To the Editor:
In 1978 I moved home. I had worked at a lot of different jobs after graduating from the University of Tennessee. I had been an assistant football coach at Tulsa University, had been an assistant high school coach in Harlan, Ky., and later head coach at Harlen High School.
When I came home I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I knew I was through coaching. I looked at different things, but nothing seemed right. Then, one day I went to King Springs and looked at some greenhouses that were for sale. When I walked into one of the greenhouses I had the thought that this would be a good way to make a living. So, I bought them, tore them down, and moved them to a piece of land on my dad’s farm and put them back up. Mills Greenhouse started in a former pasture and tobacco patch.
For the first few years, I mostly sold potted plants and baskets to florists in the area. Then along came 1984, a very big year. No. 1. Carla and Hannon agreed to join me in Elizabethton, and we became a family. No. 2. The new Bristol Highway was completed and it ran right by our greenhouses. We put up a selling area and began to sell to the public.
Business was slim at first, and gradually it began to grow. We always wanted to separate ourselves from the chain stores, so we concentrated on two or three areas. We carried only quality plants. We could advise our customers as to which plants would do best in sun or shade. We could suggest tomatoes and other vegetables that would suit the garden size. But, I think the most important thing we did was to make our customers feel welcome. We did business the old-timey way. We hung a porch swing on the front of our check-out building. That swing quietly said, “Let’s sit and visit a while and then we will do some business.” I didn’t know any other way to do it. That was the way my dad did it and the way my brother still does it.
Now, it’s been almost 40 years since we started the business, and it’s time for another chance. Carla and I are closing the greenhouse portion of our business. We have two beautiful grandsons that we want to spend more time with. We want to sleep late and get up with nothing particular we have to do.
Hannon is going to continue his landscape and maintenance business. So, if you need landscaping done at your home or business, we hope you will give him a call at the greenhouse, 543-6330, or his cell, 895-0268.
This is our home, you are our friends, and God is great. We feel blessed beyond measure. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.

Johnny and Carla Mills
Mills Greenhouse and Landscape