Burley Family Tree

Busy as bees

    SODA SPRINGS — Three generations of Browns stay busy as bees working together for a family business that dates back to the 1960s, Brown’s Honey. Though a beekeeper’s life is demanding, there are perks to being self employed.

    As Alan Brown describes a typical day, they head to the region’s most beautiful places — mountain meadows laden with wildflowers, or perhaps lush fields of alfalfa or clover. They bring sack lunches and seek the shade of a mature tree for a picnic. Before returning to their labors, they take a 15-minute nap, listening to the tranquil humming of their hives.

    On a recent sunny Friday afternoon, Dalan Brown, 22, and other company workers dressed in white, protective suits unloaded stacks of multi-colored hive boxes at the base of a snow-capped mountain along Marsh Creek Road in McCammon. Engulfed by a cloud of bees, they spread smoke — a tactic used to spur bees into collecting pollen, which also makes them more docile.

    The Soda Springs-based honey company maintains 5,000 hives on properties throughout Pocatello, Downey, Chesterfield, Grace, Montpelier, St. Charles and Richmond, Utah. They pay their rent in honey.

    Alan Brown’s maternal grandfather used to run bees in Shelley, before he moved to Missoula, Mont. Grandpa’s beekeeping made a lasting impression on Alan Brown’s father, William Brown, a former maintenance mechanic for Kerr-McGee who started raising bees as a hobby.

    “They’re just fun to watch and fun to work with — if you don’t mind working,” William said of the bees that now yield a sufficient supply of liquid gold to support his family.

    When he acquired enough hives, William went into beekeeping full time, adding Alan to the workforce when he turned 11 or 12.

    About half of their income comes from leasing bees to the proprietors of California almond orchards. In the olden days, they loaded and unloaded the bee boxes by hand for their trips to California. In 1972, they acquired a semi and forklift to ease their burden. Today, they have three trucks and two forklifts.

    Like his father before him, Alan can rest assured the business will be in good hands into the future. His sons Hyrum, 13, and Aaron, 11, both go out in the field and intend to continue on the family legacy.

    “I see my boy that’s 13. He’s learned how to work, and he’s really a lot more responsible than his friends that are the same age,” Alan said. “We can give him assignments and tell him to go do stuff, and he’ll go to work in the bees and accomplish it. I think it’s taught him a lot about growing up and being responsible.

COMMUNITY FAMILY HISTORY WORKSHOP | The Voice of Mini Cassia ...

April 30, 2011 10 AM – 3 PM

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