Chadron Flower Shops

Chadron NE News

Dec 23, 2015

Business profile: Tanya Cherry, Owner of Prairie Floral

Jerath turned one in 1994. Knowing she wanted to help people in some way, Tanya moved back to Gering to complete her degree in psychology at Chadron State College, graduating in 1998. She also worked part-time at the domestic violence center. Meanwhile Aaron moved to Tennessee to work full-time for that state’s National Guard. Today, he is an ROTC instructor at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga. “We went to marriage counseling in the Army before we finally threw in the towel, and it was the worst thing we’d ever done,” Tanya said. “I made up my mind after seeing that marriage counselor, that exposure was more damaging than helpful. My goal was to be a counselor for the military. I wanted to work with them to maintain healthy relationships. It’s hard when you move like that, have no family, and no support system, nobody in place when you have issues like that. Having somebody to talk to would have been nice. I just thought, no wonder people aren’t staying together.”In the summer of 1999, Tanya moved to Tennessee when her 7-year-old son Jerath wanted to get to know his father better. A year later, Aaron was offered a job here in Nebraska, and he had asked Tanya to join him. The couple returned to Gering later that year. Aaron took a job with the Irrigation District, and Tanya worked at Goodwill setting up its job retention program. Feeling older and wiser, and accomplishing some of their original career goals, the couple remarried on Jan. 1, 2001, and two years later had a second son whom they named Braydon. These days, both Jerath and Braydon can be seen working at Prairie Floral, running deliveries and carrying out sundry tasks, both sons making their mom proud for the comments they receive about their superb customer service.Tanya was taught similarly by her own father. “We were never given anything,” she said. “We had to work for everything we had, even at home. We had very serious chores. We earned allowance. Our punishment was losing our allowance if we did things wrong. We were docked pay. That’s the same way it was in the furniture store. We would earn our way. I think that it helps me with my work ethic. It set me up to be a hard worker.”Tanya’s mother Denise, who worked for the state of Nebraska for 30 years, also had a big hand in how her children were raised. “She saw to it that we were cared for,” said Tanya, referring to her two older siblings, Dodie, 45, and Aaron Prohs, 44. “She provided services to others. She was a good example for us.”In starting the flower shop, “My mom and dad were very supportive and concerned. They played the devil’s advocate thing with me, just to look at how things could be. They were very involved in the process of purchasing it. My dad still makes me pay rent. There’s no exception. It’s business. He always says to me, ‘I’m going to raise your rent.That’s another $50 bucks.’ ”Since Prairie Floral’s opening in April and an official open house last month, it has brought in a steady stream of customers. “I can’t complain. We have had to do a lot of changing, dealing with growing pains, but we’ve had a lot of good support from the community. And we enjoy seeing people,” Tanya said. “Seems like once people come in, they come back. So that’s nice, we get to know people and build relationships. It can only get better. I have big hopes for downtown Gering.”Tanya can’t imagine her business being anywhere else, reminiscing on how Gering was once a significant retail center and might be again. “I have great memories of going downtown, looking through the windows, and knowing all the business owners. I love Gering. This town is a gem. It has good people. It has character. It has a history. It’s nice to go down the street and say ‘hi’ to people. It’s nice to know the people you do business with, support the people you do busine... (Gering Citizen)