11/1/24 - BLC Full History

My oldest brother Ben, who started the business, was born in 1989. My parents and the rest of my siblings moved to Williston, Vermont, in 1992 to a house on Southfield Drive. I was born in 1995. Growing up, my brother Ben would ask for money from my dad for movies, toys, and treats. When my brother turned 10, my dad thought my brother was old enough to start earning some money on his own. He told Ben to offer lawn-mowing services to neighbors when they went out of town over the summertime. Some neighbors were favorable to that idea, and every summer after, Ben mowed more and more lawns in the neighborhood.

As I was growing up, our dinner time conversations were mostly related to the little business that Ben started. My dad coached my brother on how to serve our neighbors well, how to communicate with them, and how to provide service to more of our neighbors. As each year passed, we provided service to more of our neighbors.

When Ben started in 1999, he was mowing with just a push mower, pushing all the lawns by hand. In 2003, Ben and my dad bought a riding Toro tractor, allowing Ben to get his lawns done much faster. In 2008, Ben and my dad bought their first commercial mower, a 52” Zero-turn Bobcat.

As the years passed by, the reason for the business transitioned from wanting to buy candy and movies to saving for college.

When I was about 10 (2005), Ben and my dad thought it was time for me to start getting involved in the business - I couldn’t have been more excited. Finally able to mow, ride different heavy equipment, and partake in “business conversations'' at the house. Although we had bigger and better equipment, I had to learn just like Ben learned and started mowing the cul-de-sac in front of our parents' house and some of the neighbors' lawns with a push mower. Just like Ben, I transitioned from a push mower to a ride-on Toro, to the big one, the Bobcat.

When I was 15 years old (2010), I purchased the business from my brother, who was away at college at St. Lawrence University. He received a certain percentage of gross profits over the course of two years. I was a 15-year-old sophomore at CVU with a Learner's Driving Permit. This meant I drove from lawn to lawn that summer with my dad sitting in the passenger seat on conference calls for his work. The following year, I had my license and would drive the 2000 silver Jeep Grand Cherokee to CVU and park in the furthest back parking lot with a trailer attached equipped with the zero-turn, a weed wacker, and a push mower, in order to mow lawns after schools.

-This 2000 Grand Cherokee was previously my dad's company car that was then purchased by my dad. A few years later, he sold it to our neighbor up the street. Ben later purchased it back from our neighbor for him to use as the car to pull the trailer for the business.

While at CVU, I didn’t play sports, I didn’t sleep in on the weekends during the growing season, and I didn’t do a whole lot else other than mow lawns - and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I loved driving the Jeep & trailer to high school every day, I loved mowing, and I loved owning my own business.

It was about this time that I asked Ben what he would listen to while mowing. He introduced me to Dave Ramsey. Ramsey has a three-hour-long radio show that I would listen to every day for 10 years, and still do. His whole show is based on getting and staying out of debt, spending less than you make, and when you can, be wildly generous. For the past 10 years, I have tried to adopt his teachings into my life.

In 2014, I had plans to go to college and needed to find a strategy for the spring and fall (shoulder seasons) while I was away at school. I ended up finding both subcontractors and an employee to hold down the fort while I attended St. Lawrence University.

When I graduated college in 2018, my relationship with the subcontractors and the one employee was still active, so active that they were able to mow my lawns not just during the shoulder seasons but also during the summer months too. I ended up getting a job at what was “Peck Electric”, now “ISUN”. I worked in the solar division, first selling solar to residents in Vermont, then in my second year of working there, I sold much bigger solar projects (multiple megawatts) to developers of solar fields. Then COVID hit.

In April of 2020 I was furloughed from Peck. Although this was disappointing I had another place to put my time and attention, the lawn mowing business. This was the first time I, or anyone in my family,  had the opportunity to focus on the business without the distraction of school. As a result more customers were added, and more equipment was purchased, and the team has slowly grown.

A slowly growing team has afforded us the opportunity to increase our services offered.

Ever since I watched Ben and my dad start this little business, I knew that this was something I wanted to do. I love doing it, and I want to continue doing it.

We look forward to providing our community with quality service at a fair price for years to come.

Thank you,

Anthony Burds

Burds’ Lawn Care