Robert Campbell wanted to give his wife Carrie something amazing for their 50th wedding anniversary. The couple have been together as man and wife for half a century, and in that time they've done a lot. Not long after marrying, they launched Campell's electric. But in time, the company's focus shifted to pressure washers, and the company became a trusted source for commercial quality pressure washing systems, both locally, and around the world. Half a century later, the company's still going, and so are the pair behind its success.
"I'm kind of a perfectionist," Robert acknowledged. "If you talk to anyone about me, hopefully that's what they'll say. with me it's got to be 110%. I think that's why we've been in business for 50 years."
Sales rewards for the dealership have sent the couple all over the world, turning them into avid travelers. "We're trying to live as full and rich a life as possible," Bob explained.
But their story, ironically, started on both sides of a gravel back country road outside of Goldfield. "Our families knew each other," Carrie said, explaining that at one point the future couple lived on their family farms right across the street from each other. But it would take several more years before the two met properly. "It was kind of a happenstance," Carrie explained, "We met just driving up and down Main Street and Goldfield."
So when it came time at last to commemorate their half-century together, Robert knew it had to be a big deal. And he had an idea about that. But instead of something golden, he had something green in mind. "Carrie's got two green thumbs," Robert explained, adding, "I just like eating the vegetables."
"I've always liked to garden," Carrie agreed. And it wasn't just something she enjoys, growing up it was a necessity. "I grew up in a family of 12 kids," she explained, "we had a huge garden."
So, Robert thought about getting her a greenhouse. "We like it out in the country," Robert said, "It's our own little slice of heaven." But he intended to make it even more heavenly, and for a greenhouse to do that, it would have to be a hum-dinger of a greenhouse.
Ever the perfectionist, it had to be just right for Robert. "So, I made that special trip all the way down to Mansfield Arkansas," he related. There he toured the factory of Yoderbuilt Greenhouses, where they manufacture high end custom greenhouses and ship them all over the country, and met with Travis Yoder, the owner and founder.
Robert liked what he saw, but what he wanted was more high end that even Yoderbuilt had made. "This one has features they've never done before," Robert noted. First of all, he wanted it to be bigger. Big enough to have lots of raised plant area on tables, and still have a living area to enjoy. He wanted it to have composite decking, instead of a plywood floor, and he wanted more matching decking to install outside the greenhouse once it was on-site, to give it front and back decks. He wanted it well insulated for Iowa's sometimes harsh winters. And he wanted it to have a more robust electrical system.
The resulting greenhouse, which was delivered on a flatbed to the couple's farm on 240th street just outside Eagle Grove, is a real stunner! With more space inside than some small homes, the crew deposited the structure on a pad Robert had designed and had built. Instead of a solid cement pad, the greenhouse is seated on a green treated lumber foundation filled with pea gravel for ballast and draining, so Carrie can use the hose with the plants without worry of rotting the wood.
Placing the greenhouse was a real production that lived up to Robert's perfectionist standard, as the crew slid it into place, and then nudged it back and forth by inches and half inches, until it was seated precisely where it was intended to be.
Standing in front of the impressive structure after it was fully installed, Carrie was asked what she thought of her present. "Oh gosh," she responded, "it's kind of overwhelming. I think it's settling in now that it's here."
But Robert thought that as much of a work of art the Greenhouse itself was, it was what Carrie would do with it that he was looking forward to. "I just wanted to give her the canvas, she gets to do the painting."
