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There's nowhere Pete Guelli would rather be than right here, right now.
Right here is a dorm room at St. John Fisher University.
Right now is Buffalo Bills training camp.
Guelli is the Bills' president of business operations, overseeing the franchise as it prepares to move into new Highmark Stadium. But one of the first major projects of his career was helping bring training camp to Rochester.
Twenty-five Bills training camps later, Guelli is back where it started.
And on Sunday, the Rochester native received an honor that made the homecoming even more meaningful.
Guelli was inducted into the Rochester Red Wings Walk of Fame before their game against the Syracuse Mets. He'll join his late father, Frank, a decorated amateur boxer and longtime Rochester restaurateur, who already has a commemorative brick.
"To go in as father and son is a pretty cool situation," Guelli said. "It was exciting to hear about it and that made it more meaningful."
Guelli grew up in Walworth, graduated from Aquinas Institute in 1983 and later attended SUNY Brockport. He remembers going to Red Wings games at Silver Stadium.
His father was considerably more famous around town.
"He was pretty well-known for boxing," Guelli said. "I couldn't turn the corner without anyone knowing his name. He was also a restaurateur. People absolutely knew him better than they knew me."
Frank Guelli was a four-time Aquinas Mission Bouts champion, received a full athletic scholarship to Syracuse University and became an All-Marine Corps boxing champion and Golden Gloves champion. He's a member of the Rochester Boxing Hall of Fame, Aquinas Institute Hall of Fame and Red Wings Walk of Fame.
The Red Wings created their Walk of Fame in 1997 to recognize people who have made a significant impact on Rochester-area sports. Honorees are commemorated with bricks near the Plymouth Avenue entrance to the ballpark.
Pete attended his father's Red Wings induction with his wife and son in 2020. Frank died in December 2023.
Guelli's father also provided his earliest business education.
Frank owned the Red Lion Restaurant in downtown Rochester for decades. Pete grew up busing tables. The real education often came afterward.
"I probably learned more around the family dinner table than anywhere else," Guelli said. "He was a great businessman. There are not many better ways to learn how to interact with people.
"Then after lunch or dinner was over we sat around as a family talking about the day. That stuff still carries over for me."
Guelli was working in marketing and consulting when the Bills hired him in 1998 to help grow the franchise's presence in Rochester.
One of his first assignments was helping move training camp from Fredonia to St. John Fisher.
The Bills arrived in 2000.
"I had no idea," Guelli said when asked if he envisioned what camp would become. "All I knew was Rochester was a very important market."
It still is.
This summer, signs and graphics around Fisher celebrate 25 Bills training camps on campus. Guelli remembers the early negotiations and conversations with then-Fisher president Katherine Keough about what it would take to bring an NFL team to Rochester.
Now he's living it again.
"Everything comes flooding back," Guelli said. "To be involved in the first year of camp ... and see it 25 years later. It's evolved and stood the test of time."
The Bills extended their relationship with Fisher last year and Guelli said the team anticipates continuing to hold training camp there.
Buffalo is one of the few NFL teams that still goes away for camp, with players, coaches and staff living together on campus.
That includes the president of business operations.
"I'm in a dorm right now," Guelli said.
No executive suite required.
Guelli believes the arrangement provides something the Bills couldn't replicate at their facility at One Bills Drive.
"It's hard when you get so busy when in Buffalo to connect directly with everyone," Guelli said. "This builds a level of teamwork and collaboration you can't get unless you go away. Fisher is a perfect place for that."
Guelli calls it "grassroots marketing at its finest," but believes Rochester's importance to the Bills extends well beyond training camp.
"It's been everything we could imagine," Guelli said. "It's a huge success for the football team but also a huge part of our success as an organization and business.
"Without the support of Rochester, you're not even seeing things like a brand new stadium in Orchard Park."
Guelli's career eventually took him away from Western New York. He spent a decade with the Charlotte Hornets, working with Michael Jordan, and five years with the New York Giants before returning to the Bills and Sabres in 2024.
"At this point in my career I could do it anywhere," Guelli said. "To do it in Western New York for my hometown teams is so much more special."
Sunday, another piece of home became permanent.
A brick bearing Pete Guelli's name joined the Rochester sports figures honored outside the Red Wings' ballpark.
His father's is already there.
"Anything in Rochester seems more important from a legacy perspective," Guelli said. "It's personal."
Twenty-eight years after the Bills gave him his first opportunity in professional sports, he's helping open an NFL stadium.
But first, Guelli is spending part of his summer sleeping in a college dorm in Pittsford.
Exactly where he wants to be.
"My thoughts are always wherever you are, make that your dream job," Guelli said. "If there is one, this is it."
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills executive follows his father into Rochester sports history
Continue reading...
Right here is a dorm room at St. John Fisher University.
Right now is Buffalo Bills training camp.
