Customer Appreciation Day at Ceres Solutions

On Wednesday Ceres Solutions had a customer appreciation day. Ceres Solutions is the company that formed when Jasper County Farm Bureau merged with three other companies. Recently the office that Ceres Solutions had north of town was closed as headquarters staff was centralized in the Crawfordsville office. When I came to town, Farm Bureau ran an elevator, a lumber yard, and the service station that they still operate.

Ceres sells the Country Mark brand of gasoline; Country Mark began as a company with close ties to Indiana farm cooperatives, and previously was called Farm Bureau Co-op and Co-op. The pumps to the left sell diesel, and farm diesel can be purchased this station as well (if you have the credentials to buy it.) They are also the only station in town that sells E85.

This gas station is one of seven in Rensselaer. Five of Rensselaer's stations also have convenience stores attached, and one remains the full-service operation that was once the norm of gas stations. Ceres is unlike any of them because when you step inside, you find that you are in an appliance store.

I asked why they sold appliances. The woman at the counter did not have an answer except to say they have sold them for many years. In fact, I think they were selling appliances when I came to Rensselaer over 35 years ago.

There was a good turnout for the free hamburgers and hot dogs. People keep trying to find a free lunch. If you look carefully, you can see the radio station van behind the tent. Either WRIN or WLQI was doing some of its broadcasting from the event.