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TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR SAM TINDAL AND TOM TINDAL, OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF THE FARMERS' EXCHANGE UPON THE OCCASION OF THEIR RETIREMENT AND TO WISH THEM CONTINUED SUCCESS AND HAPPINESS IN ALL THEIR FUTURE ENDEAVORS.
Whereas, the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives have learned that, after almost eighty-five years as a landmark in Sumter, the Farmers' Exchange will close its barn door on Friday, May 27, 2016; and
Whereas, originally organized as a cooperative for shareholders in 1931, the Farmers' Exchange was purchased from the shareholders in the 1950s by John B. Tindal who had begun his association with the Exchange as the store's manager in 1936; and
Whereas, Mr. Tindal assumed the business as sole proprietor and moved the store's location in 1966 when Harvin Street was widened. In 1989, the store was moved to its final site when Hurricane Hugo blew the roof off its building on Guignard Drive; and
Whereas, since the 1950s, the Farmers' Exchange remained a family business that has served local farmers by providing feed, seed, fertilizer, baby chickens, and, even at one point, a grit grinder; and
Whereas, during the fall seasons, customers came from around the county to purchase fresh, locally-grown pecans from the store; and
Whereas, the Tindal family developed loyal customers among farmers who often obtained seeds in the spring and paid their bills when the crops went to market in the summer or fall, while Mrs. Tindal kept hand-written ledgers for each account; and
Whereas, when customers had a lean-crop year, they always found a way to pay their bills to the Tindals, sometimes paying in the form of crops, and throughout the store's history, bad checks were rare because the customers were honest, hard-working people; and
Whereas, brothers Tom and Sam Tindal remember their mother taking them to the store as youngsters, and when they grew older, they began helping with some of the heavy lifting in the store, such as seed and fertilizer bagged in fifty-pound sacks; and
Whereas, when the Exchange began delivery to farmers, the brothers would make deliveries after school and on weekends; and
Whereas, Sam Tindal joined the United States Air Force after high school, specializing in communications systems, and returned home four years later to work for the Farmers Telephone Cooperative, Inc. (FTC), installing and maintaining its service lines; and
Whereas, Tom Tindal worked for Sumter Police Department, serving five years as a patrol officer before specializing in photographing and processing film and photos of crime scenes; and
Whereas, in 1974, Sam began working for his father at the Farmers' Exchange, and Tom left his job with the city to join Sam in the family business in 1979. Then their father began to transition into retirement; and
Whereas, as small farmers began selling out to larger companies and big-box stores vied with the local co-ops and feed stores, the Exchange relied on local farmers loyal to the company; and
Whereas, now John Tindal's sons, who maintained the Exchange since the 1970s, are also retiring, choosing to close the store's barn door with the hope of providing opportunities for other vendors; and
Whereas, the South Carolina House of Representatives is grateful for the years of unparalleled dedication that Sam Tindal and Tom Tindal have provided to the Sumter community, and the members wish them many years of enjoyment in their well-earned retirement. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, recognize and honor Sam Tindal and Tom Tindal, owners and operators of the Farmers' Exchange upon the occasion of their retirement and wish them continued success and happiness in all their future endeavors.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to Sam Tindal and Tom Tindal.
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