Just mention the word “Nuteena” at the Calimesa church, and members smile or offer a little laugh. The Nuteena conversation began last October during a sermon series on Adventist Heritage. Chris Oberg, senior pastor, held up a can of Nuteena during a sermon and said, “You might be an Adventist if, when you heard Loma Linda Foods was going to discontinue the production of Nuteena, you ran out and hoarded two cases.”

When church members asked if they could buy the can later, Oberg joked, “We better put this on eBay and raise a little money for our Christmas mission project.” Within a few weeks the finance committee and a couple of members went to work and the Nuteena was available for bidding in early December.

The bidding started at $350, and within a few days the highest bid came in at $540 — for one can of Nuteena! One feature of shopping on eBay is the ability to interact with other bidders, and this happened among those ‘fighting’ for the Nuteena. One bidder challenged another by jesting, “I’m from Oregon — you going to let a guy from Oregon buy your Nuteena?”

The reply to that challenge came from a Calimesa member, “Well, when I successfully purchase this can of Nuteena I plan on donating an equal amount to the building project of our local Spanish Company. Can you match that donation?”

The private jesting ended with the successful purchase by a Calimesa member who remains anonymous. But another church member got in on the fun by purchasing a second can for $1,000 and offering it for resale with the stipulation that the can be sold at a profit.

(And yes, the elderly gentleman did bring a can from home. Several other church members offered to surrender cans they had, too.) When all was finished, the two cans of Nuteena raised $1,540 for the Christmas mission offering.

Oberg said, “This began as a fun and lighthearted way of talking about something uniquely Adventist. Originally I was joking about placing the product on eBay; but the idea developed as one more way of generating enthusiasm for a worthy project. It’s become an inside joke now, so if you come for a visit, you’ll know why we chuckle when we mention that peanut product you either love or hate — Nuteena!”