Thirty-five years ago, Audra Dorough Holloway opened Audra’s Flowers in a small pink house in downtown Jasper. The flower shop was Mrs. Holloway’s seed of faith sown in the city’s soil, and she believed that God would see her family through to better times. Her husband had suffered a severe injury during a construction accident and the family was hurting financially.

But God watched over the seed and caused both Mrs. Holloway and her shop to flourish. The tiny home business became more than just the neighborhood flower shop; it developed into a greenhouse of healing, a celebration for the community, and a garden of provision for her entire family. 

Mrs. Holloway’s flower shop was her ministry of compassion and she moved in the glory of flowers. She would pray with and encourage mourning customers who had just lost a loved one. Her flower shop was a garden where Jesus could be found walking into every conversation.

Mrs. Holloway carefully crafted every arrangement with tender and understanding hands, always telling her employees, “That (floral arrangement) is going to someone’s loved one, so you put some care into it!”

Mrs. Holloway cared deeply for her customers. She mourned with those who mourned. She rejoiced with those who were rejoicing. Her little pink flower shop nurtured the spiritual, emotional, and mental health of the area.

In June of 2000, Mrs. Holloway went to be with the Lord. Her legacy continues to bloom through her daughter and the current owner of Audra’s Flowers, Donna Nolen.

“I’m trying to run the business as I know my mother would want,” Donna says. “Audra’s Flowers began in 1985. I remember that because I had just found out I was pregnant when mother opened the business. She hadn’t worked a single day outside of the home until she started the business, except for a short time working a friend’s florist shop.”

Audra’s Flowers relocated in 2003 to a quaint storefront on Oak Hill Road just off Highway 78. The shop continues to sell natural and silk flower arrangements for every occasion under heaven, and whether the selection is Valentine’s Day roses, Mother’s Day bouquets, a celebration of life standing sprays, or a simple ‘I love you’ vase of sunflowers, Donna and her staff of young women are designing arrangements that will warm your heart.

“My mother taught me everything I know, so my style is basically my mother’s style,” Donna says. “It’s a southern and traditional way of arranging flowers. You’re either really a natural at it or you’re not. It is really hard to teach how to do it. You’d have to be taught in a certain pattern style. However, natural florists can create and flow in the medium of flowers. Mother was a natural florist.”

Donna grew up in Birmingham and graduated from West End High School. She attended Auburn University, achieving an undergraduate degree in elementary education and a master’s degree in early childhood education in 1978. She returned to her family roots in Walker County after taking a teaching position at Cordova Elementary School. She taught kindergarten for 30 years before retiring from public education in 2008. She then took over the flower shop full-time after retirement.  

“I have really enjoyed being a part of this business, whether it be a sad occasion or a happy one,” Donna says, reflecting on the decades spent working with her family in the shop.

As with all thriving multi-generational businesses, Audra’s Flowers has adapted to the times. The rural flower shop store has an ever-increasing e-commerce footprint with more and more customers opting to purchase floral arrangements online. Despite the emergence of national on-demand flower companies, Audra’s has stayed relevant and an essential part of Jasper.

"I thought I wanted to sell (the business) at one time, but I’m not sure what I would do. I guess, I would take care of my grandchildren. They are all precious. I have 10 of them,” Donna laughs. “I have a good business. The Lord has provided so much, and I enjoy coming to work every day. It’s a joy to do a job that you love. The business has been good for our family and friends and I’m just glad we are here.” 78

Images by Al Blanton and Justin Hunter