By Julianna Parker
The Norman Transcript

Connie Byrum wanted to open a bed and breakfast because she thought it would be a peaceful thing to keep her busy after she retired.

It's been a lot more work than she imagined, but she's happy with her choice.
"It's been very interesting, I've met incredible people," she said.

The Cutting Garden Bed and Breakfast, 927 W. Boyd St., celebrates the 15th anniversary of its grand opening Oct. 25.

She owns and operates the business with only minimal cleaning/lawn help from a boarder that she pays with a free room.

Byrum's favorite part of owning and running the bed and breakfast is all the interesting people she gets to meet.

"I'm just constantly inspired and amazed by my guests," she said. So she's glad she made the plunge into being her own boss.

The building Byrum purchased for her bed and breakfast used to be a business called The Cutting Garden that opened in the early 1980s. The owners, Ken and Betty Burns, had a huge flower and herb garden, and customers could cut as much as they wanted and pay per stem, Byrum said.

Byrum visited the garden and fell in love with gardening. She said she volunteered at the garden during summers while she was a special education teacher at Wayne High School.

When the owners decided to sell the place, they gave Byrum first choice. She said was the first person in Norman to apply for bed and breakfast zoning in 1992.

Byrum has kept the large garden behind the house and turned the house into the bed and breakfast. She provides a welcoming home away from home to those who stay with her, providing a made-to-order breakfast every morning.

The Cutting Garden has three guest rooms, and on weekends like this one they're booked early. Everyone wants to stay at The Cutting Garden on game days because of its convenient location just a few blocks west of Campus Corner, Byrum said.

"If I had 100 rooms, I'd have them all full," she said of football weekends.
Roberta Hovis said she also likes staying at The Cutting Garden because of its proximity to the university. A University of Oklahoma-Tulsa staff member, Hovis makes frequent trips to Norman for meetings and events.

"If I have to stay overnight, that's where I try to stay," she said. Hovis said she always has good experiences at the bed and breakfast.

"It was very enjoyable," she said of her last stay. "You can say that Connie is a very wonderful and friendly hostess, and she's always available if you need her to be."

Judy Mecca, who lives in Texas but visits her daughter who goes to OU, also said Byrum is one of the reasons she likes to stay at The Cutting Garden.

"We always feel very warm and welcomed at the Cutting Garden, and like we are in someone's home who we know and are friends with," Mecca said. "Her cooking is just delicious. She grows her own herbs."

Byrum said she tries to make herself available to her guests because she is sometimes their first taste of Norman. She takes pride in that responsibility, because she said she loves the city she's called home for more than 30 years.

"There's a lot of people doing a lot of good things, and people need to know that this community is unique."

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