Tree fruit industry members are invited to help bring a personal voice of the tree fruit industry to Olympia by attending the 11th Annual Tree Fruit Day on January 29, 2013.

Tree Fruit Day brings industry members face-to-face with legislators in Olympia to highlight the value of the tree fruit industry in the state of Washington. The day’s events will include several legislative office visits with legislators. Face-to-face meetings with legislators are absolutely crucial for legislators to understand and hear our issues.

For more information about how you can participate in our 2013 Tree Fruit Day, contact Stephanie Chance at the WSHA office at (509) 665-9641x303 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Also, be sure to watch your mailbox for more information later this fall on next year's event.

Registration information will be available December 2012

Click Here to download the Lodging Form

Click Here to download the REGISTRATION FORM

(Tree Fruit Day 2013 - WSHA Staff: Nicole Brunner, Bruce Grim, Stephanie Chance, Joanne Thomas, Cashmere FFA - Dani Morrison)

Tree Fruit Day Promotes Industry And Legislative Policies

January 29, 2013 thirty tree fruit industry representatives participated in the 11th Annual Tree Fruit Day event in Olympia.Tree Fruit Day affords an opportunity for us to meet directly with our Legislators/Staffers to bring to their attention issues such as mandatory labeling for GMO's, water issues, tax policies, immigration reform, transportation/infrastructure funding, spray buffers-notification requirements and more. Tree Fruit Day is extremely beneficial  to our industry. There is no substitute for growers telling their stores of how a proposed measure will impact their orchard operation. Most legislators lack an agricultural background. It is our job as an industry advocates to set the record straight by educating those who lack an understanding of how a measure may significantly impact our industry. Our goal for next year’s Tree Fruit Day will be to increase awareness before the annual visit to gain more participation. With more participants from within the industry, this will able us to visit all the legislative offices as oppose to less then half. The more participation we have, the greater we are heard.

Legislators Appreciate Gift Packs

One of the highlights tied to Tree Fruit Day is the distribution of more than 300 gift packs delivered to legislators and other officials. The event is becoming well recognized by legislators and their staff. Companies donated apples, pears, apple juice, Aplets & Cotlets, and other industry-related items. Issue packets were also delivered providing background about the tree fruit industry.

Your Tree Fruit Day Gift Box Donors

A BIG thank you goes to the following companies that stepped forward to donate items for our Tree Fruit Day gift boxes: Aplets & Cotlets, Auvils Fruit, Blue Star Growers, Columbia Fruit Packers, Crunch Pak, Custom Apple Packers, McDougall & Sons, Northern Fruit, Northwest Wholesale, Pear Bureau NW, Stemilt Growers, Tree Top, Washington State Apple Commission and Wilbur Ellis.

We sincerely thank all WSHA members who took the time to participate in this important event. We look forward to seeing you all again next year!

Meetings With Legislators a Resounding Success

WSHA members participated in 31 office visits with legislators during Tree Fruit Day. We would like to thank all of the legislators who took time out of their busy schedules to visit with members of our organization. Legislators who met with WSHA members included:

Jon Wyss, Cashmere FFA (Heather Powell, Dani Morrison)

Left to right: Mark Roy, Stephanie Chance, Rep Bruce Chandle-Granger (R), Danelle Trovato, Mark Holtzinger

 Left to right: Bruce Grim, Richard Thomason, Curtis Roy, Heather Powell, Steve Colwell, Dani Morrison, Senator Linda Evans-Parlette (District 12-R), Nicole Brunner, Joanne Thomas, Rob Colwell, Tim Powell, Stephanie Chance, Jon Wyss

WSHA staff, Cashmere FFA and Senator Linda Evans-Parlette

Left to right: Jon Wyss, Steve Colwell, Tim McLaughlin, Heather Powell, Rep. Brad Hawkins (District 12-R), Tim Powell, Legislative Assistant Taylor Kenck, Bruce Grim

Cashmere FFA student - Heather Powell & Representative Brad Hawkins