When delegates and guests turned the corner at DeVos Place last week to get to the registration tables, they were often greeted with what sounded like applause -- but was actually fresh popcorn being made by Kent County Farm Bureau board member Bill Hirsch.
This gorgeous little red popcorn wagon has been in Bill’s family since it was horse-drawn in Chicago 80 years ago, selling Cretors products. You can still see the two holes for the reins in the front, now filled in with brass. Bill’s parents bought it from his great-uncle and brought it out of storage to Grand Rapids in 1973. His mother Kathleen gave away popcorn at the state Annual Meeting for 40 years. Since she passed away a year and a half ago, it is Bill’s turn to keep the tradition going.
Thank you Bill for picking up the legacy and sharing this gift with the delegates and guests -- that 80-year-old wagon still makes great popcorn!