Gold Dust and Walker Brothers Raise Funds For Make-A-Wish Oregon At Annual Event

Gold Dust Potato Processors, Inc. use their 14th annual Open House Field Day as a fundraiser opportunity for local children diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses and to celebrate 40 years of farming.

Malin, OR (www.golddustfarms.com) August 14th, 2014 – Gold Dust Potato Processors and Walker Brothers invited customers, vendors and other business relations to the Klamath Basin for their 14th Annual Open House Field Day held on Tuesday, August 12th, 2014.  This year represented the 40th anniversary of Bill and John Walker’s partnership in farming.

The day started with a breakfast meeting at Mike and Wanda’s restaurant in Tulelake, CA, where their guests learned about Gold Dust’s current projects as well as talks from guest speakers Jeff Gibson, an Executive Director with RaboBank International, and Greg Addington, Executive Director with the Klamath Water Users Association.   After the presentations, the attendees watched a video about a Portland, Oregon-area boy named Atticus who was diagnosed with a Wilms’ tumor and how Make-A-Wish Oregon granted his wish for his soccer team to scrimmage the Portland Timbers.

After breakfast, Gold Dust’s guests visited their packing shed in Malin for a facility tour and to see samples of the current crop of chipping potatoes and organic table potatoes.  Following the visit to the processing plant, the group made its way to the Running Y Ranch to see the fields being farmed by Walker Brothers as well as to see the latest ag-drone from Portland-based HoneyComb UAV.  Lunch and a golf scramble followed the field visits.

During the dinner that followed the golf outing, Weston Walker introduced his wife, Katie, who talked to Gold Dust’s guests about her and Jan Walker’s involvement in Make-A-Wish Oregon as well as the wishes they’re currently working on for Klamath County area children.  Gold Dust’s guests showed their generosity by donating $4,500 to the cause, which Bill Walker, CEO of Gold Dust, announced would be matched by the company.  The total donated to Make-A-Wish Oregon was $9,000.  In addition to monetary contributions, 150,000 airline miles were donated as well.

“It’s great that we can bring all of these people to the Klamath Basin and show them what we’re doing here,” said Weston Walker, sales manager and owner of Gold Dust. “But to see their generosity and how they were ready to help our local kids, it shows we work with a lot of good people.  And it’s those good people that help us continue what we do.”

The evening ended with a brief talk from Bill and John Walker as they looked back on farming together since 1974 and heart-felt thanks to their wives, Jan and Brenda Walker, for being beside them for the last 40 years.

Guests in attendance included representatives from Frito-Lay, Sproule Farms, RaboBank, Mayo Manufacturing and Marshall Insurance as well as local businesses Rajnus Farms, Huffman Farms, Staunton Farms, Basin Fertilizer and Rusth, Spires and Associates.

For more details and photographs, please visit http://www.golddustfarms.com/2014-open-house-field-day/ .

About Gold Dust Potato Processors, Inc., and Walker Brothers:

Gold Dust and Walker Brothers are family held companies that operate from its offices in Malin, Oregon.  Gold Dust provides processes frying and chipping potato varieties grown by Walker Brothers to US-based, Central American and Pacific Rim snack-food companies.   For more information about Gold Dust and Walker Brothers, please visitwww.golddustfarms.com.

Contact:

Lexi Crawford, Internal Operations Manager
Gold Dust Potato Processors, Inc. / Walker Brothers
541.723.2600
www.golddustfarms.com