigler was among family members who enjoyed bodysurfing.

Peydon Linsenbigler noted he didn’t take off his eyeglasses before getting into the surf.

“There are probably 15 pairs of glasses still there,” she said.

With the children now grown, David Linsenbigler and his wife, Triscia, began traveling farther afield to take in new sights and experiences. The couple made repeat visits to Maine, where their activities included whale-watching.

“He could never sit down; he always had to keep himself busy,” Devin Linsenbigler said of her father. She said he often stopped by her home to help with mowing and other household chores.

Peydon Linsenbigler recalled her father’s frequent motivational advice: “Always give 100%, and then give 110%.”

Longtime baker

He demonstrated that work ethic in his career. Beginning as a stock boy at the DeLallo Italian market near Jeannette, he eventually took over operation of the store’s bakery before branching into a wholesale business focusing on biscotti and pizzelles.

Linsenbigler kept his family well supplied with treats from the bakery, including chocolate crinkle cookies, a recipe handed down from his mother, Mary Lou.

“We always had the best cakes for our birthdays,” said Devin Linsenbigler, who helped for a time at the bakery.

Known for donating baked goods to local organizations, David Linsenbigler made many friends in his community.

Peydon Linsenbigler recalled accompanying him to a home supply store — a trip that stretched to two hours because so many people stopped to chat with him.

“Anywhere he went, he knew someone,” she said.

David Linsenbigler thought of family when naming and branding his bakery business. One of six siblings, he posed alongside his three brothers, each donning a chef hat, for a portrait that became part of the Biscotti Brothers label adorning packages of the bakery’s biscotti and pizzelles.

Hats and shirts bearing that portrait have become family keepsakes that are even more precious since the loss of David Linsenbigler and brother Charles, who died Dec. 4. One of their sisters, Brenda, preceded them in death.

“He made such a life for himself and his family, and he was always willing to help other people,” sister Michelle Lohr said of David Linsenbigler.

Visitation for David Linsenbigler will be 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Mason-Gelder Funeral Home, 201 N. First St., Jeannette.

A funeral liturgy will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday in the funeral home. Interment will follow in Sacred Heart Cemetery.