BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — Have you ever wanted a 30-foot-long fake beluga whale?
For $300, you can head over to the Battle Creek Habitat for Humanity ReStore and purchase your very own.
On Thursday afternoon, the store posted a photo of the whale sitting outside their doors with a simple caption:
"You never know what will land on the 'beach' at the ReStore! 30ft Beluga Whale, injection molding. Only $300.00!"
The Battle Creek Area Habitat for Humanity ReStore is a home improvement store and donation center that sells new and gently used furniture, appliances, home goods, building materials and more.
Today, "and more" consisted of a 25-foot-long fake orca whale and a 30-foot-long beluga whale.
Logan Foster, a warehouse worker for Battle Creek Habitat for Humanity, said he and a volunteer went out to the Mannetron factory in Battle Creek to pick up donations for the ReStore.
"I saw the two whales hanging up in the rafters and I sent a picture to (Alana Young, the ReStore manager), I said, 'If they're getting rid of these, do you want them?' And she said, 'Yes,'" Foster said.
So, the whales set off on their journey to the ReStore.
"It was a kind of a fun time driving through town, seeing everybody taking pictures and, you know, wondering what was on the back of our trailer," Foster said.
"It's the first time I've ever seen anything like that," said Devin Zuck, a warehouse driver at the ReStore. "We certainly did get a lot of attention, especially coming back from picking them up. We had very many people taking pictures and just recording it."
The orca whale didn't last long at the ReStore, as Young said a couple bought it Thursday morning to make it into a playground for their kids.
"It was a young couple," Young said. "Grandpa came with his flatbed to pick it up and they're planning on adding a ladder and I could envision a slide and some kind of platform. And they're going to make it a jungle gym in their backyard."
"When I agreed to donate it, I was telling Mike, I go, 'Heck, I'm going to put it up on the roof, and it's going to be our new mascot. You know, draw in people," Young said. "But I had no idea that they would sell so quickly."
It seems it's only a matter of time for the beluga whale to find its forever home.
"The response we're getting on Facebook and the shares is just astounding," Young said. "I can't believe it. I'm pleased to get the plug out for Habitat for Humanity and the ReStore. We pretty much will take anything, obviously, and it all goes into our home-building program, all the funds we earn."
