ELMER TELLS ABOUT STORING MEAT AT JEAN AND DAVID'S

I was driving down the road and saw this sign.  Just had to take a picture of it.  Showed it to Elmer.  He laughed and said to put it on.  Marilyn

Marilyn found this.  Never knew there was an Elmer road. I did think it was funny when she showed it to me, so I  told her to put it on.   Now I told her to go find a Jean Road, Anna Road, Martha Road and more.  Elmer

Thought I would tell you about storing meat at Jean's and David's.  First of all the slaughter area and all the food drawers are silver tone.  In fact both rooms are sliver tone.  When we need meat, we give them a call to make sure they are home.  Once you arrive you go into the office that is in one of their barns.  You meet who is taking you to your drawer - either Jean, David, Michael or Edward.  Thomas is usually with them as he is in training.

Both Anna and I and Jean and David have a list of what is in our freezer drawers.  We tell them what we are taking.  We cross it off our list and they cross it off their list.  If we are adding food to drawer - maybe something that we slaughtered, we add it to our list and they theirs.  With the owner before, we had problems.  Sometimes we would come to pick something up from our freezer drawers and it wasn't there.  The former owner said we had already taken it.  Neither of us had lists.  So when Jean and David took over, they put the lists in.

After we finish the lists, we go into the next room where we must put plastic over our shoes and plastic gloves over our hands.  From there we go into another room where our freezer drawers are.  We open the case and take out or put in what we want.  When we leave the freezer room, we take off the plastic over the shoes and gloves which we toss in a garbage can they have there.  The freezer room and the slaughter room must be kept sanitary at all times.  They have to meet state law.  Inspectors come a couple of times of year - unannounced to inspect.

Both Jean and David and Anna and I have keys to the drawers.  In case we forget the key, they can open the drawers.  If we don't have our lists, they give us a paper with what we took out or put in on it.

They have also put in a couple of other things that our previous owner did not have.  It is our choice if we want to belong or not.  One of these is to help others.  There was a family near us that lost their home in a fire.  They found another place to live, but had no food.  Many  charities came up with canned goods, but no fresh meat.  David and Jean took from their meat in their home to give it to the people in need.  Some of us that freeze our meat there did not think it is fair for Jean and David to have to give all of their personal meat.  So those of us that wanted to signed a list saying that if a need of meat comes up, that we agreed that Jean and David could take some out of our drawers.  That way the loss does not all fall on Jean and David.  There have come up a couple of times where meat was needed and the system has worked out very well.  Jean and David call us before or after they take it, tell us where it went and what they took.  That way several people donate a piece or two instead of it falling on one family.

Then on the other hand, there is a list of those of us who would be willing to take extra meat that Jean and David might get.  Especially at hunting season, some people kill a deer and they want only the head with the horns - they don't want the meat.  So David gives the hunters what they want, cuts up the meat and divides it among us that signed the list.  David or Jean calls us and tells us what they did so we can add it to our list.

While they were gone to Penn Yan, I did the slaughtering and cutting of meat for them.  I am a little short for the counters and sink so I had to bring a stool along and slide it along the floor to stand on. Since then David purchased a silver tone metal stool and keeps it in the slaughter area so I don'have to bring one and keep the new one sanitary.

We do pay David and Jean a monthly charge for our meat drawers.  Also there is a charge if we want any meat slaughtered.  The price is fair and you figure they have to pay the electric bill, keep the place sanitary, the meat is under lock and key, and their time.  David also has generators hooked up in the drawers area in case the power goes off, they have back up so the meat doesn't defrost.

Also Jean and David say if you they are home, they will see that you get your meat.  Our former owner had certain hours.  Jean and David say, of course, not on the Lord's day unless it is an emergency.

We are glad Jean and David bought the farm they did.  They are more pleasant than the other owners were.  Also, they will go out of their way for you.  Many of the Amish and some Old Order Mennonites store our meats at Jean and David's.

I see last week I got a lot of questions so I will answer some of those next week. NO, I will not be on next week.  Next week is Jean's week.  I will be on the sixth of October, Lord willing.

Trust God's Wisdom,
Elmer