Industry Must Start Telling More GOOD Stories

When a Parkinson's patient lost his lawn care provider to cancer, five off-duty police officers come to the rescue. Stories like this happen every day, and it's time to start telling them.

Once again we're taught how a little lawn care can go a long, long way.

A 71-year-old man who has been battling Parkinson's disease for several years suddenly lost his lawn care provider. That gentleman was diagnosed with colon cancer, and passed away in a matter of months. The 71-year-old's lawn soon grew out of control, and was in desperate need of some cleanup.

Then one day five off-duty police officers showed up with the necessary equipment to whip the yard back into shape. The officers didn't want any publicity. As one stated when eventually wore down by a newspaper reporter, "Most of us were off for the day, and this fits with the core principles of being a Salem police officer: We stick up for people who can't stick up for themselves."  ORIGINAL STORY

Giving back to communities and those in need within those communities is a hallmark of industry-leading companies. Right here in the Green Industry there are concerted, industry-wide efforts such as PLANET Day of Service, Green Care for Troops and Snow Care for Troops, to name a few.

But there are also countless "one-off" examples such as this story of the five off-duty police officers; they just took it upon themselves to go do something. Many landscape and lawn care companies do things of this nature every day. They just don't brag about them, much like these officers went to great lengths to avoid doing.

Here's the deal, though: The public needs to know. There is just too much negative buzz about this awesome industry. Ever heard any of these stereotypes? You hire illegal people, you pollute the air, you kill dogs and children with pesticides, you waste water, you ruin water with all of the fertilizers you apply, your noisy leaf blowers hurt my ears, you charge too much for an "unprofessional" contractor, and so on and so on.

Truth be told, there are good arguments to effectively counter all of those stereotypes. We can talk more about them another time. But for now, I want to see the average person's perception of this industry change. We can start doing that be telling more positive stories.

CALL TO CONTRACTORS: Email me your positive story and we'll share it on our website and social media pages, and maybe even our eNewsletter and magazine. Just send to [email protected].

Look forward to hearing, and sharing, your stories.

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