AIRWAY HEIGHTS, Wash. – When the Hutterites, a small Protestant colony akin to the Amish or Mennonites, had a sudden surplus of potatoes due to a market crash, they decided to give back.
“These potatoes here, they were some of our best,” a Hutterite named Isaiah said. Isaiah’s words were posted to his neighbor Denise Bennett’s Facebook page since the Hutterites don’t use social media.
“We sorted these in the fall when we harvested them and put them in storage over the winter. They were supposed to be planted this spring but we got cut on our contracts and on our acres and we had to get rid of them – dump them. We’re really glad we could help people out, give them to the community.”
With the Hutterites generosity and Bennett’s social media reach, ‘Potato Hill’ quickly became the talk of the town.
“I actually prayed ‘Lord help me,’ because this is too much to go to waste,” Bennett said. “So like Mana from heaven, one Facebook post turned into thousands of people.”
At times the scene off Wood Road and West Sprague felt like a vacation destination. Over 150 people, many bringing their small children, scrounging through and searching for the perfect potato to add to their bag or bucket. Some were loading potatoes by the truckful, bringing it back to their communities.
“I really hope the message gets back to (the Hutterites),” Linda Appleby said. Appleby said she intended to feed at least six families at her church with these potatoes. “We’re grateful. This is a wonderful gesture, it will be used and I just really have a heart of gratitude around it.”
Others just saw the posts online, and didn’t want to miss out.
“I’ve never seen a community like this come together before,” Holly Brisson said. “It’s one of the neatest things I’ve ever seen.
