M&M Services changes hands

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
After 18 years as owners of M&M Services, based out of Newcastle, “Smokey” Mark and Mona Stenson have decided to pass on the prairie dog extermination business to Zeb and Jackie Goodrich, who plan to expand on the services offered. The Goodriches officially took over the business in November, although, Zeb Goodrich said that Mark Stenson doesn’t plan on leaving the business anytime soon but has begun the process of stepping away. 
“I started working for him (Stenson) five years ago, and we began talking about me taking over in the beginning. We started the process of switching over the business last year,” Goodrich said. 
According to Stenson, the decision to back away from the daily routine of the business was tough for both him and his wife, but they are now ready to spend more time with their grandchildren and live a slower-paced life. 
“I am 66 years old, and I am ready to slow down and look at retirement,” Stenson said. “People like me need to make it possible for the young people to move on
and excel.” 
Goodrich began working for him five years ago, Stenson said, and quickly became a foreman and a “very important employee.” 
“He has such a tremendous work ethic, and he is not afraid to get out of bed and get the work done,” Stenson said. 
When talking about Goodrich, though, you can’t forget to include Jackie on the venture, Stenson said. 
“Just like Mona, Jackie is a very integral part of the business. When I was out there doing the work, she did all the books and payroll. Those women are part of the backbone of the business,” Stenson said. “I saw in them a very good relationship. He is a strong family man, but he takes his job seriously. The relationship they have reminded me of what Mona and I do and the way we do things.” 
He and Jackie had always talked about owning a business, Goodrich said. 
What helped was that the couple has always worked well together and have done so for the past 13 years, he said. 
“We are an exception to the rule. I have always heard that couples don’t work well together, and I hear people talk about how there is no way they could work with their significant other, but we have a unique relationship,” Goodrich said. “When it is time to go to work, we go to work. All that lovey-dovey stuff goes out the window. We put our noses down, and we get the work done.” 
According to Goodrich, working together has brought the couple closer together and the teamwork transfers over to their home life. 
As far as taking over a prairie-dogging business goes, Goodrich said, the specifics of the business they wanted to own were never laid out and that this chance fell into their laps, so they jumped at the opportunity. 
“We are super grateful for the opportunity, and it came across us at the perfect time. I had just been laid off from the coal mine, and a week later Mark called me to come do an interview, and the rest is history,” Goodrich said. “This is going to be a good business for us to run, and we are able to make a good living. We have both sides of the business covered. She has an accounting background, and I have a management background.” 
The couple also plans to add additional services to the prairie dog extermination that is the main focus of the business. Goodrich said he plans to dive into more commercial pest control, offering a full array of services. 
“We are wanting to expand and offer more of an array of services. The prairie dog work is seasonal, from summer to fall, and we quit for the winter,” Goodrich said. “Doing the other pest control can be year-round.” 
Goodrich is considering offering pest control for everything from mice and rats to skunks, raccoons, bed bugs and mosquitos. 
“We have been talking our way through this, and it is something we really want to do,” Goodrich said. “We want to push into the more commercial side of things and offer more services to the ranches we are working on. There are huge pest problems, with not just prairie dogs on this ranch.”
Goodrich hopes that expanded services will bring in new customers. 
“There are problems we have in Newcastle, like mosquitos, and we want to look into spraying for them. It is a huge problem here; no one even wants to go out and spend time outside. It is a real simple application to spray for them, but you have to have a license to do it because it is a restricted pesticide,” Goodrich said. “Weed and pest can only stretch so far, and I have two little girls and there are lots of times we want to go to the park, but we can’t because we will be eaten alive.” 
Both City Engineer Mike Moore and Weston County Weed and Pest supervisor Hale Redding said that the addition of a local pest control company would be beneficial to the area, although, Moore stated that the city was not interested in mosquito control because of potential hazards to the public. 
“I think it is going to be a good deal for the community. Zeb plans to provide services we can’t provide,” Redding said. “We have a narrow range on what we can do as far as pest control, we have a declared list, and there are restrictions on what we can treat and what we can use tax dollars on.”
He noted that private entities can treat and control whatever they may want and that Goodrich would be offering a service that is not currently offered locally. 
“There isn’t really anyone local unless you bring in someone from Gillette and Rapid City. As far as bed bugs go, there is no one in the region that treats those. You have to go to Casper or farther,” Redding said. “This will fill a void in the community and it will be a really nice addition.” 
The additional services could also mean hiring more people, he said. 
“Even as far as the prairie dog business goes, things have really blown up over the past two years, and we are looking to bring on quite a few people to the business,” Goodrich said. “We are starting to get  land contracts not just in Wyoming and Montana but as far as New Mexico. The prairie dog problem extends from Canada to Texas, and we are going to have to hire quite a lot of people.” 
Goodrich said that despite the low unemployment rate in Weston County, he is not intimidated by the need to hire additional employees because not only has Stenson been a great teacher with lots of connections but Goodrich said he also has the ability to hire from places outside of Weston County due to the scope of work and the locations. 
“You just have to hire people and do the work. It will all work out in the end. You have to remember not to sweat the small things. There will always be people that need work,” Goodrich said. 
“Mark has 17 years in the business. It would be foolish to let him walk away when he has an encyclopedia of knowledge and contacts in the business,” Goodrich said.