Our family participated in the co-op for the first time in 2008 and enjoyed it so much.   The vegetables and fruit had such magical taste so fresh and full of flavor, unlike any at the grocery store.

Our kids loved the fresh produce as well.  I was surprised at how much I actually saved in my grocery bill because I wasn't just running to the store for one thing and spending more than what I had planned.  The produce made my kitchen complete each week.

I so appreciated the wonderful recipes and information about the produce I may not have been brave enough to try.  A final blessing of participating in the co-op was the commitment by Farmer John (as our kids grew to call him) and his family.  Every week we received our pack of produce as promised.

–Amy Rieck

Kennewick Washington

When we learned that our friend, John Finley, was going to grow vegetables for people in the community we were excited for him, and hoped that we would have the opportunity to participate. We signed up as soon as we could. We eagerly waited for the time when the first basket was ready. It was wonderful, and every basket thereafter was just as nice. The vegetables arrived clean and fresh and there was always a wonderful variety. If we needed more vegetables they were available. The last batch was every bit as nice as the first. The best part of the whole program is the knowledge that the vegetables are locally grown by a person in whom we trust. We would encourage anyone who loves fresh vegetables to participate. The first basket for this year will not be available too soon. We are ready for them! We hope that John will want to continue this program for the community for many years! Thanks, John, for the great job and the good produce!

—Don and Arlene Rankin

Hermiston Oregon

As the season came to a close, the realization that I was going to have to purchase our fruits and vegetables from the local grocery stores was not something I was looking forward to.  Participating in CSA has made me very aware of how old the produce is in our local grocery stores and how important it is to eat foods grown locally.

When we first signed up, I wasn’t sure that I spent $25 a week on vegetables and I wondered if the CSA program would be a good fit for us.  What we experienced was that rarely did we have a need to go to the grocery store as we ate what was in the basket for the week.  When I did go to the grocery store it wasn’t for produce.  During this time we saw prices in the store increasing almost weekly.  We found that overall we spent far less on food and ate better.  We found eating fresh produce, we actually consumed less and improved our nutrition.

As a family of two we had plenty of produce to share with our friends and family who now seek out your produce. We enjoyed eating what was in season as we were introduced to vegetables that we had never eaten before through our CSA program.  

We signed up for year two and look forward to our first basket.

—Carol Frink

Hermiston Oregon

WOW!  We were thoroughly impressed with the spectacular fresh produce that you made available to us during the 2008 growing season.  We took advantage of your CSA program for our home use as well as for our business, Rose Arbor Assisted Living Community.   The taste, look, & texture of "just out of the garden" produce was superb, and we loved the wide variety of your offerings.  The recipes you included each week were very helpful, & the ones I tried were wonderful.  We often entertain on a large scale on the weekends, and it was such fun to WOW everyone with a huge platter of colorful, flavorful roasted veggies straight from your garden.  The pickup location was convenient as well.  You can be sure that both we and Rose Arbor plan to take full advantage of your CSA program again in 2009.

—Dr. Guy & Paula Oltman

Hermiston Oregon