Dear Editor:
I was out picking raspberries a couple of weeks ago, when a man stopped at my gate to exchange pleasantries.
I was happy to take a break and have a chat.
He told me that he was working across the road for Dave and Sheila de Boer at Summerland Greenhouses.
He then proceeded to tell me that he had never worked at a place that treated their employees so well.
As a result, he said there was no negativity what-so-ever among the staff there.
Upon hearing this, I had to smile and share with him the fact that I had worked for Dave’s parents, Henk and Vivienne de Boer in the mid 1980s, when David himself was just a teenager.
I told this man that I too had been treated very well and in fact had been made to feel more like a member of the family, than an employee.
While the work was physically hard, the employees tended to give it their all because of the feeling of being so valued.
This year the de Boers are celebrating 40 years of business in Summerland.
Perhaps this family’s tradition of being such a good employer could be one of the reasons for their success.
I did not get the name of the man who stopped to talk, but I’m sure he would heartily agree with me.
Carla McLeod
Summerland