Christine Faltynowski shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Christine, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What are you being called to do now, that you may have been afraid of before?
With social media being so critical in running a business, I’ve been formulating a plan/schedule to post more content. I guess I thought that people would not be interested in seeing what we do in the bee yard during each inspection. But, I’m noticing more and more people are live streaming inspections. The interest and amazing questions I read have opened my mind to the awesome general interest and curiosity people have about bees.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Christine – KC Bee Lady. First I’ll mention the name change. The business name changed in late 2024 from The Kansas Bee Company to KC Bee Lady. This change happened because we are geographically located in Missouri and the former name created confusion. With the new name, came a new website: kcbeelady.com. The new site is far superior to the old one that was created almost 10 years ago. Times change and things evolve in business. At KC Bee Lady, we sell honey and teach people to become beekeepers, but the most fun and interesting thing we do is sell bees! We sell – on average – about 300 hives per year. A lot of people don’t realize we sell more than just honey. I get it, honey is delish! My goal remains the same – to help thousands of people become beekeepers.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
When we moved to rural Belton and obtained land, we decided to skip mowing. What happened was an entire world blossomed on our property. We found medicinal flowers, weeds that fed all pollinators, every bug you can imagine, numerous different birds and native flowers essential to our environment. We had so many monarch caterpillars this year, it was truly amazing! We’ve all been conditioned to mow excessively and kill weeds. It’s sad because if everyone would just donate a portion of their yard to our pollinators, it would make such an impactive difference.
When you were sad or scared as a child, what helped?
My Mom is one of a kind. She was a single Mom of 2 daughters back in the early 80’s. She worked full time, went to college at night and always made sure we were taken care of. Looking back now, as I’m preparing to turn 50, I have such admiration for my Mom. I don’t recall a time when I ever felt afraid we weren’t going to make it financially. She made our home seem no different than a 2 parent home. I definitely inherited my work ethic from her! Whenever I think I can’t do something, I just think about all she was able to do by herself.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
The biggest lie in the beekeeping industry is the adulterated honey. We have American commercial beekeepers forced to compete with other countries, who dilute honey with high fructose corn syrup and rice syrup. More and more people are becoming aware that the honey at grocery stores is nothing like the honey you buy directly from a beekeeper. Honey is such a precious food source. Did you know that in order to make 1 pound of honey, 1,152 bees have to travel 112,000 miles and visit 4.5 million flowers? To take all that hard work and add “junk” to it, is just a travesty! We need to support our American beekeepers!
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. When do you feel most at peace?
In my bee yard. I read an article recently that said beekeepers, in the beekeeping industry, are the longest living humans. I absolutely believe that. I believe the “frequency of a bee’s buzz, often around 200–250 Hz, can have a soothing effect, lower cortisol levels, and promote an environment conducive to the body’s natural healing processes.”
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kcbeelady.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCBeeLady/
Image Credits
Amanda Miller
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