Featured Berean

In the spring of nineteen forty-six, Flora Allen moved with her husband, John Bill, to Berea. Since then, Mrs. Flora Allen has been involved in the life of Berea giving her time and energy any way possible.

Flora is the mother of two daughters, Nora Ruth and Margaret, and a grandmother of five. Nora Ruth lives in Berea and is running her family's flower shop. Margaret is living in Greenville N.C. and also working in a flower shop. Their parents passed on skills that are still serving them, and their families, today.

Flora remembers when her husband returned to Berea to attend a funeral for his aunt. She recalls, "He had a horrible time getting flowers for the funeral. The funeral home directors actually begged him to open a flower shop. At the time the only place to get flowers was in Richmond." In the fall of 1946, the Allen's opened Allen's Flowers, close to where Papaleno's is today. Later, in 1964, the Allen's moved the flower shop to its current location on North US 25.

Besides raising a family and working in the flower shop, Flora was also a schoolteacher. She taught at the old Berea school and underwent the change to the new school. She notes that the open space was something she really enjoyed. She taught school for a total of 32 years. She received her teaching bachelors degree from Berea College, and her masters from Eastern Kentucky University. She says, "I decided in first grade that I was going to be a school teacher." Flora enjoys teaching, and had a special interest in teaching students the subjects she felt she didn't appreciate enough in school, especially Kentucky history, social studies and science. She taught first through third grades for her first seven years and after that she found a love for seventh and eighth graders. The extent of what seventh and eight graders are capable of always amazed her. She laughed when explaining, "One summer some men were hired to paint my class room; they told me it took them three days to find the walls! I always hung all of the children's -

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artwork and assignments up for display." Flora has also been interested in making sure that her students know how to behave and treat each other, a lesson in life that she believes will serve them the most.

While she thinks her greatest achievement is the work she has done through teaching, she is also a hard worker in the flower business. She has spent her summers away from school helping in the shop. Flora can still be found today working at the flower shop and helping deliver flowers around town. She explains that John Bill enjoyed delivering flowers, "It always made him feel like he was making people happy; he loved delivering flowers." Flora plans on working in the flower shop as long as she is able. She knows that it is the hard work that her family and friends have put in to the shop that has made it such a success.

Flora has several hobbies that she enjoys. She says her favorite place to go and relax is her house. Needlework and especially piecing quilts are a love of Floras. She generally makes the quilts for family members. Flora has also been a part of the Lioness Club, and taught Sunday school and bible school at Berea Baptist church.

Flora Allen is still enjoying all that she does and can commonly be found delivering flowers. She has seen Berea grow and change through the years, as well as added to the splendor of the town with her teaching, flower shop and family.

Written by - Hannah Billings