“It's the greatest thing in the world that I get to work with my daughters.”
Chris Auville and her two daughters are the stems that have combined to create Harmony Harvest Farm. The family-owned 20-acre specialty cut flower farm is where the family grows flowers for florists and weddings. The rural Virginia farm also delivers to floral enthusiasts across the United States.
Business was growing for this blossoming farm, but Covid-19 caused revenue streams to severely dry up.
This business – the family’s pride and joy – was under very real threat.
“As a business owner to look at your staff who depends on you and tell them that we have to take a time out for 30 days, it was the worst day of my life,” said Stephanie Auville.
“We’ve got to come up with Plan B now or we can’t keep any of our employees,” Chris recalled.
“I felt like a failure,” said Chris’ other daughter Jessica. “However, I truly believe great adversity becomes great opportunity.”
That opportunity came from Lowe’s and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) grant. With thousands of small businesses like Harmony Harvest Farm struggling to keep their doors open and their employees paid amid economic devastation caused by COVID-19, Lowe’s opened grant applications to provide much-needed relief to minority-owned and rural businesses.
“I came across it and I said, ‘This looks like something that speaks to us. It's there for exactly the type of business that we are. Maybe this is something that we can apply for,’” Chris said. “Never thought we'd get it.”
Stephanie recalled the moment they received the grant.
“It went from not knowing how to stop crying, frowning and being sad to not knowing how to stop smiling,” she said. “It was overwhelming for sure, just knowing that a company like Lowe's sees value in our business. So, without receiving help from Lowe's, it had been very difficult for us to keep the doors open or even the lights on. We have seed that we have to purchase. It's more than just keeping our people on payroll, which this allowed us to do, but from the help of Lowe's, we were able to continue to buy those different expenses and things that we need to start next year, because without help right now, there may not be a next year. So, Lowe's is giving us the opportunity to know that we have a strong 2021 coming out the gate.”
Added Jessica: “We have not once diminished the fact that we are incredibly lucky, incredibly blessed, incredibly grateful for the opportunity that this has given us and for all the stars to align, because quite frankly, that's not been the case for so many small businesses.”
The commitment of $55 million to LISC makes Lowe's the largest donor to LISC's Small Business Relief & Recovery Program and COVID Rapid Relief & Resiliency Fund.
"Lowe's has been committed to helping minority small business owners – the very backbone of our economy – rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic's devastating impact," said Lowe's President and CEO Marvin R. Ellison. "Helping people make their homes better extends beyond our walls and into our neighborhoods, communities and country. We're proud these grants will help minority- and women-led small businesses, many of which have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. This commitment is far more than a moment in time – it's a reflection of who we have been and will continue to be as a company."