By Douglas Motter, President
Homestead Village was incorporated in 1976 as a charitable non-profit corporation. This new corporation was created to fulfil the dream of Church of the Apostles to develop a church ministry for older adults. It is likely Homestead Village was the primary reason the church purchased the Brubaker Farm resulting in 30 of the more than 80 acres of the farm set aside for the older adult ministry.
The name reflected the farm roots of the property as well as the daunting task of creating a retirement community by a single church – truly an act of homesteading! A new company needs a logo, and the plow was the perfect symbol for Homestead Village. In fact, a plow has graced the main entrance of Church of the Apostles since the church was built.
The Original Homestead Village Logo.
The plow remained the logo of Homestead Village for over twenty years, while the cottages, apartments, nursing home and personal care home were constructed and occupied. In the mid-nineties, Homestead Village developed a new neighborhood named Villa Court. Kenneth Hammel, the architect, designed each porch column to feature a ceramic tile pineapple. The ceramic pineapple was used in Villa Court marketing and prominently featured in brochures and advertising.
Pictures from an early 2000s Homestead Village marketing brochure, featuring the pineapple on villa court porch posts.
In 2001, Homestead Village purchased 30 acres from JH Brubaker Lumber Company, doubling the size of Homestead Village and allowing the creation of a 92-home state-of-the-art neighborhood, designed by Hammel Architects. This new neighborhood needed a name and logo. The name chosen was The Mews at Homestead Village and the logo, inspired by Villa Court, once again featured the pineapple. This time the pineapple was a sophisticated, stylized design.
The Mews Logo featuring the first use of the current pineapple.
As The Mews project proceeded successfully, Homestead Village’s marketing director, Susan Doyle and President Douglas Motter make the decision to transform the Homestead Village logo from the plow to the pineapple. The first step, thanks to an innovative graphic designer, was the plow and pineapple “fractal” design, emulating traditional repetitive patterns found in quilt work or decorative borders.
The Plow and Pineapple Border Logo.
The Border Logo served Homestead Village for several years, bringing the pineapple into the official logo. For Homestead’s 20th anniversary, the Mews Pineapple replaced the border logo as the official symbol of Homestead Village. It has now served as the official logo for two decades! Back in 2017, a dining room remodel reintroduced The Plow and Pineapple as the restaurant name. The border logo was even reintroduced as part of the restaurant décor.
Why is the logo a pineapple, people often ask? The pineapple is a symbol of hospitality, friendship, warmth, and welcome. It is often associated with Colonial Williamsburg but its symbolism dates to Christipher Columbus. That was the inspiration for the pineapple tiles in the Villa Court porch columns and ultimately led to the adoption of the pineapple as our official symbol – a very appropriate symbol for Homestead Village!
The Current Homestead Village Logo celebrating 20 years in service.
Homestead Village 40th Anniversary Logo