Who's Who in El Cerrito: Karen Talton

Name: Karen Talton

Age: 50

Occupation: President of Operations at Loard's Ice Cream in El Cerrito

How long have you been at Loard's? Almost two years

What brought you to the world of ice cream? I wanted to do something that was fun and full of happiness. I wanted to bring a smile to people's faces. You should see the kids' faces when they come in for ice cream. I'm an ice cream queen for them; it makes me so happy. I work with amazing people.

What are some other fields you've worked in? I've worked in substance-abuse counseling, law, and anger management.

What are some examples of interesting people you've met here at Loard's? It's an array of people, a diversity of people. What's interesting is you have your regular customers who you get to know, you catch up with them, and then you have people who are new. Unless we are swamped, we usually end up engaging our customers. I've met federal agents who are really relaxed. You'd never think they were federal agents because their demeanor is so relaxed.

We're very family-friendly but we're more than family-friendly. We're family-owned and operated. I work with good and extremely energetic kids with good GPA's; it's just a lot of fun. We create things for people. If you have a taste for something we don't have, we'll create it. We do ice cream socials and parties.

What's you favorite item on the menu? My favorite item right now is peanut fudge and macapuna. I love the tops of our custom ice cream cakes too.