At the March 23rd session of the Erie County Legislature, Erie County Legislator Jim Malczewski (10th District) recognized Camellia Meats for ten years carrying on the Malczewski butter lamb tradition. This year marks 60 years that the butter lambs, associated with the Easter season, have been sold at the Broadway Market.
Camellia Meats purchased the butter lamb business from the Malczewski family in 2012 and have continued this Polish and Buffalonian tradition ever since. Camellia Meat has their own rich history in Buffalo. The company was founded in 1935 by Edmund Cichocki Sr., a Polish immigrant who began his own butcher shop.
Legislator Malczewski’s grandmother, Dorothy Malczewski, opened the poultry stand at the Broadway market in 1963 where she began selling the butter lambs during the Lenten season. She used a mold brought to America by her immigrant father from Krakow, Poland. Legislator Malczewski began working at that poultry stand when he was 12 years old.
“It’s great to see this wonderful tradition that began with my grandmother carried on,” said Legislator Malczewski. “The butter lambs have meant a lot, not only to me and my family, but to Western New Yorkers. When we think back to our own upbringing and childhood memories, there’s a warm feeling we get when we think about these traditions. It reminds us of our grandparents, parents, and family. It takes us back home and to the neighborhoods where we grew up.”
The butter lambs originated in the middle ages in Eastern Europe and is in reference to the Lamb of God, which represents Jesus. It unites the Easter meal with the Eucharist of Holy Communion.
Camellia Meats began production of the butter lambs for the Easter season 2013. They continue that production today, marking the tenth year since the Cichocki family took over the business.
