Hummerbird Wholesale walks the talk and demonstrates what a sustainable business can be

I was so delighted to see the article in the Register Guard about Julie and Charlie Tilt's fabulous business: Hummingbird Wholesale.

http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/business/25044594-41/humm...

I met Julie and Charlie when we were neighbors on W 17th St. in Eugene. Charlie was one of the finest furnture artists I had ever met and Julie was a mom working hard to raise her daughters well. Although I was a "hesitant neighbor" they were always friendly and inclusive. If you needed something and they had it or access to it, they would hook you up.

My favorite memory of the Tilt's as neighbors was when my partner bought a wonderful mahogany desk for our upstairs (third floor) bedroom/office. The desk was huge. The only way we could get it up to the third floor was to tie a rope around it and pull it through the window-but, in order to do that, we needed to cut it in half. Charlie came to our rescue and tapped ito his fine carpentry skills and sawed that desk in half. Once we got both pieces through the window, he knitted both parts back together again-Charlie did such a great job the seam was difficult to see. Even our Mail Carrier helped boost the desk up through the window. It was a great adventure and community effort.

I participated in many conversations with Julie and Charlie as they made the decision to start their wholesale business. The "what-ifs" were many and varied. However, they took the leap and in a Eugene serendipitous way, we eneded up renting space in the same building on 2nd and Polk. Due to their success, they out grew their space quickly and moved across town.

Look at them now! Leading an honorable life and business, giving back to their community, participating in the wide world on a whole other level.

Julie and Charlie are people to get to know-friendly, inviting, super thoughtful, and - GreenLane members-sweet!

A big shout out to J and C for making Hummingbird Wholesale and example for all of us on how to create a business that can make a difference in our community, provide jobs, and make as small an impact on our environment as possible.