At Bazzini, Tears Are Shed Over a Well-Loved Worker

 by April Koral

Maybe it was the peanut fudge milk shakes he made for her daughter, or his ready smiles. Or maybe it was because wonderful things so often go unnoticed until they’re gone. In any case, Susan Schreiber broke down and cried when she learned that Peter Hornbeck, who had worked in Bazzini, the Greenwich Street food store, died Jan. 10, the victim of a hit-and-run driver.

Peter Hornbeck on a recent vacation

Schreiber’s feelings were shared by dozens of other morning customers who heard the news and shed tears over their coffee.

“He was part of our lives, of our neighborhood,” Schreiber said. “I was devastated.”

Police say Hornbeck was struck by a stolen SUV as he tried to cross Park Avenue at 96th Street, near his home. After abandoning the vehicle, the driver, Gurpreet Oberoi, 26, took a bus to Atlantic City to gamble, according to police. He was arrested on his return to Port Authority. Oberoi was indicted for criminally negligent homicide, leaving the scene of an accident and aggravated unlicensed operation in the second degree. Late last month, he was in jail awaiting arraignment.

Bazzini, at 339 Greenwich St., was a somber place the morning after Hornbeck died. No music was played. Manager Peggy Horan set up a small table with a framed picture of Hornbeck and a note explaining how he died. One customer added a spray of flowers, another a vase of tulips. There was a bouquet of flowers from Washington Market School.

Throughout the week, customers stopped at the table, shocked and tearful, recalling Hornbeck as a man who always remembered their names, had a smile for them each morning and, when he asked how they were, actually cared.


“His voice conveyed kindness,” said Electra D’Amato, who owns Bazzini. “It was soft and mild mannered. You always felt that he was paying attention to you. There wasn’t a moody bone in his body.”

Peggy Horan worked side by side with Hornbeck in the morning. “Nothing ruffled him. Everyone loved him. It was the cutest thing to watch the kids sitting on the counter stools. He knew how they liked their bagels. They’d tell him about their days.”

“People always say after someone dies, ‘He was wonderful,’” said Doc Dougherty, who lives across the street from the store. “In this case, it was true. He was one of those guys that if I was walking home and saw him behind the counter, I’d stop by to say hello.”

Hornbeck, 26, was planning to earn a masters in education. “We all hoped that one day he would teach at our school,” Schreiber said. “He was a lovely presence.”

A fourth grade class from P.S. 150 wrote letters to Hornbeck’s family. “He gave me candy on Halloween,” Elizabeth Scales recalled. “He was a very nice person and a very good ice cream server,” wrote Lauren Crawford.

Hornbeck, who grew up in Watertown, N.Y., walked into the store three years ago, answering a help wanted ad pasted on he door. He started as a counter person and became the manager of the bakery last year. His parents, Nancy and Bruce Hornbeck, came Downtown two weeks after his death for the grand jury proceedings. Before they returned to Watertown, they stopped by Bazzini. “They had never been here,” Electra said. “We all hugged. It was very emotional.”

“He was a nice, nice kid,” said Lori Zelman, who has her breakfast in the store every morning. “He was the kind of guy you pray that your daughter will bring home.”