Ian’s will keep the solidarity pizzas coming as long as it can keep up

The waterfall of unforeseen consequences flowing from Gov. Scott Walker’s bill that would eliminate collective bargaining rights for many state workers began with the protests at the Capitol, fanned out to demonstrations of solidarity around the nation, and in one smaller but fascinating rivulet—the elevation of a local pizza shop to international fame.

Over the last few days Madison’s beloved Ian’s Pizza on State Street (perhaps best known for its mac and cheese slice) has been accepting donations and delivering pizzas, a modest gesture that ricocheted though Facebook and Twitter and has now appeared in TIME, Slate, Boing Boing, and even the World News section of London’s The Guardian.

“If I had known this would happen, I would have paid more attention to how it all started,” said Staci Fritz, office manager at Ian’s. “At the end of Tuesday night last week, we sent our leftover pizzas up to the Capitol. A Wisconsin woman heard about this somehow and called in with the idea of donating money to buy more pizzas for the protesters. Then a friend told a friend, who told a friend, it seems.” After a call from California, more calls from around the country, and a what-the-hell moment when someone called from Egypt to donate, the Twitter reports began flying and the floodgates burst. “We just got a $20 donation from Kenya,” said Fritz.

Ian’s had to shutter its doors on Saturday to cool off the gunmetal-hot ovens and recalibrate from the onslaught of pro-worker pizza pie philanthropists, but as of Wednesday morning it is ready for the world.

“We’ve got 505 pizzas ordered already for today,” reported Jack Thurnblad, assistant manager on State Street, at about 10 a.m. “We delivered 700 pies yesterday, 1,000 the day before, and thousands of slices.” The tally of out-of-state donations, kept on a blackboard, now spans 30 countries including Egypt, Korea, Switzerland, Finland, New Zealand, Denmark, Australia, Canada, Germany, China, England, the Netherlands, Turkey, Italy, and all 50 U.S. states.

“We’ll stay open as long as our employees can handle it,” Thurnblad says. “We’re closing early at night to make sure all the pizzas get out. We’re going to play it by ear, but we might be able to stay open seven days a week—we have the ingredients, the people, everything we need.”