How to remove the pit of a cherry

Using a Straw
You need to use a sturdy straw, cheap ones are too flimsy. Pull the stem out and push the straw through the center & the pit will come out the bottom.

Using a Cherry Pitter
We bought this at our local fruit exchange. It works pretty well (better than the straw). Remove the stem, center the cherry & push down the lever to poke the pit out the bottom.

The local U-Pick farms around here will pit cherries for you (free of charge). They have machines that do them real fast....be careful though because sometimes they miss a few and you might get a pit in your cherry pie.