Guelli is the Bills' president of business operations, overseeing the franchise as it prepares to move into new Highmark Stadium. But one of the first major projects of his career was helping bring training camp to Rochester.
Twenty-five Bills training camps later, Guelli is back where it started.
And on Sunday, the Rochester native received an honor that made the homecoming even more meaningful.
Guelli was inducted into the Rochester Red Wings Walk of Fame before their game against the Syracuse Mets. He'll join his late father, Frank, a decorated amateur boxer and longtime Rochester restaurateur, who already has a commemorative brick.
"To go in as father and son is a pretty cool situation," Guelli said. "It was exciting to hear about it and that made it more meaningful."
Pete Guelli joins his father in Rochester Red Wings Walk of Fame
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Guelli grew up in Walworth, graduated from Aquinas Institute in 1983 and later attended SUNY Brockport. He remembers going to Red Wings games at Silver Stadium.
His father was considerably more famous around town.
"He was pretty well-known for boxing," Guelli said. "I couldn't turn the corner without anyone knowing his name. He was also a restaurateur. People absolutely knew him better than they knew me."
Frank Guelli was a four-time Aquinas Mission Bouts champion, received a full athletic scholarship to Syracuse University and became an All-Marine Corps boxing champion and Golden Gloves champion. He's a member of the Rochester Boxing Hall of Fame, Aquinas Institute Hall of Fame and Red Wings Walk of Fame.
The Red Wings created their Walk of Fame in 1997 to recognize people who have made a significant impact on Rochester-area sports. Honorees are commemorated with bricks near the Plymouth Avenue entrance to the ballpark.
You must be registered for see images attach
Pete attended his father's Red Wings induction with his wife and son in 2020. Frank died in December 2023.
Guelli's father also provided his earliest business education.
Frank owned the Red Lion Restaurant in downtown Rochester for decades. Pete grew up busing tables. The real education often came afterward.
"I probably learned more around the family dinner table than anywhere else," Guelli said. "He was a great businessman. There are not many better ways to learn how to interact with people.
"Then after lunch or dinner was over we sat around as a family talking about the day. That stuff still carries over for me."
How Pete Guelli helped bring Bills training camp to Rochester
You must be registered for see images attach
Guelli was working in marketing and consulting when the Bills hired him in 1998 to help grow the franchise's presence in Rochester.
One of his first assignments was helping move training camp from Fredonia to St. John Fisher.
The Bills arrived in 2000.
"I had no idea," Guelli said when asked if he envisioned what camp would become. "All I knew was Rochester was a very important market."
It still is.
This summer, signs and graphics around Fisher celebrate 25 Bills training camps on campus. Guelli remembers the early negotiations and conversations with then-Fisher president Katherine Keough about what it would take to bring an NFL team to Rochester.
Now he's living it again.
"Everything comes flooding back," Guelli said. "To be involved in the first year of camp ... and see it 25 years later. It's evolved and stood the test of time."
The Bills extended their relationship with Fisher last year and Guelli said the team anticipates continuing to hold training camp there.
Buffalo is one of the few NFL teams that still goes away for camp, with players, coaches and staff living together on campus.
That includes the president of business operations.
"I'm in a dorm right now," Guelli said.
No executive suite required.
You must be registered for see images attach
Guelli believes the arrangement provides something the Bills couldn't replicate at their facility at One Bills Drive.
"It's hard when you get so busy when in Buffalo to connect directly with everyone," Guelli said. "This builds a level of teamwork and collaboration you can't get unless you go away. Fisher is a perfect place for that."
Guelli calls it "grassroots marketing at its finest," but believes Rochester's importance to the Bills extends well beyond training camp.
"It's been everything we could imagine," Guelli said. "It's a huge success for the football team but also a huge part of our success as an organization and business.
"Without the support of Rochester, you're not even seeing things like a brand new stadium in Orchard Park."
What coming home means to Pete Guelli
You must be registered for see images attach
Guelli's career eventually took him away from Western New York. He spent a decade with the Charlotte Hornets, working with Michael Jordan, and five years with the New York Giants before returning to the Bills and Sabres in 2024.
"At this point in my career I could do it anywhere," Guelli said. "To do it in Western New York for my hometown teams is so much more special."
Sunday, another piece of home became permanent.
A brick bearing Pete Guelli's name joined the Rochester sports figures honored outside the Red Wings' ballpark.
His father's is already there.
"Anything in Rochester seems more important from a legacy perspective," Guelli said. "It's personal."
Twenty-eight years after the Bills gave him his first opportunity in professional sports, he's helping open an NFL stadium.
But first, Guelli is spending part of his summer sleeping in a college dorm in Pittsford.
Exactly where he wants to be.
"My thoughts are always wherever you are, make that your dream job," Guelli said. "If there is one, this is it."
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills executive follows his father into Rochester sports history
Continue reading...
