9/25/20 - Don't be fooled by the "gentle" response...

9/25/20 - Don't be fooled by the "gentle" response from VVF to my complaint. It took them 3 weeks to put that there and they have not contacted me by phone, email or text since this happened 3 weeks ago.

9/7/20 Too bad there isn't less than one. I went there on Labor day and the following is the letter I sent to them regarding my bad experience. They did not respond to me, but apparently they DID respond to a different customer who called them out regarding my experience and made some outlandish claims which are completely untrue. I suppose the mask-police manager needed to make his "story" sound better. If this is how their business is run, you may want to think twice about going there. I hear they don't treat their employees all that well anyway, so it must be hard to keep good people. MY LETTER: My name is Lynn Richardson, and I am the 60+ year old woman who got thrown out of the garden center today for not wearing a mask outside with no one around me, by your gestapo manager.

I spent 45 minutes in the tree & shrubbery area picking out two topiary trees. As my husband & I approached the check out area, some fellow said I needed a mask. I told him that I did not have a mask with me, and I was outside. He said I needed a mask and it was the LAW. I offered to pull my shirt up over my nose and said I would do that so I could pay for my trees and get out of there. He said no, I needed a face mask and reiterated that it was the law. I told HIM that I am aware of the law, and indeed I have read the executive orders (which are not laws, by the way) and then he called for back-up like I was throwing puppies in a wood chipper as an offense. I left the premises.

Here is my point. The executive orders say that a mask should be worn outdoors if one is in a situation where 6 space cannot be maintained. This is obviously not the case in your outdoor tree section. Face coverings, however lame that restriction is to me, say they should be cloth. My shirt is cloth, so that should have sufficed for the additional 5 minutes I would have been there.

This was not handled well.

I had been a customer for over 40 years and your little face mask police brigade cost your business over $300 today. Now I know Valley View Farms will survive without me, but be aware that I am also a very active small business advocate in my little part of the world. Everyone I ever knew will hear about how this was inappropriately handled today.
THEIR RESPONSE TO THE STRANGER: Thank you very much for your letter. We appreciate your concern. We, of course, have a strong concern for our customers and employees and therefore ask that masks be worn in every area of our retail establishment, including outside in the nursery yard.
When the pandemic began, we closed the store for over a month in order to rework the store so that it would be safe to reopen. We lost over $2million in the process and had to let several employees go. It has been a tough time for everyone and we continue to struggle to keep every one safe.
In this particular case, the woman in question was being excessively belligerent to a manager (we do not have security) when it was requested that she find a mask. She did lift her shirt up over her mouth for a minute, but would not keep it in place. She then proceeded to cough on a manager and on several surfaces, including one of our golf carts. This was the action that precipitated the call for the store manager and could have resulted in a call to police if she hadn't left the property.
We can't always handle people and their personalities in the very best way, but we certainly felt that we made the best attempt here. We will be sad to lose your business. ------- As of 9/23/2020 I have received NO acknowledgement or any kind of response from the management or owner.
9/12/20 MEANWHILE--
Thanks to Glyndon Gardens for selling me most beautiful trees. Glyndon Gardens people were VERY nice. I suggest you go there instead of this place.