Elmer, and his son-in-law Reggie MacKinnon all worked on these lots. They would start selling on the fifth of December and go right through

until Christmas. The production of blueberries has also proved to be another source

of income provided by the land. The Goose River Coop Association, established in 1965, was a focal point within the community for approximately twenty years. Mary “Gus" MacLaren of Goose River, recalled the history of the Co—op:

Joe Lewis, the manager of the CO-OP in St. Peters at that time, helped to get it set up. Blueberries were bought, graded, and sold there. Cranberries were also bought, graded, most of which were sent to Newfoundland to be sold. Honey was also produced in the Co-op, with bees that were brought from the southern United States. When the Experimental Farm in Charlottetown stopped producing honey, they simply gave their equipment to the Goose River Co—op. It provided many people, especially younger people in the area with jobs. It gave students money to buy scribblers and schoolbooks. (63}

Currently, Darryl Deagle, David Lewis and John Sutherland are involved

in the production of blueberries. The MacInnis’s have operated a strawberry farm in St. Peters for

many years. Beginning with a half acre the strawberry farm has since expanded to include fifteen to twenty acres per year. Employed by Maclnnis’ is a staff of six and approximately one hundred pickers. Each summer", Ronnie has provided many young people in the area with their very first job. When asked about this Ronnie replied, “It gives me pleasure in knowing we helped to establish a work pattern for so many young people. It’s nice that way, you see a kid getting his first paycheck. You know where it is going, and you see their eyes light up.” (64) In the many years he has run the picking crew, there have been a few amusing stories that have stood out. Ronnie recalled one in particular:

One day we were finishing up because there was a wedding on and we wanted to irrigate. Dean Lewis was working for us at that time. We got the kids out of a patch and then started to irrigate it. We started the irrigation and it came time for me to shift the gun, but the gun was not reaching the outhouses. I went down to shift the gun just as Dean passed the outhouses. There were a couple of girls waiting to go into the ladies outhouse, which had no roof. 501 shut one gun down to move it, and the pressure was increased on the other gun. So it made its sprinkle around it reached the outhouses. This of course doused the young fellow on the throne.

* Ronnie stated that the average is about one hundred pickers per season, although he remembers having 215 many as one hundred and seventy pickers in the field at one time.

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