My name is Sherry Cooter. I started in 1987, growing African violets to a larger size than what you normally see, planted them in self watering pots along with fertilizer and a growing pamphlet from the African Violet Society of America. I sold to florists and to the public with baby’s breath, bows, etc. in baskets. Moved to a location that utilized well water which had a high mineral content (not good for African violets) after my divorce, so it meant collecting rain water, which is not fun in January holding a hammer and a flashlight in the freezing cold! A friend showed me an ad for a gift basket magazine called Gift Basket Review. I attended a convention in Houston early 1990’s, got on the AOL bbs I believe 1995, attended another convention in New Orleans not long after joining AOL, and was hooked. It was all so exciting back then! I’m in the DFW metroplex.
