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Woman pays it forward with peaches

A Bishop Hill woman who grew more peaches than she could use is giving them away for free.
A woman's dealing with a bit of a peach problem, she's simply grown too many.  Now she's set to give them all away for free, while packaging in a lesson on life.

Driving through Bishop Hill, Illinois, a small town of 130, you'll come across Summer Cottage at the end of Lindstrom Road.

Outside of owning the blown glass gift shop, Arlene Rigg has a hobby of planting fruit trees.

"I was raised on a farm in Minnesota and was taught how to can and makes jams," said Rigg.

However, her hobby has lead to a bit of a problem. Last year Arlene had health issues that almost took her life. She was unable to take care of the trees and ended up getting more peaches than she asked for.

"I've never seen a fruit crop like this in my entire life," said Rigg.

She's put plywood under the trees to hold them up.

"The tree's are actually snapping in half, because they're so loaded with peaches," said Rigg.

She's tried to can as many of them possible, but she says there's still too many to go to waste.  She has 40 peach trees in all.

After beating death, Arlene has decided to put her overgrown hobby to good use.

"I want any food pantry or a shelter or anyplace like that to give me call," said Rigg.

Sharing her love for peaches at no price and giving back to others the best way she knows how.

"I just want to be sure that those who need it get some," said Rigg.

If you would like to take some peaches off of Arlene's hands, you can reach her at (309) 927-3359.

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