04/11/2025
It’s April, which means 10 years. A whole decade since baby Haley decided to take a 3 day class on whitetails, and made the choice to skip college and go with the trade of taxidermy.
Since then, I’ve got my driver’s license, graduated high school, been married and divorced, moved 7 times, had 4 cats and my old shop doggo who’s still with me, found an incredible man to spend forever with and worked on over 200 deer.
By the end of this upcoming 10th season, I will have worked on animals from 3 countries, 2 continents, and had animals or customers from 13 states and Canada.
I’ve worked on whitetail and mule deer, red, gray and silver foxes, coyotes, red, gray, black, albino and fox squirrels, chipmunks, woodchucks, skunks, a possum, a porcupine, bobcats, a bull, bears, beavers, turkeys, weasels, minks, fishers, a ringtail cat, a pheasant, and antelope- just to name a few!
I’ve had some great mentors along the way. Bill, Barry(R.I.P.), Glenn, Bob, Mike, and countless others have helped shape my work into what it is today. It’s been a constant learning experience and idk if I’ll ever actually be done learning.
It all started with a 10X14 Amish built shed. I insulated it, my dad helped me get electric in it, my mom helped me lay the linoleum in it, and they both helped me get the osb up in it. And that served as my shop for years until I added a small addition, which was also quickly outgrown.
What a ride it has been! I’ve had some amazing customers that have stuck with me through the years, been patient with me as I’ve learned and bettered myself, spread the word about my business, and never once complained about price! Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all my customers past, present, and future for making this all happen! I can’t wait to see where the next decade takes me. It certainly flew by too quick! Here’s some pictures of the start of the journey!
