Check Out Joseph McGee’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Joseph McGee.

Hi Joseph, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My name is Joey McGee and my wife Talia and I have 4 beautiful daughters. We live in Klein TX, where we both grew up. I am currently at HEB, where I have worked as a Produce manager for the last 20 years. Talia is a fulltime wife, mother, and teacher, (amongst other things). Talia has been homeschooling our girls for the last 10 years now.

Through the years Talia and I have shared our share of health issues which have been been the cause of some of the most difficult and challenging years of our lives. When I was 18 years old, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, which is an autoimmune disease that attacks your lower bowel.
At 34, after months and months of testing, Talia was also diagnosed with and Autoimmune disease called “Still’s disease, which is basically ” rheumatoid arthritis” that attacks every joint in the body.

Needless to say, by all accounts we have had a pretty rough go, with multiple surgeries and endless medical debt. However through it all, we never lost sight of what our purpose was, and that was to be a light to others and try to be an encouragement to those who might have it worse than we did. We gave everything to God and left our lives in his hands. It was our faith in God that got us through one of the darkest times in our lives. Now we are living our best lives, while juggling all of the things that come our way.

Through the challenges that we have faced over the years, I somehow created a passion to the most unexpected hobby’s that I ever thought I would have… baking. It was during the time I was in physical therapy after a big surgery, that I developed an interest in cooking shows, to where that was all I would watch. I would use my energy and build up my strength by working in the kitchen. At first I would attempt to copy the shows I watched, then I would play around and experiment with my own recipes. I literally spent hundreds of hours in the kitchen trying to create desserts that not only I loved, but our friends and family fell in love with as well. I began handing out samples and tried selling a few things at our church. Then as the story goes, it was time that we open up for business.

In 2021 I opened our very own Cottage bakery called “My Pie Guy, Inc.” where we specialize in all from scratch handmade desserts. I developed a passion for baking over the years and have loved being in the kitchen ever since. My goal is to provide the best in quality taste and overall experience with our product.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I wouldn’t say that we’ve had a super smooth road thus far.
With me juggling a full-time job, Talia homeschool, and 4 girls who all have their own activities that need attention, it seems time is the most important commodity these days.

One other obstacle I am facing is struggling with going “all in” with focusing all of my attention on growing the business. It is certainly a difficult decision to make such a shift in your life like that. However, we are trusting God, and making sure that whatever we do, God must be in the center of it all.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I have worked for HEB for a little over 20 years now as a Produce manager. I have had the opportunity to work in about 13 different HEB stores throughout the Houston area. I was honored to be able to help grand open three of those store in my time with the community,

While working as a department manager, I have learned so much about how to run and maintain a business. I have 20 years of knowing how people select or deselect certain items based on quality, price, or impulse.

I arrived to a point in my life where I want to take what I have learned in the stores and apply it into my own business model. I have been around food nearly half of my life, and it has become apart of who I am, not only as a manager, but as a small business owner. I have never really had any type of formal culinary education. Everything I have learned I taught myself through hours and hours of trial and error. I’m not going to say that I know it all by any means, and to say that that I do would be untrue. I live by the philosophy of I am never done learning.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Growing up I was always someone who appreciated others who would create. I was taught the gift of creativity from my parents, and grandparents. Both my father and his father were wood workers, and I remember that they could make or fix anything.
Following in their footsteps, I have turned into a problem solver. If I can’t find a solution, I try to look at it from several different angles to find an answer. I’m also not one to get frustrated with challenges, and I have a super laid-back personality, which drives some people crazy that I don’t crack under pressure. I whistle a lot, so I guess that is how I blow out all my my stress.

I love to create with my hands, which was perfect for a kid growing up with ADD. I’ve always loved the idea of creating something out of nothing, and that is where I believe my passion for baking comes in to play for me.
Baking, for the most part, has to be pretty precise and the slightest change in the recipes could alter the outcome of a dessert. I guess I’ve found a lot of fulfillment in baking. The feeling you get when you finally find the perfect formula for a recipe, and the consumer says “Oh, Wow!” after that first bite, and that is what it’s all about.

Pricing:

• Whole Pies $25-$35
• Pie in a Jar: $6-$12
• Breads/ scones: $6-$25
• Pie shooters /Catering: Starting @ $50 <
• Private tasting: $50

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Mypie.guy
• Facebook: My Pie Guy