Gen1 was featured in an article by Dr. Jerry Hopkins, writer for the Marshall Messenger, a publication of Marshall, Texas. Read the article below.
https://www.marshallnewsmessenger.com/opinion/jerry-hopkins-genesis-inspiration/article_63abc956-3efb-11ef-bfe9-e797ff8e09bf.html
Jerry Hopkins: Genesis inspiration
Jerry Hopkins
Jul 24,2024
We must learn with others and enjoy life’s victories and virtues in our social and community life. There are interesting and inspiring individuals who come to our attention and who are examples for others in their pursuit of community, commerce and the Christian life. I recently came across a good story involving a young man of 16 who has started a new business that he is terming “Genl Greenhouse” near Nacogdoches, where he lives with his mother, father and near his grandmother.
Caleb Jones is homeschooled and has gained an interest in plants and growing them in a greenhouse. His story interested me because when his father was called to ministry the family packed up in an RV and moved to Kentucky, where they served for a couple of years before moving to Louisiana to assume an associate minister’s position in a church. Then after a few years they returned to Nacogdoches to be close to the grandmother who needed them. I’m originally from Kentucky and enjoy learning about people who live there or find their way to that fair state even for a short time. Most of my education dates to the years I spent studying at Georgetown College, Eastern Kentucky University and the University of Kentucky (from which I received my Ph.D. in history in 1986) and that has made me interested in the influences of Kentucky life. So I became interested in Caleb Jones’ experiences related to schooling, learning and business.
Another factor that figured in my interest in this young businessman, Caleb Jones, was the article written by my friend and writing colleague, Terri Lacher, from Center. Terry titled her article “Gen 1 Greenhouse – Living the Dream” which appeared in David Stallings’ AROUND THE TOWN monthly publication (in the July edition), which this month celebrates eight years as a publication. This facet of my interest in Caleb triggered other thoughts of my past experience in writing and publishing. Terri Lacher was one of the writers influenced and inspired by the East Texas Christian Writers Conference co-sponsored by East Texas Baptist University – and the Northeast Texas Arts Council encompassing Marion, Harrison and Panola counties. Terri has become a widely published writer in the area of Nacogdoches, Center and related Deep East Texas area. This sparked my interest in pursuing Caleb’s story and learning from him what he was doing educationally and commercially.
Caleb’s story certainly should inspire all of us in “Living the Dream” that our national heritage assures us in a truly free and opportunity-blessed society and economy. Here is a young man who has begun realizing his dream of creating a business, inspiring others and contributing significantly to the community in which he lives. I think it is important for us to learn about, support and do business with such young entrepreneurs. Caleb’s story can encourage others in living their dream, creating their own business, contributing to their own community and thereby encouraging those with whom they associate to be the best and do the best they can in life.
Caleb tells his discovering interest in God’s creation and plants in this manner: “Ever since I can remember I have had an interest in science and nature. I recall many years ago when I was younger, helping my mom plant marigolds in the flowerbeds, and watching caterpillars as they molt into moths and butterflies. I have always loved the beauty in God’s creation.” Terri, in his article on Caleb gives this insight, “His interest grew as he did through the gift of a ghost plant from a neighbor. That sparked his interest, and he began researching how to propagate not only this plant, but many other succulents. By 2021 and early 2022, he began to purchase more succulents and began to propagate them. Caleb says, “I remember sitting in my grandmother’s living room when I came up with the idea to sell them. When my dad noticed that my interest had lasted for over a year and started hearing me call plants by their botanical names, he realized that I was really serious about horticulture and started encouraging me.” This prompted Caleb’s parents to assist him in beginning his own business by purchasing him his first greenhouse which was a 7-foot by 8-foot pop-up greenhouse, and which was soon filled with over 400 growing plants. Caleb was on his way with his business venture. In 2023, Caleb realized he needed a larger greenhouse to accommodate his growing business. With the help of many, including The Lily Farm in Center, he reached his goal of enough money to buy a new 16-foot by 24-foot polytunnel greenhouse that he uses today. –
During this time Caleb, with the help of his technology-savvy father, became very active on social media, posting almost daily about his plants which helped him grow his customer base. His social media posts came to the attention of the Texas Nursery & Landscape Association (TNLA) that led to this young entrepreneur being invited to be a guest at their Hort Forum in Grapevine in January 2024. He was able to attend educational seminars, tour wholesale and retain nurseries and meet other nursery, greenhouse owners. He has continued his studies of horticulture through the Texas Nursery Professional Curriculum by TNLA. He is well on his way to becoming a Texas Certified Nursery Professional.
Another factor that interested me was Caleb’s spiritual interests. He is a Christian and acknowledges that his faith plays a great part in his decision and love to “grow things.” This fact is clearly seen in his naming his business, “Genl Greenhouse.” “Genl stand for generation one, meaning this business was not something I inherited, but one I started, as the first generation in my family to do so, but more importantly, Genl stands for Genesis Chapter 1, as in the scripture that records God’s creation of earth, nature, and all things. This business is a way for me to enjoy God’s creation, share the love of it, and give back to it. The closeness with God that you feel as you watch the sunrise, and hear the birds singing, is like nothing else.”
There is to be more. Caleb also says, “Luckily for me I am never alone, because God is on my side. By the grace of God, and support of my friends and family, I strive to one day own a nursery that is open, not just season long, but year-round! With a bakery/cafe run by my mom and sister, and more greenhouse than you can count. I plan to one day ship nationwide, invent a new hybrid plan, or through selective breeding create a new cultivar. Of course, my biggest plan for Genl Greenhouse, is to honor God in very decision I make.”
So we should listen to and observe such young businessmen. Let us hear Caleb Jones on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok as his business grows and prospers.
– You can send your thoughts to drjerryhopkins@yahoo.com, or by snail mail to Dr. Jerry Hopkins, P. 0. Box 1363, Marshall, Texas 75671. Dr. Jerry Hopkins is a historian and retired professor.
