Posted June 06, 2019 

The grain elevators in Western Canada are considered prairie icons; sentinels on the landscape that have become a visual symbol of what farming in this part of the country is all about. A group of Nutrien Ag Solutions employees in Penhold, AB have preserved a piece of that history with the rejuvenation of a decades old grain elevator replica. 

John Jenkins, assistant manager at the branch, says the replica was originally built 20-years ago by some employees who had come to work for a legacy company in Red Deer, AB that had previously been with the elevator system construction crew. 

“They built it from old elevator pieces that had been torn down,” says Jenkins. “Over the years, it has been in the yard at our Red Deer site until we merged with Penhold.”

Jenkins says he and branch manager Park Campbell wanted to bring this piece of history with them to the new location, but it was in rough shape and needed some TLC. One of Penhold’s seasonal employees, Jeff Banwarth, who has returned for his third season at the retail, took it upon himself to start repairing the old replica. 

“Jeff has a construction background and he rebuilt what he had to using as many historical pieces as we could find,” says Jenkins. “We even used old signage from different companies covered in Nutrien green paint and old belting from conveyors for the shingles.”

A true piece of history brought back to life.

See the replica at Nutrien Ag Solutions Penhold, along Highway 42, south of Red Deer. 

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Posted June 06, 2019