Keeping a warm legacy alive

Partamian's niece, Norma Kurkjian, said there was never any doubt the family would honor his wishes.

He had made it clear he wanted Rosales and Gonzales to continue, she said.

Kurkjian, a retired teacher who lives in Northridge, said some advised the family to sell the business. The property at 5410 W. Adams Blvd. was appraised for about $500,000, she said.

"But he wanted the bakery to go to the 'boys' because they were loyal to him for 35 years and they bake authentically. He wanted them to have financial security."

Still, though, "it's hysterical to go in and see these two Mexican men making grape leaf and sou boreg. It's such a hoot."

Rosales and Gonzales live with their families several blocks from the bakery. Since Partamian's death, they have worked 12-hour days, six days a week, without a vacation.

Partamian's death was a shock, according to the pair. "He left the store on Saturday and never came back on Monday," said Rosales.

Partamian's legacy is a good one, agreed Chancellor, whose parents held her by the hand the first time she stepped inside the tiny shop and peered into the display case at the stacks of freshly baked lahmajune.

Her parents, Dewey and Gladys Deovlet, were Armenian immigrants who dropped the "ian" from Deovletian so they could more easily find jobs. They were customers when Abraham Partamian opened the bakery in 1948.

Abraham Partamian's sons, Charles and Leon, worked there, helping him and their mother, Victoria, bake peda bread and meat boreg, a turnover filled with ground lamb, and lahmajune.

When his parents died, Leon Partamian took over the bakery.

"Mr. Partamian was always 'Mr.' Partamian. That was the way we addressed him. We never used first names," Chancellor said.

She looked at photos of Partamian and mementos of his life that Gonzales and Rosales display above the shop's front counter.

"Mr. Partamian was much loved," she said.

And on West Adams Boulevard, two loyal employees know that better than anyone.

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bob.pool@latimes.com