Maryland native opens pizza shop in Woodvale

Duane McCallum has decided to see challenges as opportunities.

As the food service industry labored under the challenges brought on by COVID-19, the 53-year-old Johnstown man made plans to open his own restaurant. On Nov. 1 he did just that.

“It was a dream to be able to be here for my family,” he said, “serve quality food . . . and a quantity of food that makes it worth buying.”

His business, Apollo’z Pizza, is located at 389 Maple St. in Johnstown’s Woodvale neighborhood. It’s the former home of Primo’s Pizza, which relocated into the downtown area.

For McCallum, the venture meant going pro with a longtime hobby.

“When I cook, I’m passionate,” he said. “This just fell into place.”

The 53-year-old native of North Beach, Maryland, previously worked in the trucking industry. Cooking was something he did on weekends for family and friends.

Years ago, he said, legal problems stemming from drugs landed him in prison.

He then returned to trucking, but wanted to spend more time with family.

That’s when he decided to take a chance on opening Apollo’z, with assistance from his fiancé and teenage daughter.

“All of us grow from life experience,” McCallum said. “It’s what you do for that growth — I think that’s the key to successful people.”

“Success is not comfortable. It’s scary. I’ve learned from all these bumps and potholes.”

Among those who have assisted McCallum is Christopher Mazzarese, the landlord of his residence.

Mazzarese said he helped McCallum find the venue for his business.

He also surprised him by purchasing the ovens and other equipment.

“Something (about McCallum) hit a nerve with me,” Mazzarese said. “He’s been an awesome person ever since I met him.”

“Duane’s a very honorable person. If he says he’s going to do something, he does it.”

According to Mazzarese, McCallum’s enthusiasm and desire to help the community have been infectious.

“The sky’s the limit here. It’s whatever you want it to be,” Mazzarese said.

“A lot of people have given up. I invested in him because he’s worth investing in.”

As for McCallum, he’s planning additional investments of his own.

Earlier this month, Apollo’z added more employees. There’s also a goal of renovating and expanding the pizza shop into a diner with up to eight different booths. He said the parking lot will soon be repaved.

According to McCallum, charity is another priority.

He hopes to solicit donations to provide free pizza and soda to area children once a month. The initiative, he said, would operated in a transparent manner and at no profit to his business.

“We all live in this area, this impoverished area,” he said. “We all have families that are struggling.”

“As a neighborhood, we can try to tackle these issues.”