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FLOWER POWER

by Jim Morgan

As Mary Ann Schwing sees it, her love of flowers and landscaping is entirely natural.

"My maternal grandmother was very much a gardener. She could stick a plant in anything and have it grow. She always had beautiful flowers and a wonderful yard. And she did it all herself, right up into her late 80s. I always admired that, and maybe I inherited a little of her skill. Besides," she adds with a smile, "I'd much rather be out in the yard planting flowers than inside doing housework."

Of course, gardening and landscape design are Mary Ann's weekend hobbies. Her work as an account manager here at RL Hudson fills her weekdays. But that hasn't always been the case.

Prior to raising flowers, Mary Ann raised a family. Having met and married in Terre Haute, Indiana, she and husband Vern (then a band instructor, now a representative for a hoist manufacturer) relocated to Oklahoma in 1971.

"We had only been married a few weeks at that time," she recalls, "so it was a big move for me. I'd never been away from home before, and we were a close family. But it really helped that most of Vern's family lived here."

Once settled, Mary Ann and Vern began to build their own family. A son, Aaron, was born in 1973, followed in 1975 by a daughter, Amy. The Schwings returned to Indiana for a few years (during which time a second son, Adam, was born), but by 1981 they were back in Oklahoma to stay. By the time her kids were all in school, so was Mary Ann. She worked in both the special education and administration offices at a local public school. Along the way, she also met Rick Hudson.

"Adam played on the same soccer team as Rick's second son, Blake," she explains. "Vern and I became good friends with both Rick and his wife, Diane. Rick kept encouraging me to join the company, and when I visited, I was very impressed with everyone and with the overall environment. It was an easy decision."

That was 1993. Since then, Mary Ann has become one of RL Hudson's most knowledgeable account managers. That's due, in large part, to her endless enthusiasm.

"I enjoy learning," she says. "And I learn something new every day. I also enjoy working with our customers on projects – developing a new product, with all the interesting steps and phases we go through to do that. New product development is my favorite part of the job."

She pauses for a second, and a twinkle comes into her eyes.

"But it's about more than just developing products," she continues. "It's about developing personal, lasting bonds with our customers. We want to meet their needs, whatever they may be. That's why we have in-house engineers, and our own quality assurance personnel. That's why we offer inventory management programs. It's all about the relationships. We're a full-service company, with ‘service' being the key word. We don't offer an automated system. We offer real people, like me. That's what makes this company so outstanding and such a great place to work."

As enthusiastic as she is about her job, Mary Ann can easily get just as excited about another topic: her grandchild, soon to be grandchildren. Amy's son, Andrew, recently celebrated birthday number 1, and he'll be joined by a sister in September. Aaron and his wife are expecting their first child, a boy, around the middle of October.

"Being a grandma is great," Mary Ann enthuses. "I think it's even more fun than being a parent, mainly because I've been through the child-rearing process before, so I'm more relaxed about it. I get to do all the spoiling now!"

Thanks to a surprising move, Mary Ann is now also able to indulge herself, at least in terms of landscaping options. Earlier this year, the Schwings did the seemingly unthinkable: they traded in their beautifully decorated and elaborately landscaped home for, of all things, a house in need of substantial work, both inside and out. The real kicker: the fixer-upper they moved into is right next door to their old home.

"We moved one door down," Mary Ann says with a laugh. "It's kind of tough to explain. I guess we just needed a new challenge. Vern has done lots of work on the inside, knocking out walls and putting in skylights. I've been working mainly in the yard, which is larger than our old one. I'm very pleased with the new flowers I've already been able to plant, and I have big plans for the future. Maybe I'll even get to build that backyard waterfall I've been imagining!"

As proud as she is of her perennials, however, Mary Ann is quick to point out that her children and grandchildren are still her proudest accomplishments.

"Without a doubt, Vern and the kids are my inspirations. They bring me so much joy, and I'm so blessed to have them in my life. They'll always be the most beautiful flowers in my garden."