Friends,
We had never heard of Dyngus Day until we had a recent interview with a former Springfield Pillsbury employee. He told us that this Polish American holiday was a contractual holiday with the local Springfield grain miller’s union for many years. Dyngus Day celebrates the end of the often-restrictive observance of lent and the joy of Easter. It takes place on the Monday following Easter of each year.
Pillsbury had a major facility in Buffalo, New York where there was a large Polish population. The grain millers in Buffalo had this day placed into their union contract as a holiday and many of the other milling locations did the same…including Springfield! Buffalo still has the largest Dyngus Day celebration in America. This year’s Dyngus Day will be April 6.
And now we turn to the walnuts story…
It is hard to believe it took this long to hear about the lunch boxes full of walnuts going home with employees during the holiday season. So much so that the front office guy doing inventory could measure the shortage for the months of November and December. Apparently, it was an unstated tradition for workers at the plant to open several 30-pound boxes of walnuts and pack them into their lunch boxes to take home for holiday baking. The front office knew what was going on all along but never put a stop to it…it was the holidays…and not a battle worth fighting.
Yes…we are still having a good time hearing the rich stories from the plant. We also heard about the orange cake mix that was handed out during the holiday season. The main market for this cake mix was the Middle East. Orange cake mix was part of the regular run of mixes at the plant, it just was not generally sold in the United States. So, it was a special treat to be handed out for the holidays.
Time and time again, former employees tell us working at the Pillsbury plant was like having a great big extended family. The bowling league, softball, and picnics all helped make it fun. And that is why it still means so much for the community.
Thanks for being a part of this important community project!
~ Team Pillsbury