ROCHELLE — Naomi Baldwin fondly remembers that day in 1968 when she walked into the flower shop situated in a colonial style home. This year marks a milestone as she celebrates 50 years at Colonial Flowers.

“I went in and talked to Jerry Danekas about teaching me floral design. I wanted to know more about doing things the correct way,” Baldwin said. “I asked if he ever did classes and he asked me if I wanted to work. I later found out the reason he hired me was because I had on a pair of black gloves…I was from the south…I wore gloves a lot.”

Earlier this month Baldwin held a celebration event complete with music, food, giveaways, and specials. Over 100 people attended to show their support for Baldwin’s 50 years of service.

Plenty has happened since that day five decades ago including a change in the store’s location from Sixth Street to Lincoln Highway in 1972. The former spot is now a city-owned parking lot.

By 1976 Baldwin was an equal partner in the business and in 1984 the pair had decided to sell the shop. Even though the contract sale fell through and she found herself as the sole owner in 1986, it was those 18 months in between filled with adventure and learning.

“I ended up doing design and displays for Dillard’s Department Stores, working with that team I learned a lot. I would go to stores in Phoenix, Scottsdale, all over that part of Arizona,” Baldwin said. “In my travels I came upon a floral shop, the Cactus Flower, and then started as a designer. I became a manager there but came back because of problems with the contract sale at Colonial.”

Baldwin said at that time because Danekas wanted out of the business she became the lone owner, investing all of the money from the sale of her home to buy the shop. It took about 10 years to get out of debt from purchasing the business.

“When I look back on it and think I guess it was persistence, being stubborn, and my determination,” Baldwin admits. “I thank the guy upstairs for having a creative mind. I think a lot has to do with keeping everybody guessing…what am I going to do next.”

Over the years

Much like every business owner encounters, Baldwin said there have been challenges along the way.

“The changing of the times…I’ve seen the ups and downs of the downtown and the changing of the clientele as they move away or pass away,” Baldwin said. “Part of the reason we’ve been here this long is we work with the trends that people want. I have different generations that come here.”

Just the same, Baldwin attributes the special recognition she receives from customers in a note or a phone call as the most rewarding. Another is the ability to be creative, envisioning the end product.

“I get satisfaction when I’m able to create things. They just pop in my head. Over the years I still continue to learn different things, of which I am very thankful for,” Baldwin said. “When I’m talking to a customer and they are describing what they would like, I picture it immediately. I know exactly what I need to do.”

There have been several memorable moments too. One in particular was a wedding she had been contracted to do for Graham Russell, member of the music duo “Air Supply,” in his wedding to a local Rochelle girl.

“We had a huge caravan…we had all of these arrangements to do. And along with having people help set up at the church and banquet room, I had someone with the groom, someone with the bride, and one person to decorate the car at the church,” Baldwin said. “I have a whole album full of pictures from that day.”

Another highlight in Baldwin’s 50 years was in 1996 when the movie, “A Thousand Acres,” had been filming in Rochelle and surrounding areas. She remembers all of the fanfare with having movie stars around, particularly being approached to have her apartment converted to a prop in the movie.

“That time was really exciting around here. They were ordering flowers quite a bit,” Baldwin said.

Baldwin saved all of the newspaper clippings, receipts, and special mementos along with pictures in a photo album, including the contract to use her apartment in a scene during the movie’s production.

Inspiration

Baldwin credits her parents for inspiring her love of all things flowers. Baldwin’s mother fostered her curiosity to change the colors of flowers, experimenting with different dyes. Even after moving to Rochelle, her father would talk about where a particular vine would be.

“He would tell me the next time I visited them we could cut some…we would always cut a little and leave a little so it would be saved,” Baldwin beamed. “I remember going to the cemeteries where they would be wild roses and he’d show me where to cut them. Things like that…I remember my mom and dad both encouraging me. I think it was always in me, I just didn’t have the knowledge or the correct way of doing things.”

Nowadays Baldwin is president of the Downtown Rochelle Association and is a board member with the Ogle County Civic Center Authority. When asked if there are any plans to retire, Baldwin didn’t hesitate to answer.

“No…I love my store, I love the downtown. It’s exciting what’s going on and it’s nice to have other people excited. The downtown is coming back…I’m so happy to see it start to come back.”