(L-R: Sofia, Jeremy, Kristi and Billie Testerman | Photo courtesy of the Testerman Family)
Great Harvest Bread Co. lives at 835 NW Bond St. in downtown Bend, and has for the past 27 years. In February, 2019, Jeremy and Kristi Testerman purchased the bakery/café from Cloyd Robinson and are now ready to start spreading out in the community. For the entire month of June, Great Harvest will be donating 100 percent of their house-made dog treat sales to the Humane Society of Central Oregon. In addition, Great Harvest will be running a promotion for kids (12 and under) to eat free on Saturdays.
100% of Dog Treat Sales Donated to Humane Society of Central Oregon – June
“Our daughter has a passion to help animals,” said Jeremy. “As a family-owned business, we want to involve our kids as much as possible and help support the community. Plus, our Bernese Mountain dog, Dutch, absolutely approves of these treats. We’ve also adopted some family members from the Humane Society of Central Oregon and really respect what they do.” This is a fantastic time to bring awareness to the Humane Society, before the annual 4th of July Pet Parade (one of Bend’s great traditions).
Kids Eat Free Saturdays
One large goal is to see more families enjoy the benefits of the fresh, quality products that Great Harvest has to offer. The food is reasonably priced, and the wheat and spelt berries are freshly milled, which creates an amazing product with higher nutritional benefits. “I love the energy that kids bring… after all, we are just kids ourselves,” said Kristi.
New Ownership
“Life wasn’t busy enough…” jokes both Jeremy and Kristi. Jeremy is currently continuing his job while helping in his spare time, they both coach their son’s soccer team and Kristi is a kids funk/hip hop instructor at the Terpsichorean Dance Studio. Many days, you can see them sitting together in the corner table working away. Their dream is to do this together full-time someday. They’ve wanted to be a bigger part of the community and show their kids how to work hard, to be proud and also make people smile.
It was a challenging start: it all started during the major snowstorm in February. With the help of friends and family, Jeremy and Kristi moved everything out of the bakery into storage crates; wielded shovels, hammers and a blowtorch to de-ice the walkways; the floors were redone, they repainted and made many other changes.
Jeremy and Kristi are trying to build upon Robinson’s foundation, and put their own energy into the bakery. They want to continue using the same quality ingredients but are also having fun testing out some new items!
“Bottom line: we want this to be a place for Bend to enjoy for another 27 years,” said both Jeremy and Kristi. “Come check out all of the changes we’ve made and help us give back to the community. We’re always looking to improve, so let us know what you think!”
Bend Great Harvest is open between 7am and 6pm Monday through Friday and between 7am and 5pm on Saturday.
