In The Hood: February
Now retired from Caltrans, Fred tends his 50 honey-producing hives and advises other beekeepers and customers. “There are whole groups of people who come in just to talk to him,” says Nancy.
Customers travel from across Northern California and Nevada to the little shop on X Street for frames, veils and feeders, some staying for hours, chatting with Nancy and Fred.
“There doesn’t seem to be a cut-and-dried answer to most questions,” says Fred. “I think beekeeping tends to be about responding to things you observe and bee behavior, rather than doing things that force the bees to react the way you want them to, because they won’t always do that.”
A Family Affair
Nancy dispenses wisdom of her own, too. With their two daughters, Donna Stewart, 43, and Pam Hill, 41, now involved in the store and four grandchildren often around sampling honey or running the cash register, she knows the challenges of a family business.
She believes there’s a “freedom that each one of us feels to express ourselves to the other person, so people will say things they wouldn’t say to a regular coworker.” Her understanding of behavior proves helpful in navigating the family affair.
“We have four family members every day trying to get along, but weall know that we’re here to move the business forward,” says Nancy. In conflict, “we do our best to iron it out. We come to work the next day and move on.”
As any bee hive proves, staying busy and tending to business are the keys to success.
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