The Chase Family calls Artesia, New Mexico, home, but they have become naturalized to our small town of San Saba and seem to fit right in. The family purchased San Saba Pecan in 2004 and have been involved in one upgrade after another since. The name was officially changed to Chase Pecan in January of 2020. Chase Farms has thousands of acres of pecans under cultivation in New Mexico and are the largest supplier of pecans to the Chase Pecan processing plant in San Saba.
Beyond being a large commercial presence and contributor to the local economy, the Chase's actively give back to the Community in many ways through their charitable donations to groups that make San Saba a good place to live. They have been an annual supporter and fundraiser for San Saba County Friends of Animals, the Chamber of Commerce, the Historical Museum, and several scholarship funds for San Saba High School graduates. The pride they feel for San Saba is exceeded only by the pride they enjoy in their employees. They know that the heart of the business and the Community rests in the dedicated service and hard work of the employees and their families.
Although they certainly appre- ciate their employees every day, they set aside a special time at least once a year to hold an Employee Appreciation Event. They try to make it something unique and fun each time. Last year they hosted “Fire and Slice,” a Gourmet handmade pizza business out of Austin that arrived in San Saba to put their own spin on gourmet pizza with their 900-degree pizza oven on wheels to provide their own flavors of homemade pizza and dessert was provided by Bat City Gelato.
This year, the invitation was extended to a couple of highly rated Food Trucks from the Austin area to come to San Saba to prepare some of their celebrated recipes. Austin is home to at least a dozen very popular food trucks. Most of them are on a regular schedule of venues around the city while others are willing to provide their popular cuisine when enticed to cater to a more adventurous audience. This year's event was held at the San Saba Civic Center in Mill Pond Park. A hungry gathering of about 100 employees was treated to authentic Mexican Food by El Buen Sason and to Maine Lobster Rolls and Gourmet Burgers by Garbo's. To add a finishing touch to an excellent lunch, the attendees were served beautiful desserts by our everpopular Pecan House Grill. Upon leaving the event, each employee drew for a very nice door prize. By all accounts, everyone was pleased with this year's event and had a good time. Now, it is time to pack this one away and start planning the next one.