As a matter of fact, when Mike graduated from East Forsyth High School in 1985, college was the farthest thing from his mind. A hands-on learner and lover of the environment, Mike immediately went to work for Orkin Lawn.

“At that time,” Mike reminisced, “the company was just developing a lawn care division. I learned the business and developed new clients.” Mike’s genuine interest in healthy lawns, coupled with his laid back nature, resulted in a 300% increase in the company’s business in just two years. However, Orkin ultimately decided to drop the lawn division.

So Mike took all that he’d learned and joined the TruGreen team. Once again, Mike rose to the top, winning numerous awards for professionalism, quality of work, employee of the month, and job performance. “I was doing the thing I loved to do,” Mike said. Just one-and-a-half years later, Mike realized that he had all the tools to start his own full-time lawn business and he could do it his way. Today, he owns Green Pro Lawn Care—a comprehensive lawn healthcare program. “One thing that bothered me about working with the nationally known corporations,” said Mike, “is that we had to move quickly from client to client.”

Mike, on the other hand, is not a guy that likes to be rushed. In fact, his wife, Libby, says that if life is a race between tortoises and hares, Mike is a steady, predictable tortoise.

“Mike is a calm, dependable, problem solver,” said Libby, “and he will stick with a problem for two-weeks or two-months or two years. But, eventually he will solve it. And, it’s important to him to do things right.”

That’s what attracted Leroy Stewart to Green Pro. Prior to working with Mike, Leroy had other companies that serviced his yard quickly.

“Mike takes the time to ask me what I want,” Leroy said. “He does a thorough job. Then, he asks me what I think before he leaves. And, if I want anything different, he’ll do it. Now, my yard is the best looking yard in my neighborhood.” Leroy is not bragging. We all know that some yards look better than others. Mike takes this personally, and when he sees the checkerboard appearance of neighborhood lawns, nothing brings him greater satisfaction than to discover that the greenest and thickest lawns are the ones he services.

Sometimes homeowners try to manage the seeding, feeding, and pest control for themselves. Oftentimes, they feel that this will save them money. But Charles Freeman did not find this to be the case.

“I had a serious clover problem in my lawn,” confessed Charles, “and so I went to Lowes and bought the products I needed. Then, I spent about six hours on two different applications. The next year, the clover came back even stronger!” Frustrated, Charles sought the advice of his father, Charles Freeman, Sr., who uses Green Pro for his yard. “Mike came out,” explained Charles, “and in just a few days the weeds started to die. In a month they were all dead and they have not come back. He solved my problem.” Being an analytical type, Charles then counted the cost.

“When I added up all the time and money that I lost by trying to do this myself and then compared it to the cost of Green Pro and Mike’s satisfaction guarantee, I realized it was a better investment to use Green Pro,” deducted Charles.

Part of Green Pro’s secret is that as a licensed professional, Mike has access to more potent products than are available in the stores. Also, as has been noted, Mike has had nearly 25 years experience in the business.

“It’s going to take a year or two for a neglected lawn to look great,” said Mike, “because we have to build the lawn from the ground up. But, you will begin to see improvements almost immediately. In one of his toughest assignments, Mike had to build up a lawn that was over 90 % weeds. The homeowners were afraid that if Green Pro killed all the weeds, their front lawn would be bare.

“Even in that extreme situation, once the weeds died, the grass began to spread out. Then, we aerated (plugged) and seeded in the fall and the grass filled in nicely by spring,” Mike said.

Even though Mike loves his business, he is not all work and no-play. He loves to share the outdoors with his family and is passing on the family tradition of bass fishing to his daughter, Emily and son, Lane. The family also fellowships at Triad Baptist Church.

Mike makes time for friends, too. He notices when they are in need of a helping hand, a word of encouragement, or a practical joke!