Samuel J. Temperato

Temperato, Samuel J. It is with great sadness the Dairy Queen system mourns the passing of Samuel J. Temperato, entrepreneur and creator of the Blizzard. Sam passed away on Friday, July 14 from complications of pneumonia, spending his last day surrounded by loved ones.
He was husband to Joanna Temperato, father to Mike Temperato, Ron Hunter, Patti Turner, Debbie and Michael Butler, Wil & Kim Stiles, Janie & Crest Oelke, and Katie & Jeff Bensky, grandfather and great grandfather.
Sam was President and owner of Dairy Queen of Greater St. Louis, Inc. and a Dairy Queen Franchisor for some 81 Dairy Queen retail outlets in the Greater St. Louis Area and Southern Missouri. As a Territory Operator he was independent of International Dairy Queen (IDQ), however he served diligently on many committees to help with advertising, product standardization and new concept development. Anyone connected to the Dairy Queen system knew of Sam's incredible contributions and leadership. His passion and devotion were inspirational. Among his many contributions, the most famous was the creation of the Blizzard. However, there were many more.
Born in 1924 in St. Louis, Sam was the oldest child of a Sicilian immigrate and St. Louis seamstress. He spent his early years poor, but happy. In 1949, he opened his first walk-up Dairy Queen store in Crystal City, Missouri. He often said, Ait was love at first bite.
His awards were many. Sam received the Spirit of Life award by the City of Hope Medical Center. In 1987/88/89, his company was named as one of the Top 25 St. Louis Small Businesses. He received two Man of the Year awards, one from the UNICO National and one from the Italian Open Charity for Children. Both Sam and Joanna were honorees of the Legacy Award from the National Children's Cancer Society. In 2004, he received the Historian Award which was given in appreciation for his many contribution to the Dairy Queen system and in the same year received two Lifetime Achievement awards, one from International Dairy Queen and one from Children's Miracle Network.
In 1987, Sam brought the concept of Children's Miracle Network to St. Louis area, coordinating the participation of St. Louis Children's Hospital and Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center. He served as Chairman of the Board of Children's Miracle Network of Greater St. Louis for many years and with the backing and support of his Dairy Queen store in the St. Louis area, raised more than 3 million dollars for CMN.
Also included in his community involvement, Sam was an active participant and fund raiser for Boy Scouts of America. Being an Eagle Scout and spending more than 30 years of his life in scouting, he served as a member of the St. Louis Area Council's Boy Scout Executive Board, believing this was an organization that offered a multitude of wonderful programs to the youth of the St. Louis community.
On the ledge in the back of Sam's desk was a needle point sign that read, ALucky is the man who gets paid to do what he loves to do and Sam considered himself to be one of the luckiest people in the world.Services: A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, July 19th, at 2:00 p.m. at the Central Reform Congregation located at 2050 Waterman, St. Louis, Missouri. The family has requested that memorial gifts be made to Children's Miracle Network.