HHS student exemplifies solid work ethic BY JAMES JACENICH • STAFF WRITER
MONTEREY - Ben Botkin will graduate from Highland High School next month with one experience most of his classmates haven't yet had - he's run his own business for six years.
The 17-year-old son of Ronnie and Caroline Botkin of Vanderpool has his own lawn maintenance business.
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He started when he was 11. "I put an ad in the paper and got three yards," he says. "It kind of grew each year. It's almost too busy right now." His father drove him to work when he was younger.
"It's just a high school job," he says, but one that has paid off. Today he has 20 yards to maintain and drives himself to work in a truck he bought with his own money.
In the fall he'll attend the Universal Technical Institute in Exton, Pa. to enter an 18-month program in diesel mechanics and industrial technology. He learned about the school from a representative that spoke to the Highland Future Farmers of America chapter he belongs to.
"I hope to open my own trucking center someday," he says.
He knows what it takes to run a business, he says. "You've got to keep track of dates and times and send out bills, receipts, keep a summary of income, expenses, buy new equipment, things of that nature," he says. "I put in 25-30 hours every week and get anywhere from $25 dollars a yard up to a $100 a yard."
Every spring, Botkin put an ad in The Recorder to attract new customers. But his business has also grown through word of mouth and his reputation as a hard worker. Hard work isn't enough, though - he has learned customer relations play a big part in his success.
"You just have to treat the customer right," he says. "Some customers are hard to put up with and some are hard to please, that is the only obstacle."
But is the customer always right? "Pretty much," he replies. "It's good to learn that young."
Botkin has four riding lawn mowers, two or three weed eaters, weed blowers, and grass collectors.
"Every now and then my dad will help me and every now and then my little brother will help me; most of the time I am by myself," he says.
He'd like to see younger students at HHS succeed as he has. "I'd recommend they don't sit on the side, don't sit on the couch - learn to do those things that will help you the rest of your life," Botkin says.
Academics weren't his strong point in school. "I did decent academically," he says. Fortunately, there were things he could study in addition to math, English and science. He has been a member of the FFA chapter since his freshman year. "FFA rewards you for working, you get degrees," he says.
One FFA program helped him learn how to keep track of time worked and money earned. But it was the vocational shop courses that helped him the most, he says.
Botkin took Ag. Mechanics 1, 2, 3 and 4. "The shop classes helped me enjoy the day a little bit more because it was hands-on," he says.
Work has had its interesting moments, he says. "I've found quite a few snakes. You have to kill them anyway you can," he says. "I'm not fond of snakes."
Another challenge is finding the time to do everything he wants to do. Botkin is a three-sport athlete at HHS, participating in cross-country, basketball and baseball all four years. Though his schedule of school, athletics and work kept him busy, it taught him lessons he wanted to learn.
"It showed you had to work hard," he says. "It tested you. Some days I wished I could quit. It was hard to devote time to each one."
He likes his independence and the ability to make choices for himself - two things his job has provided. "I bought a '97 Dodge a summer and a half ago and a Toyota Tacoma 2000 last year," he says. "You have to think what do you do need, not just what do you want.
"I'm trying to put aside some money for school," he adds. His parents will help with tuition, but he intends to earn some money for himself in Pennsylvania. After he finishes school there, he hopes to return to Virginia. He said he'd probably settle down in the Valley because that's where the work is and it's close to home. "I'll go wherever I can find the best job and wherever a business will thrive."
He has no regrets about growing up in Highland. "I wouldn't have traded the last 17-18 years for nothing because I love everything about Highland - hunting, I know everybody, and I have family and friends.
"If by any chance I could come back, I would," he says. "Even if I go somewhere else and raise a family I will come back someday. I want to be as close as possible."
Botkin has learned his lessons well, says HHS principal Randy Hooke. "We know he is competitive from sports; that drive carries over into everything he does," says Hooke. "We get feedback from employers on students that graduate from here and one thing they tell us they like is our students' work ethic … Botkin typifies that."
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