(Traverse City, MI) – In honor of Pi Day - a day noted by math enthusiasts around the world- on Wednesday, March 14 (3.14) the Grand Traverse Pie Company (GTPC) will be celebrating all day serving a free slice of ABC (Apples, Blueberries, Cherries) pie with purchase. Pie is a perfect complement to the craveable comfort foods offered at GTPC including Chicken Pot Pie, traditional Beef Pasties and quiche.

Michigan Agriculture Involvement
Pi Day, March 14 is also part of Michigan Food and Agriculture Month events, so GTPC is joining forces with the Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development (MDARD), and Michigan Farm Bureau in encouraging Michiganders to celebrate math, education, and agriculture. In fact, about 1,500,000 pounds of apples, blueberries, cherries, sugar and flour, all grown and processed in Michigan, goes into these delicious pies every year. “March is the perfect time of year to honor Michigan’s farmers and the food and ag-related businesses for the role they play in providing a safe, abundant and wholesome food supply,” said Gordon Wenk, MDARD director. “Michigan’s food and agriculture sector contributes more than $101.2 billion to our state’s economy each year and offers tremendous business and career opportunities for those seeking jobs in science and technology, the skilled trades, animal husbandry, crop production, veterinary medicine, food processing and so much more.”

Michigan Education Involvement
GTPC honors the day every year with a variety of pie/pi themed events. This year GTPC is pleased to team up with Michigan State University (MSU) Broad College of Business MBA program graduate students who will sell pie slices on campus. “On behalf of my colleagues in the MBA program, we are honored to have the opportunity to partner with GT Pie again to raise money for Small Talk Children’s Advocacy Center and the worthy cause that they represent. We intend to build upon the success of last year's Pi Day event to benefit our community while proudly representing our fellow Broad MBAs," said Nitin Balakrishnan, Vice President of Community Outreach, Graduate Supply Chain Management Association-Eli Broad College of Business. 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Small Talk Children’s Advocacy Center in Ingham County and the MSU students learn valuable lessons in supply chain management.

Other celebrations will be taking place statewide to include Western Michigan University who is hosting an alumni event on Pi Day at Boatyard Brewery serving up slices of GTPC pie and local beer. Several other community school systems will have Pi Day contests as well.

History of Pi
Pi, Greek letter, is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi = 3.1415926535… Pi is an irrational and transcendental number meaning it will continue infinitely without repeating. With the use of computers, Pi has been calculated to over 1 trillion digits past the decimal. The symbol for Pi was first used in 1706 by William Jones but was made popular by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in 1737.

The Power of Pie
“We are thrilled to be celebrating Pi (Day) and pie with the MSU, MDARD and others around the state of Michigan. Pi Day is special as it ties in education while creating PIE memories with a bonus of helping others in the process. That’s the Power of Pie and Pi together,” said Mike Busley, cofounder of the Grand Traverse Pie Company. “We believe that respect leads to loyalty which promotes growth which allows us to give back to people which gains respect. We strive to be one of the state’s most respected brands while making a difference in Michigan communities benefitting children and families, that’s The Power of Pie.”

16 Grand Traverse Pie Company shops
The Grand Traverse Pie Company is proud to be in their 22nd year of making pie, offering over 40 varieties of hand-crafted pie. Every shop location has on-site bakers, delivering the made-from-scratch, and just baked taste of pie each and every day.
• Ann Arbor (734) 997-9702
• Brighton (810) 225-7437
• East Lansing (517) 203-3304
• Grand Rapids-Kentwood (616) 977-7600
• Lansing (517) 315-0900
• Midland (989) 839-4872
• Norton Shores (231) 799-3399
• Okemos (517) 381-7437
• Portage (269) 903-4991
• Petoskey (231) 348-4060
• Plymouth (734) 459-9200
• Rochester Hills (248) 438-8110
• Traverse City – Two locations in Downtown TC (231) 922-7437; (231) 933-3972
• Troy (248) 458-0322
• Terre Haute (812) 235-1582

Visit gtpie.com to ship your favorite Pie to friends and family, and to learn more about GTPC shop locations and the The Power of Pie .