Terri and Chuck took different paths to end up in Venango County.
Chuck was raised in Forest County and his employment at Oil Well brought him to Oil City in the early ’80s. He adjusted to the changing economy and worked in a variety of industries before becoming a non-traditional student at Clarion University. Chuck graduated from college at age 50 to pursue a career in health care and is currently employed as a hyperbaric tech at UPMC Northwest.
Terri accepted a teaching job at Franklin Junior-Senior High in 1998 and has been teaching English for over twenty years. The two remodeled an 1870 farmhouse on Flockerzi Road in Pinegrove Township and are also now the owners of Meant to Bee Flower Farm and Wedding Studio.
Terri and Chuck have found incredible success in both their careers and business, with employers offering endless opportunities for growth, and business success only limited by the fact that there are only 24 hours in a day.
Their farm adventure started out as a date night, in which Terri talked Chuck into taking a Master Gardener’s class. They’d go for dinner on Tuesdays at Leonardo’s then head over to the meeting to learn more than they ever thought they wanted to know about gardening.
“We made some wonderful friends, threw a few seeds in the ground, and in the blink of an eye were designing for May weddings at Heinz Chapel and snowy nuptials at Peek’n Peak,” Terri said. “Chuck probably wishes we would have stuck to our swing dance lessons–gotta love date nights!”
Before Meant to Bee, Terri and Chuck were raising five teenagers and spending much of their time coaching and volunteering in the Cranberry School District community. Although they miss the many seasons on the soccer and softball fields, they now spend the little free time they have hitting the bike trails, kayaking in the river, and meeting friends for evenings in downtown Franklin. The two also hope to carve out time in the near future to be involved in the chamber of commerce and volunteer with the Trails Association.
The couple loves the “richness in our county that can’t be quantified” including the natural beauty and endless hikes to take, trails to ride, and histories to explore.
“There are craftsmen who are willing to introduce you to their art and athletes who would love to train with a new friend. Our stages welcome diverse talent and a crowd will gather to celebrate all our changes of season. New cooks, new nooks, new favorite businesses keep cropping up,” they said. “You will never meet better people nor come across a more enchanting community. Plant yourself here and never look back,” they said. “Head down a country road, pull over, look up at the stars and count your blessings! It doesn’t get any better than this.”