Hutton Settlement

09/04/2026

Flashback Friday transitions into looking at the life of Levi and May Hutton post striking it rich in the Hercules Mine.

"You can be rich in spirit, kindness, love and all those things that you can't put a dollar sign on." Dolly Parton

We left last week's history lesson just after the Hercules began producing. Harry Day had the controlling interest in the mine, and the minority stockholders left managing its lead-silver business to him.

In 1906, the year before the Huttons moved from Wallace to Spokane, the mine was producing $880,000 per year. By 1925, just before the mine closed down, the Hercules had returned dividends totaling just over $19m. The Huttons' investment had netted just under $2m.

The return on the mine didn't change the type of people Levi and May were but it did allow them to move into a larger house in Wallace. Although, the Wallace society, ruled by an elite of mine owners' wives remained closed down to them as the Victorian women could not accept May's assertiveness, her size and flamboyant taste in clothes (and most likely her pro-labor sympathies). In 1900, May wrote "The Coeur d'Alenes: or a Tale of the Modern Inquisition in Idaho" which was a satire on the characters during this time. This most likely played out as it related to how she was perceived. Once May joined the ranks of owners, she bought up all the remaining copies.

Next week we will look into the Hutton's move to Spokane.

09/03/2026

It was a pizza feast this past weekend when Hutton's Culinary Team provided free HOPE wood-fired pizza to customers of Wildland Coop, in Greenbluff.

Why are we giving away our pizza? Because of something we call "radical neighboring!"

Radical neighboring is Hutton's community-focused philosophy that replaces consumerism with generosity and reciprocity.

We want our kids to understand: you belong! You are part of a family, a neighborhood, and a community that give us so much. And we encourage our kids to respond to that by giving back; viewing neighbors as extended family.

The result of Saturday's feast? Patrons of Wildland Coop enjoyed some delicious farm-to-table pizza made with vegetables from our own garden, they got to know Hutton a little bit, and our Culinary Team got to practice their skills, in a fast paced, but gracious environment.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by! And thank you Wildland Cooperative for hosting us. You truly are amazing neighbors. We can't wait to do it again!

09/03/2026

🏡 What a special day at Hutton Settlement! 🏡

We were so grateful to welcome Walt Worthy to Hutton Settlement while he was in Spokane announcing a generous donation to support victims of the recent wildfires. Walt stopped by with his good friends Dick and Carol Wendle and Shawn O'Kert and it was a visit we'll treasure.

Years ago, Walt and Karen Worthy made an investment in Hutton Settlement that continues to pay dividends in the lives of the kids who call this place home. Their vision to modernize the cottages, homes built by Levi Hutton so many years ago, has allowed us to truly meet the needs of children today.

Spaces that were once dated, tired, and simply not functional for modern living are now warm, inviting, and give our kids the personal space they need to grow within our attachment-based model, a model that has proven so successful here at Hutton Settlement.

We will forever treasure the friendship of Walt and Karen Worthy, and their dedication to making children's lives better. Thank you for stopping by! 💛

09/02/2026

Hutton's Culinary Garden provides fruit and vegetables for the four Hutton cottages as well as supplying food and herbs for our other programs like Hope Pizza and Hope Cafe.

At the beginning of the year, the Farm Team surveys the house-parents and develops a planting plan based on what each family likes to eat. Then the kids spend the summer tending the gardens and doing the hard work that large, productive gardens require.

They'll enjoy an amazing harvest, but along the way, they will be learning valuable life lessons such as: patience, cooperation, responsibility, and the reward that comes from hard work.

08/31/2026

🎉 Congratulations to ATC Manufacturing on their groundbreaking expansion in Post Falls! 🎉

We were honored to celebrate this exciting milestone at the ribbon cutting event hosted by the Post Falls Chamber of Commerce. ATC Manufacturing is a true supporter and champion of the kids at Hutton Settlement, and we're so grateful for their continued partnership in making a difference in our children's lives.

We also want to recognize ATC's key partners in this expansion — Baker Construction, Bernardo Wills Architects, and Lakeside Companies — for their role in bringing this vision to life.

We love celebrating the supporters and champions in our community who show up for our kids. Congratulations to the whole team on this exciting next chapter! 👏

Falls Chamber of Commerce Construction & Development, Inc. Companies

08/28/2026

🍕Come see our HOPE Homestead Pies- wood fired pizza team at Wildland Cooperative- Saturday August 29th, from 4-7. Enjoy handcrafted pizza in a beautiful location…we hope to see you there! 🍕💙🍕

This Saturday, The HOPE Farmstead Pies is bringing their pizza pop-up to Wildland! HOPE is a youth social enterprise of the Hutton Settlement Children’s Home designed to teach youth in residence essential life skills through farming and culinary pursuits. We are so excited to be partnering with this amazing program! 🍕👩🏼‍🍳They’ll have their wood-fired pizza available up at the taproom from 4-7pm on Saturday the 29th. Come up and grab a slice with your beer and soak up the last days of August. 😎☀️🍺

08/28/2026

🎒School may be back in session, but HOPE Roasters Cafe is here for you! ☕

Stop by this Saturday, 8/29, from 9am-12pm for crafted coffee and delicious treats — we'd love to see you.

📍Hutton Settlement - 9907 E Wellesley Ave., Spokane WA 99206

08/28/2026

Flashback Friday at the Hutton Settlement is all about "striking it rich."

"At the end of the day, you put all the work in, and eventually it'll pay off. It could be in a year, it could be in 30 years. Eventually your hard work will pay off." Kevin Hart

The Huttons made their investment in the Hercules mine in 1895 and in the years that followed, a greater part of the backbreaking work at the mine had been done by Al Hutton, August Paulsen, and a stonemason named Claude Caro. Progress was slow and the work unimaginably hard, but the determined partners gave little thought to quitting. On June 2, 1901, Paulsen blasted through rock into "a cave of wire and lead carbonate" and "hauled a wheelbarrow of this outside, filled the suitcase he had brought for his clothing in, and took it show his partners." Paulsen's find validated the partners' hard work and confidence and took them to the next phase of underground work.

May took great interest in the work at the Hercules and kept the miners well fed. The men gathered at the Hutton house for dinner and to display ore specimens and discuss their plans. The partners still had an enormous amount of work to do to realize the mine's potential. With their hard work and "by the end of 1903, the Hercules mine was yielding a net profit of $40,000 a month."

08/25/2026

🍕 A Sweet (and Sticky!) End to Summer at Hutton Settlement 🍕

Thank you, Mark Starr and David's Pizza, for treating us to your incredible pizza! Coming out in the warm weather to toss up your culinary delights made the afternoon absolutely incredible.

Every year, our kids take on the legendary pudding eating contest — no hands allowed! Dive face-first into the pudding, find the hidden gum, and blow a bubble to win. It's always a hysterical competition and one of the highlights of the day. 😂

Next up: the egg toss — partners lobbing eggs back and forth, taking a step back after every successful catch. Let's just say it was some truly egg-cellent entertainment! 🥚

The afternoon wrapped up with pool time, hand-baked desserts 🍪by the one and only Jodee Cahalan, and memories that will last a lifetime.

As our kids get older and juggle sports tryouts, practice, jobs, and school prep, it gets harder and harder to find these simple, meaningful moments together. That's why we are so incredibly grateful to everyone who helps make these magical days possible. 💛

08/24/2026

Summer's winding down and school routines are calling 🎒 So many adventures, so many moments — here's just a glimpse of the magic our kids made this summer. Grateful for every one of them. 💛