Bill and Essie Burrows Are Still Among Friends

The Burrowses Make a Smooth Transition into Retirement Living

06/02/2009

"There was never any question, this is where we wanted to be," says Essie Burrows.

For twenty-eight years, Burrows Florist proprietors Bill and Esther (Essie) Burrows interacted with their clientele from Greater Springfield seven days a week in their Longmeadow shop. Today, they interact with many of these same friends day-to-day in their new home at Glenmeadow.

"This was a no-brainer for us," says Bill, of choosing Glenmeadow. "We know so many people here, and everyone is so friendly."

Naturally, leaving their house in Longmeadow was filled with emotion, but the process was easier than anticipated. "Our house was on the market for about a month and a half, and it ended up being sold to the third person who looked at it," says Bill. "The buyer said, 'I have to have this house,' which made us feel it was going to be in good hands." Essie adds, "It's kind of surprising, but I don't miss the house at all. We have all of our favorite things in our apartment here."

Bill and Essie, who will celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary this year, met when they were both designing window displays for the retailer, Casual Corner. "We have a sixteen-year age difference between us," says Bill. "Everyone said it wouldn't last," adds Essie. "I guess we proved them wrong."

Bill was in a regional position that required a great deal of travel, and Essie was based at the Casual Corner store in Springfield. They decided to combine their artistic and design skills, and opened their first floral shop in 1980.

"We specialized in offering creative solutions combined with exceptional service," says Bill. "Our work wasn't ordinary. We really built a reputation as being very creative; we could do anything." Essie explains, "We did weddings and events all over-the Cape, New York City, Long Island, Watch Hill-it was a very busy time and a lot of fun."

Life is slightly less busy now, and they're both enjoying having more control over what they do. "Everything is so easy here," says Essie. "We love the flexibility of meeting people for dinner-or not."

Essie is enjoying the variety of things available at Glenmeadow, and Bill has several volunteer assignments, including working at the Jewish Nursing Home and Mercy Hospital and driving for Rachel's Table. He's also lending his retail and design skills to the Glenmeadow store. "I meet a lot of people and that makes it fun," he says.