San Angelo is the colorful, cozy quilt; longtime businesses such as Olive’s Nursery are the small squares, all stitched together, that make it so unique. "I had a burning desire to serve him full time." - Tommy Olive
By Becca Nelson Sankey
Photography Kim Torres Photography
Tommy attended Texas Tech, earned a degree in engineering and went to work at Exxon. But his heart wasn’t in it, and he quit after two and a half years. Around that time, while living in Oklahoma City, he “fell in love with Jesus,” he said, adding, “I had a burning desire to serve Him full time. I said, ‘OK, God, either run with this, give it to someone else, or postpone it, but don’t let me burn here.’ After about two weeks it lessened. I applied for seminary but never went.”
Tommy returned to San Angelo in 1976, and his parents phased themselves out of the business, with Tommy taking the reins. Though Tommy didn’t become a pastor, he said working at Olive’s still allows him to minister. “Every Christian is a minister,” he said. “Our mission is to meet the needs of the customer, and sometimes they come in and state what they think they need, and we oftentimes say, ‘That isn’t what you need.’”
Olive’s offers coy fish and everything needed for water gardens, a plethora of indoor and outdoor plants in all sizes and colors, as well as pottery. “We also try to promote the organic side of growing plants because people are more successful that way,” Tommy said.
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