All for one attitude has Hutterite colony in the right frame of mind.
By Andrew Joseph; Images courtesy of Spring Point Colony
God. Family. Farming. One of these three is a real battle for the Hutterite colony. Yes, it’s farming.
Located about three hours south of Calgary, Alberta, and along the Porcupine Hills, the Spring Point Colony is a Hutterite community of about 100 people. It was established in 1960 after it separated from the Granum Colony 30-minutes east.
The colony owns 6,500 acres and rents an additional 5,500 performing enough crop farming to feed its livestock: 750 ranch cows, 120 dairy cows, 6,000 layer hens, 750 sheep, and its farrow-to-finish hog operation.
“As Hutterites, we try and live a Christian life,” explained Tim Walter, Manager of one of the colony’s sow barns. “We believe in having all things as one, where no one has their own possessions. We believe that everything one does is done for the next man - and in colony life, this is the only way to show our belief.”
Walter provided Benchmark magazine with a bit more information of the Spring Point Colony’s set up.
“We have four or five elders that oversee the financial and spiritual way of our colony,” he explained. “While the men do most of the work involving the farming and ranching, the women look after the cooking, baking, washing of clothes, and cleaning, including the garden work where we raise all our own vegetables and potatoes organically.”
As a closed community, the Spring Point Colony performs its own home schooling of the children. The very important kindergarten studies are looked after by the colony’s older women, but for the kids aged 6-15, a certified teacher teaches at their own certified school. Once past the age of 15, the children join the colony workforce and continue to learn from experience.
To read the Full Article as it appeared in our 2022 Benchmark swine magazine, click HERE.