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A New Beginning on October 19, 1987

East Hartford Residents Page | 20th Anniversary Offer to East Hartford Residents Business Offer to East Hartford

GLORY CLEANING SERVICE Begins Full Time Operations

Press Release for October 19, 2007-- Today marks the 20th anniversary of the day that Glory Cleaning Service of East Hartford began full time operations.

Glory Cleaning Service actually began in 1986 when Pat began thinking of a cleaning service when encouraged by several friends. Mr. Lanyon had been employed at what was then Combustion Engineering as a Senior Specialist Clerk. Only part-time was he employed cleaning offices. In late October, 1986, he was given work by David Crane of Action Cleaning of West Hartford, CT. David Crane was a Christian friend who attended a like-faith church in West Hartford whom Mr. Lanyon had visited to ask questions about the janitorial service business.

Then on November 6, 1986 he applied for a business license at the town of East Hartford. During previous years, Mr. Lanyon began to realized there was a great need for Hartford County Connecticut to have a new reliable cleaning company to serve area offices. He had worked in some offices after leaving a floor cleaning job at Kimberly Hall in Windsor, CT, during a time of employment struggles leading him to his current vocation.

A momentous week in 1986...

...Marked the idea of beginning a cleaning company for Mr. Lanyon. On Tuesday of that week, Mr. Lanyon was hired by Reardon Agency to work at Combustion Engineering (CE). On Wednesday of that week during the evening services of Truth Baptist which were held that day in the home of the Pastor, Bim Rowley at 48 Fuller Avenue, Mr. Lanyon announced he intended to start Glory Cleaning Service. It would be named after 1 Corinthians 10.31: "Whether therefore ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the GLORY of God." On Thursday , Mr. Lanyon was concluding his third day of work at Combustion. About 3:30 to 4:00 pm a sleet storm moved into Windsor. On the ride home, the roads became slippery and a flower-delivery van began hydroplaning in the opposite direction as Mr. Lanyon traveled home on Broad Street in Windsor near the intersection of Giddings. Mr. Lanyon, driving a compact type vehicle - a Bobcat, hit head-on the van's broadside. Fortunately he was wearing a seat belt and only suffered a cut around the fold of the right eye. After 24 stitches were in place at Hartford Hospital that evening the bandage-less Mr. Lanyon was released.

He actually had a ride to work the next day with a church member who also worked at Combustion. And since it was the fourth day of his new job he was counseled by his pastor to go to work-- in spite of the serious accident, and an open wound on the face with 24 stitches. The humbling experience was not pleasant, but employment sometimes is not either -- but necessary for paying bills! Perhaps the blessing was that about 3 months later Combustion offered him a position with full health benefits at a time when the company was downsizing. Showing a conviction to be at work can have it's benefits!

The insurance agent that processed the claim for that accident later offered Mr. Lanyon his first office cleaning job which began in February of 1987 on Thursday evenings. This office and a few others that started in those early months was the encouragement that Mr. Lanyon could operate a cleaning company successfully in CT. One of those offices began that year is still on the account list!

A few weeks later on a Thursday he developed an advertising sheet for office cleaning and proceeded to pass out about 20 copies the next few days. About 6 calls came in and 2 or 3 accounts were added -- all small offices that could be cleaned a couple hours each on the weekends.

Still being cautious, Mr. Lanyon kept his full time position, and was offered eventually his insurance benefits package with full CE employment status. The nation was enjoying the prosperity of President Reagan's economics policies, and employment was low. A newspaper clipping advertising an employer's bid in Stamford for pumping gas ended in seeking employees in Indiana and paying their travel and housing for a year-long commitment! Such conditions precipitated Mr. Lanyon's decision to give CE his 2 week's notice on Monday October 5.

A Momentous Eight WEEKS for Glory

The day, Monday, October 19, 1987, commenced two significant events that year.

1. Black Monday for Wall Street (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Monday_(1987) )

2. Eight weeks of office canvassing nets eight accounts for Glory Cleaning Service. The last account added 4 hours cleaning Monday -- Friday to Mr. Lanyon's one-man schedule, after which he left canvassing offices for future work.

Life Changes "In the Works"

Mr. Lanyon was grateful for the opportunity and began learning much about business and cleaning during those days. About the same time, God was working in another part of the world, in the heart of a faithful British West Indies missionary. She had received word that her apartment was going to be needed for a youth worker in the church she was ministering. This meant that by the summer of 1988 she would have to be making a change in her location for ministry. Mr. Lanyon had been sending her his newsletter updates since graduating for Temple Baptist Seminary in August, 1983. He had been corresponding with many missionaries since his decision July 20, 1977 to orient toward missions during his studies in graduate school. He realized little of what was in the works until he received word the change for her was coming.

This news very early in 1988, however, prompted the 35 year old new business entrepreneur to draft a letter of invitation for her to visit him in Connecticut for the change she saw coming. The two began to realize, through expensive calls to the small island she could make only once per week, that something they neither one could understand was about to bring dramatic change in a short time. She had just turned 39 early that year, and such thoughts of marriage had long been pushed from her mind having determined for herself contentment for serving her Lord in her state of singleness.

Mr. Lanyon sensed something he needed to prepare for "in the works." He began to investigate the next step for a businessman necessary to enable him to leave for such a potential undertaking. The procedures for taking on employees in a legal way were began.

Phone calls and decisions brought the two young people to a meeting date in late June, 1988. At Bradley International Airport Miss Christine Wise arrived on June 28 in Connecticut, for what would be 5 momentous weeks of her already full life. You see, she had experienced the extreme pleasure of service to her Lord for 15 years now together with the joys of helping others all those years. Now she was about to be on the receiving end after many years of much "giving!" She stayed in the homes of key people in our church for a week at a time for 5 weeks. Having seen her in this context and realized she more than found approval with spiritual leaders in our church, after 2 1/2 weeks we decided it was God's will to marry and we gave her Ohio church 2 1/2 weeks notice we wished to be married in that church since they sent her out as a missionary. They were very helpful and gave us the wedding. Everyone there was happy for us -- we received 3 receptions in Ohio alone.

After the wedding we flew out to Colorado where Christine met my parents and were received at their church. We then took a week-long country honeymoon in Gunnison, CO, and returned to Ohio, and then Connecticut where we were received by our now home church.

Christine has been a key ingredient to the business success of Glory Cleaning Service by performing bookkeeping, washing cleaning clothes, raising two fine young men who are able to help with the cleaning responsibilities, and even helping herself when work orders required more than my labor to complete.

Migration to Carpet Cleaning

While servicing offices we realized the value of providing carpet as well as hard flooring maintenance, and so began a search into the right way to expand. Having found the Institute for Inspection Cleaning and Restoration (IICRC) and a school to train us for Carpet Cleaning in Wallingford, CT, in 1991 we became certified in the next 2 years to clean in over 6 categories. By 1993 Mr. Lanyon had achieved "Journeyman" status, and by 1994 he was prepared to purchase a "cleaning plant on wheels" that has dramatically increased our ability to do more cleaning. In 1995 Mr. Lanyon reached experience levels enabling full Master Textile Cleaner status with the IICRC.

We have cleaned hundred of homes through out the central CT area with Carpet, Upholstery and Hard Floor Maintenance and have had nearly 2 dozen office accounts we clean in regular intervals, one which is soon reaching it's 20th anniversary with us. We basically operate 2 businesses out of our East Hartford home and we are very thankful to everyone who has shared in our longevity through their patronage. We are grateful to have been able to make central CT a cleaner place to live and prosper. We are grateful to be able to live in America where we can bring freedom and peace which our nation has stood for all of our years as proud citizens.

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