Keep your eyes peeled for an annual giveaway that helps feed the community this weekend.
From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday at the Prairie Alliance Church parking lot, thousands of pounds of potatoes will be handed out to the public.
While the event is viewed positively going into its seventh year, Spruce Drive Farms owner and organizer of the giveaway, Mark Peters, explains the idea came from a challenging situation in 2016.
"We had about a third of our crop that was not deemed for seed because we grow seeds specifically for potatoes," he continues. "It was one of those times we had to face discing that whole field under, and I thought, 'Before we do that, let's dig a couple loads out of there and try and redeem this by bringing a couple of loads into town and seeing if anyone would be interested in some free potatoes.' It really was eye-opening for me once I saw the response and the number of people that came out."
Peters says he loves seeing so many people from different walks of life come together to get starchy.
"I always just say it's just like a little just a little bit of heaven come to earth. It's really cool."
A unique part of this year's giveaway is that the potatoes will come from somewhere other than Spruce Drive Farms.
"Elm River Colony is going to be bringing some red potatoes. JP Wiebe Farms is bringing a load of white potatoes. Those are going to be russet potatoes, to be specific. We'll be doing the reds from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00, and then the white potatoes will be from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Then, we'll play it by ear for the last hour."
Peters notes that it is a no-strings-attached event; come and take as much as you need.
"What I see so often is once people realize the amount of produce there, they start thinking about their friends, family and neighbours."
In 2022, the Portage la Prairie & District Chamber of Commerce honoured Peters for his contribution to the community with the Potato giveaway that only seems to be getting bigger and bigger.
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