If you have received a beautiful bouquet or floral design from Zeidler’s, chances are Randi Gehlhausen is the woman behind the flowers. After all, she has been a valued member of our team for 40 years!
It would be hard to find a more dedicated employee than Randi – Zeidler’s Flowers is the only place she has ever worked. As a freshman at FJ Reitz High School, she took a floral design class and was offered a part-time holiday job at Christmas. Randi began working at the florist during each holiday season, and upon high school graduation, was hired to work in the plant department full time. Over the years, she has held a number of positions in design and worked her way up through management – eventually earning her current position as Vice President of Zeidler’s Flowers Retail Division.
With so much rich experience, you would expect Randi to enjoy designing some flowers more than others. Randi shares, “I love all flowers, but my favorites are tropicals- birds of paradise, ginger, and protea. I find it fun to design something unique that people are mesmerized by.”
Randi’s enjoys projects that require custom artistic designs, such as when someone brings in a photo of an item they wish to be recreated in flowers. She says, “We’ve designed items as diverse as a guitar, a football helmet, and even a school bus.” But her very favorite project was turning an indoor ballroom into a lush, blooming city park for a wedding in French Lick, Indiana. The luxurious setting provided the backdrop for the orchestra which performed throughout the whole evening.
After working at Zeidler’s for four decades, Randi still loves her job for the impact she can have on her customers. “I love to make people happy with something that I have created, no matter the occasion. But I think the most rewarding thing is creating something special for a family when a loved one has passed away because the design often helps to reflect a life history.”
Please join all of us at Zeidler’s Flowers in thanking Randi for her dedicated passion for making Evansville a more beautiful place to live for 40 years.
-Debbie Clark, Zeidler’s Flowers