The story of master beekeeper Leonid Zaytsev, an immigrant journey, mentorship under Charles "Chuck" Lilley, and a family dedication to pure Oregon honey.
Leonid Zaytsev’s journey into beekeeping began in culinary school in Odessa, Ukraine. Looking to pollinate a backyard greenhouse, he introduced his very first beehive. When the bees struggled in the enclosed space, Leonid immersed himself in formal agriculture and bee biology courses—sparking a lifelong devotion to apiculture.
In April 1989, Leonid immigrated to Oregon with his wife and two young children. Seeking out the local beekeeping trade, he was mentored by Charles "Chuck" Lilley, the respected founder of Bee's Knees Honey Factory. Under Chuck’s generous guidance, Leonid mastered Pacific Northwest migratory beekeeping, commercial extraction, and local floral sources.
Armed with that knowledge, Leonid founded Bee Way Honey Pollination in Damascus, Oregon in 1993. Over three decades of steady family craftsmanship, Bee Way has grown into one of the region’s premier family-owned apiaries—caring for thousands of colonies for West Coast orchard pollination while bottling 100% pure raw honey for our local community.
While our extraction philosophy remains traditional—never heating honey above 104°F and never using ultra-filtration—our honey house is built for high standards of purity and food safety.
Honeycomb frames are spun in our commercial stainless radial extractor, spinning 60 to 120 frames per run to cleanly release raw honey using gentle centrifugal force.
The honey flows into food-grade stainless tanks repurposed from a dairy milk factory. Built with an interior thermal liner wall, they keep the honey gently warm for smooth settling and pouring without heat damage.
Visit our Damascus farm stand by appointment to pick up freshly bottled Berry, Clover, and Wildflower raw honey.
Damascus Farm Visits By Appointment Only
Have a question about our family history, our honey varieties, starter hives, or visiting Damascus? Reach out anytime.