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Photo by Terry Kraus Click for larger view

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One of the biggest traditions in the valley is the Annual Customer Appreciation Picnic held at the Greenhorn Meadows Park in August. Canon National Bank, Mountain Disposal, True Value and Valley Market team up to create an all day event including the preparation of a bar-b-que pit holding eight pickup loads of firewood to cook nearly 500 pounds of pork. The fire burns for 12-14 hours before the meat cooks for another 12 hours, leading to a delicious final product.

The event is free to the public and continues to grow each year. Last year, these area businesses served over 1500 people to say thank you for the previous year’s business.

Although exact dates are difficult to come by, everyone agrees that the tradition was started by Richard and Dorothy Mansfield in the True Value parking lot. The Mansfields retired in 2003, but the business remains in the family. They served their guests for somewhere between one and three years before being joined by Scott Swartwood’s Valley Market, previously owned by Dan Shepherd. Jim and Lisa Klipfel, owners of Mountain Disposal, then joined the picnic followed by Canon National Bank. These four businesses have continued hosting the picnic, now in its 14th year.

This year the picnic will be held August 12, and will again include pulled pork sandwiches and hotdogs with all the trimmings, cold drinks, entertainment, and games. All you need to bring is your lawn chair!

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