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| In 1993, Spring Mill Bread Company opened its doors under the capable hands of the Rurka family. In the 28 years since, the Rurkas have celebrated the expansion of their family business and W&L graduations for two of their children, Alexander ('17) and Katherine Page ('20). |
| Though she works in economic consulting today, Katherine Page has spent a large portion of her life in the offices and kitchens of her parents' bakeries. She reminisced on growing up within a family business, her favorite lockdown activity (baking – surprise!), and the ways in which Spring Mill Bread Company is innovating its offerings to provide local communities with hard-to-find products during the era of pandemic-induced grocery store chaos. |
| Some of Katherine Page's first memories are of Spring Mill. "When we were really little, we had a little crib in the office downstairs so that my parents could be at work and have us there, too. When I got a little older, I remember begging my parents to let me go in and help bake! Even at an early age, four or five, we were going in to help roll dough and easy stuff like that." |
| As Katherine Page and her three brothers got older and became more involved in school and extracurriculars, they spent less time working at the bakeries. But they were still contributing. "Spring Mill is definitely the quintessential family business. And so, every holiday, every Christmas season, we were still in there making pies and packing gift boxes. Even this past year, I was in the stores over Thanksgiving and Christmas, helping to ship off orders during my few days off. Any time it gets super busy and we have time to help out, we're in there!" |
| It helps that she genuinely enjoys baking. "I am really into making cake and trying out new, different styles. My favorite thing to make is carrot cake because I like to eat it! Another favorite is a Polish apple slice, which is a traditional Polish/Chicagoan desert, and I use a family recipe from a while back. If you're unfamiliar with it, it's kind of like an apple pie – it's a pastry with a bunch of apples and cinnamon in the middle and then another pastry on top. It's really good." |
| Her friends would agree. Last March, right when lockdown started and pandemic regulations started taking effect, Katherine Page stayed in Lexington with her roommates. "We had so much free time, and we were spending all of our time together. So, I was designated the Head Baker. I'm not quite as good as my mom is, but I've learned some tricks!" |
| Though the pandemic has presented a series of logistical and operational nightmares for businesses in the food and beverage industry, Spring Mill has found new opportunities within the confusion. For example, offering unexpected new products. "My mom didn't really think that she would ever be selling ingredients like flour or yeast, but sometimes people can't buy those supplies in the grocery stores because everyone has been baking. She had access to flour through her wholesale suppliers even during that huge flour shortage." Spring Mill also put together bake-at-home pizza kits and reached out to the community to source locally-made masks to stock the stores. |
| "Spring Mill is very community-based," Katherine Page explained. "The Takoma Park store, in particular, is very much a community bakery and a real part of the neighborhood, which is pretty neat." The company also prides itself on its values. "Customers know that everything we bake is made in-house with all-natural ingredients. You don't find that at many places. It's definitely one of the hallmarks of our products." |
| Today, Spring Mill Bread Company operates storefronts out of Rockville, MD, Gaithersburg, MD, Arlington, VA, and Takoma, Park MD. There is also a franchise in Wayne, PA. |
| Unsure of what to order the next time you step into a Spring Mill? Katherine Page has a recommendation: "The pesto asiago bread is my absolute favorite! One of my very favorite childhood memories is eating that bread on the way home from an early-morning swim team practice." |
| ~ Julie Ruth Malone '18 |
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