John Kalil Jr. and his four children, John, Nick, Kaley and Michael, are the new generation at Kalil Bottling in Arizona. His brother, George, guided the company for a half century until his death in July 2019. John’s father, Fred, and his father, Frank, began the company, a national leader in beverage distribution and a private bottler, in 1948. This is a family success story that begins with John’s grandfather coming to the United States from native Lebanon when he was 12. The stories about Pancho Villa, George’s love for University of Arizona basketball in Tucson and how a young Coach Lute Olson wouldn’t’ wait the team bus for him are classics. Classic, too, is the continuing respect for George Kalil. In writing the story, I asked for John; I called him “Mr. Kalil.” One of John’s associates corrected me, saying, “Well, we still reserve that name for George.”

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