The Ploughshare Institute In Deary, Idaho

Homestead Heritage In The American Redoubt

(Source)

Homestead Heritage has a growing community based in Deary, Idaho, known as the Ploughshare Institute for Sustainable Culture. They applied for a conditional use permit, that was first denied and then granted, to operate a school on the property. Their stated objective is "to open a center in Idaho that will teach crafts and sustainable living techniques." (Source) 

Since this time, a growing number of Homestead members have relocated to the surrounding areas. Members run the Pie Safe Bakery and Kitchen,  Brush Creek Creamery and Quality Contractors in Deary. One business sells crafts at Capital City Public Market in Boise. Another member runs an accounting firm in Boise. [Update 7-18-2019: It has been brought to my attention that the owners of the last two businesses above are no longer members of Homestead. I wish them the best as they recover and move on with their new lives.]

The decision to purchase property and start a community in Idaho was preceded by a tragic event. One of Blair Adams' sons lost a child at birth. This was rightfully mourned by the community, but became a catalyst for the message from the pulpit that Homestead was giving stillbirth to the vision God had given them. In a Sunday meeting, people shared dreams such as one about having to pack up and evacuate Waco quickly due to a catastrophic event. Leaders sifted through dreams that members had previously written down and submitted. It was some months later that the congregation was informed that God was directing them to purchase property in Deary, Idaho. One elder specifically said that this area was out of range of most nuclear missile systems. (Judging by these maps, he's not the only one to think so.)

It wasn't until a few years later that I would learn about the American Redoubt.

The American Redoubt: It lies in the rural high country of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, eastern Washington and Oregon.

For a growing number of people, it's the designated point of retreat when the American economy hits the fan. When banks fail, the government declares martial law, the power grid goes down. When warming oceans flood the coasts and a resurgent Russia takes out targets on the Eastern Seaboard. (Source) 

I don't thing Homestead is as concerned about the Russians as they are the Muslims, though. They published a book called A Prediction of Islamist Terror.  In it a dream is shared "about a fierce people, symbolized in this dream by their kaffiyehs, scimitars and horses." "But in the dream when they came to our community, there was a blue circle of flame around it; and when they rode into the flame, they disintegrated." (p. 9)

Exactly how popular is this migration to the Redoubt?

It's impossible to say how many have heeded the call -- analysts say it's probably not all that many so far -- but adherents say that's because the need is only now becoming apparent. Boise was home to a survivalist trade show last year [2011] featuring electric generators, dehydrated food and water-purification devices. (Source)

According to a recent Washington Post article,

It is impossible to know exactly how many people have come over the past few years, but newcomers, real estate agents, local officials and others said it was in the hundreds, or perhaps even a few thousand, across all five states. (Source)

 An article in The Economist says that "thousands of families have answered the call," and that the movement "is quietly gaining steam."

 Survivalist blogger, Wesley Rawles, considered to be "the guru of the movement," compiled a list of things to do in preparation for moving to the Redoubt and what to do after the move. Homestead already does many of the things on this list. One item stood out to me for a particular reason:

• If you buy an existing house, get one with an extra bedroom or two. Some relatives may be joining you, unexpectedly.

 You see, a Homestead elder once told me that, when the economy collapses, our families will spend their precious remaining gasoline to beat a hasty retreat to our doorstep.