Fairview teen entrepreneur puts wheels in motion and mows neighborhood cemetery

Fourteen-year-old Lukas Green is a young entrepreneur who likes to keep busy. So when he noticed the tall grass in a local cemetery, he decided to put his wheels – those of his lawn mower – in motion.

The son of Michael and Erika Green, Lukas had driven past the Brown-Chester Cemetery on Chester Road several times, noticing the grass was getting taller. That's when he came up with the idea of ​​mowing the cemetery.

After asking his parents for permission, Lukas left on his lawn mower, pulling his trailer to the cemetery. “I mowed half of it, I weeded it, then I noticed some low graves. So, I came home and dug in my parents' garden to find some dirt to bring back there, and then I finished mowing,” Lukas explained.

The cemetery itself is more than 170 years old and one of the oldest marked graves dates from 1852. Lukas said there were also many unmarked graves.

“Mr. Chester lived in this log cabin that he built on a bend in front of the cemetery, and my grandmother Paulette Green spent nights there with her girlfriends when she was a teenager,” shared Lukas, who said that he planned to maintain the cemetery all summer.

The whole idea of ​​mowing a cemetery is actually part of Lukas' upbringing. His family has been mowing a family cemetery in Carthage, Tennessee since the 1960s. “It's located in the back of Cordel Hull. A town was flooded there and there was an old church with a rock wall on a hill. Tombs dating back to the 1700s up there. My dad always mows the family cemetery and we all go camping and fishing there,” Lukas said.

Erika Green, Lukas’ mother, said: “Lukas always mowed the yard with his dad. »

“At the beginning, I had one meter. Mr. Mike paid me $50 every two weeks to mow and eat weeds. At the time I was using my parents' lawn mower and weed whacker. I saved my money mowing here and there and bought some weed killer at a yard sale just down the street from here. I repaired it and still use it today! »

After his uncle Larry Green Jr. gave him a used commercial lawn mower, Lukas took on other jobs the following summer. Now he has made a name for himself in the community and mows yards everywhere! “Besides, my dad is my driver,” said Lukas, who is still too young to drive.

Lukas said: “At the moment I have about eight meters that I mow at good prices. I'm saving up for a bigger caravan; Plus, I'm thinking about trucks since I'll be driving soon! » He also bought a pressure washer for small jobs and a new used lawn mower. “So, I am ready for any project.

Dad Michael Green remembers: “The neighbor across the street put two push mowers on the road that day and Lukas went over there to ask if he could have them. Of course the neighbor said yes and he took them home, ran them around and mowed the yard with them! I was proud of him.

In addition to mowing and making money, Lukas is excited to be a freshman and will play football, track, and wrestle for the Yellow Jackets. He also enjoys fishing, deer hunting, water sports and anything outdoors.

Lukas can be contacted at 615-878-5973 for weekly or bi-weekly mowing. “I’m always watched by my dad!” I love what I do and hope to make a career out of it one day!