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Rhonda Hall Blooms at Mars Hill
Story and photos by Cassie Moore

Rhonda Hall shows seedlings The newly restored greenhouse Preparing new flowers

Rhonda Hall calls her green thumb a gift from God. That gift from God, mixed with a golden opportunity and some very hard work, combined to make what many say is the most beautiful campus Mars Hill has seen in years.

Before most students start their day off with an 8 o'clock class, Rhonda can be seen strolling about campus picking out any stray weeds in the flowerbeds by Spilman or tending to the once vacant greenhouse atop facilities drive.

Thanks to Rhonda, Fall 2004 has seen some great colors this year. Not only are the reds, yellows, and golds seen on the trees, but also they can be spotted, weather permitting, in the form of plant life that has taken over the landscape at Mars Hill College.

Before this year, no one was in charge of the floral landscaping at Mars Hill. That is until Rhonda casually stopped to ask about some trees planted on campus and was asked if she wanted a job. She saw this as her golden opportunity and took that offer beyond what was asked of her.

"My main job is to keep color on campus," says Rhonda. On her first day of work in January 2004, however, she found herself on her own, with only the gift to make a flower grow from cement to tackle the brown and green backdrop of Mars Hill. She cheerfully set out to revive the 150 acres of college campus, a task not easily undertaken. She had to start from scratch. She had to amend the beds, prep the soil, and organize the seedlings, as well as design the floral arrangements to be planted.

Eventually, Rhonda asked for more hands and she was rewarded with two new employees at her side. Samantha Henry and Stefanie Moore were added as temporary hires for the busy months of March to December. Even though they work with such a diligent gardener, they couldn't be happier. "She's just awesome," says Moore. She's fun to work with and she's not a boss that tells you what to do [because] she's working right there with you. I honestly don't know how she stands up at the end of the day.

Rhonda's gift is not only her talent, but a passion as well. "I love my job, God has given me such a great opportunity," says the Burgaw, North Carolina native. However, she hasn't always been paid to stick her hands in the dirt. Rhonda was previously an orthodontist assistant, and she toiled in the soil only as a hobby. Now Rhonda, a mother of two boys ages 19 and 14, enjoys working at what she loves.

Aside from the sheer joy of working with flowers, Rhonda also has received overwhelming response from the community to reinforce the love for her career. Letters have poured in from the community about the transformation of the college, and students are noticing everywhere too. "We have people stopping over all the time telling us how much they love the new flowers. The response is unbelievable and we are only hoping for a better season next year."

Even though Rhonda and her staff have planted approximately 144,00 plants since February, the sky is still the limit. "We hope to one day provide the campus with all it's landscaping needs… [and to] get the beds where they don't need so much attention," says Rhonda. She and her staff also hope to focus more attention to the newly revived greenhouse, to the point where it will pay for itself through sales to the college and to the public. "[We also] want to clean the hidden waterfall behind Marshbanks and get that working again," she says.

Even though she has been a one-women powerhouse through it all, she says she could not have done it herself. "There are five groundskeepers…and we had to help each other out. They help with the heavy pruning…and clearing leaves, and of course mowing the grass."

Since Rhonda has been at Mars Hill, her boss, Burke Ulrey, has appreciated the hard work she has done. "I'm real glad we hired Rhonda."

And the best part about her? "She cares."

**If any one that has a love for flowers or is interested in volunteering for Rhonda and her staff, please contact the landscaping department at ext. 1246.

**Vegetable flats can be purchased at the greenhouse for $5.00 a flat or $1.00 for a six pack. Hanging ferns sell for $5.00 each. Flowers can be purchased for $10.00 a flat or $1.75 a six pack.

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