Heart Partners
A Heart-to-Heart With Community Heart Partner: John Shelley
How did you become involved with Olivia's House?
About a year ago, I received an e-mail from Leslie saying that she found our website and had read our stories about Pickle, my cat, and little companion over the last 15 years. He died in August of 2005. Leslie wanted to know if she could use that story, as part of the Barkley's Gone program, to counsel children about the loss and the grief over pet loss. Not too long after, I, and two of my staff members, took a tour of Olivia's House and we were extremely impressed and motivated to get involved and we're proud that we did.
What is your favorite memory of Olivia's House?
When we first visited it was in the winter and the plants outside needed some attention. I remember thinking we need to get involved right away by getting the front of Olivia's House cleaned up and presentable for people to enjoy and for the families and staff to be proud of.
What do you hope your future involvement will be with Olivia's House?
Whether it's fundraising, certain projects, donations, whatever we can do to help, Olivia's House is definitely one of the pillars of the community, and we want to be able to support them.
What is your background?
I spent 17 years in New York City on Madison Avenue working for advertising agencies, doing major, national ad campaigns for Chevrolet, Western Union, BMW, Kelloggs; When I returned home to York, I found a big 20 acre plot that needed a garden center and nursery and decided that's what I wanted to do. Part of my background is a trained chef from the Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, NY. I could grow plants, and I could grow herbs, and I thought, well heck, I can do this, have fun, and get paid for it. So I opened a garden center and nursery in Winterstown in southern York County. We opened in March 1991, and the place has been wildly successful ever since.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
My real desire in life was to be a Formula One racecar driver. Most people would be surprised by that because I don't even like to drive on the interstate very much.
What can always be found in your refrigerator?
Being a trained chef, I have a lot of things in there-everything from porcini mushrooms, saffron, black and white truffles and all kinds of sauces and coulies.
What TV shows do you watch?
One of my favorite shows was Magnum PI and I was an extra in an episode once! Of course I always watch the Weather Channel because the gardening and the nursery business is a weather-driven business.
Being so successful with your career, are there any unfulfilled ambitions of yours?
At this point in time what I'd like to do is retire from the garden center and nursery business and open a high-end gourmet foods store, with an operating restaurant.
How would you define success?
I think success at the end of the day is knowing that you've taken care of all your employees and their families, made sure they have a good living, that you've contributed to the community, that you've contributed to the country as a whole, and can look yourself in the mirror, smile, and not have a problem with who you are.
What was your proudest accomplishment?
My proudest accomplishment was becoming an Eagle Scout at 12 years old. At that time I was the youngest Eagle Scout in history. If someone asks me, I have my Eagle Scout card from November 22 1963, worn and tattered, in my wallet, and I proudly show it to anyone who wants to see it.
How do you want to be remembered?
Professionally I don't want to be remembered as a person who had run-of-the-mill things. I'd like to be remembered as someone who had unusual things, who introduced plant material and design concepts to the area that people have never seen before. I think that different things speak well for the people who have them, and they speak even better for the people who grew them and sold them to them.
Learn more about Heart Partners
