All in: Surgeon's commitment to region, entrepreneurship makes great impact on local community

By Jenna Shackelford, posted Feb 23, 2022 on BizFayetteville.com

Anita and Fred Surgeon pose for a picture at Sweet Valley Ranch. Across his businesses, Surgeon employs 400 people in three states, and 170 people in specifically the GFBJ footprint. Photo provided by Sweet Valley Ranch

From a young age, Fred Surgeon

remembers having an entrepre-
neurial spirit. In elementary

school, he organized his cousins into
teams around the house to complete
chores in return for payment – like
money, a meal prepared by an adult,
or a slightly used toy or game.
In college, he began putting candy
boxes in stores to make some extra
cash.
“I realized I could make about
one dollar for every candy box. And
my brother would laugh because he
would say, ‘Hey, you’re making a

dollar.’ But what happened was even-
tually I had 1000 candy boxes out in

Virginia, North Carolina, and South
Carolina,” Surgeon said. “So I was
making $1000 a week ... I realized
that in any business concept, if you’re

able to replicate it and perfect it, that
concept can be used in other things.”

And that was just the beginning for Surgeon. “From there, years later when we were doing Papa John’s Pizza restaurants, it was great for me,” he said. “You do one store, you learn it, and you run it well, and then you replicate it. I got involved with franchising to a degree. One of the franchises I’m involved with is Merry Maids, and right now, we’re the largest Merry Maids franchise in the world.”

Over the years, Surgeon has held numerous titles in a diverse array of fields. Some of those titles include director of a special education evaluation program in Richmond County, chief finance officer for Southeastern Regional Mental Health, Develop-mental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services, director of Robeson and Scotland County public mental health centers, controller for Carolina Behavioral Services, LLC and state accounting manager for NC Mentor.
Today, Surgeon is the founder of Surgeon & Associates, Inc., Surgeon Home Services, LLC (Merry Maids), Crown Management Group, LLC, Visionary Management Group, LLC, Surgeon Farming Enterprises LLC, (Sweet Valley Ranch), Surgeon Pest Control Services, LLC (Mosquito Squad of Fayetteville and Southern Pines), Surgeon Property Inspection Services, LLC (AmeriSpec), Premier Healthcare Services, Inc., Cornerstone Treatment Facility, Inc. and CTFP Inc.
Across three states, Surgeon has 400 employees.

Across Greater Fayetteville Business Journal’s footprint specifically, which covers Cumberland, Harnett, Hoke, Moore, Robeson, Bladen and Sampson Counties, Surgeon said his businesses employ about 170 people.
One of his more recent ventures is Sweet Valley Ranch, which was born of a vision to offer something to the community while also being involved in the community.

“We introduced that to Fayetteville through our Festival of Lights attraction,” he said. After 2020 was successful for the event, he started thinking of ways he could replicate it. “I started thinking about dinosaurs,” Surgeon said. “As a result of that, we’re the only permanent dinosaur attraction in North Carolina, South Carolina. There’s not another
one ... We wanted to create a whole different experience.”
Sweet Valley Ranch is indirectly hiring over 82 people. “It’s created new opportunities and impacted the local economy,” he said.
Surgeon said that when he talks to guests at the attraction, he finds that many travel from outside of the region. “They say, ‘Oh, I’m coming from Raleigh,’ or ‘I’m coming from Virginia, Tennessee.’ Well, a lot of those people are staying at a hotel. They’re going to buy gas,” he said. “They’re going to a restaurant ... They’re going to other events. To me, when you can bring people to your area to support your business and they support other businesses, that’s what it’s all about. We try to double down on that in creating Sweet Valley Ranch.”

Last year, Sweet Valley Ranch raised $25,000 for local charities, like Habitat for Humanity, Rick’s Place, and Operation Inasmuch.

Surgeon pointed out that businesses tend to intersect with each other, and that’s part of the way he’s come to be involved with so many businesses himself. “Maybe one day you want to sell your house. Well, you need a home inspection. There you go, AmeriSpec. Merry Maids [doesn’t] clean carpets, so we were having to refer ... Now we can refer
you to OxiFresh, which is part of our umbrella.”
Sweet Valley Ranch has over 350 animals. So, Surgeon got involved with Mosquito Squad to help combat mosquitoes and flies that were attracted to the area.

“I believe you invest the time, learn the business, learn it well, and replicate that,” he said. And that statement has rang true throughout his business ventures. Surgeon said he has always been involved in each new operation, attending trainings, being present at the office, and learning about the franchises.

One of the early challenges Surgeon faced in business was being able to develop a strong relationship with a financial institution. “I felt like, when I would call and say, ‘Hey, I have this opportunity. I need some help, some support,’ I didn’t feel like I was getting personalized banking service,” he said.
When Surgeon began working with Lumbee Guaranty Bank, which has a smaller footprint, he found success. Not only was he able to purchase the land for Sweet Valley Ranch, which is 300 acres, their ideas allowed him to invest $3.5 million dollars in the property over six years.
Surgeon expressed his gratitude for the ability to partner with organizations like Lumbee Guaranty Bank, Fayetteville-based Utley & Knowles, a Scotland County insurance company, and a Raleigh-based law firm in conducting his business.
Now, Surgeon takes pride in being able to afford new opportunities to his employees, too. “Being 51 years old now ... the highlight for me is creating opportunities for other people – not just our employees, but our contractors, our electricians, our plumbers. But focusing on the employees, where maybe we’ve hired someone and they are a cleaner, and now they’re managing an office or they’ve moved to where they are involved in training or they’re not just in a silo of residential cleaning, but they’re doing more regional, corporate responsibilities,” he said.

He enjoys what he does. Surgeon describes time “looking at a camel” and “spending time in the pigeon loft,” but one of his favorite parts of his work is seeing the impact that his business has on the community firsthand. “When we open Dinosaur World, and you see all those children, or when we’re opening for our spring- time adventures and you see families out there riding go-karts and you get to meet them and hear their stories, to me, that is an awesome opportunity.”
His biggest supporter has been his wife, Anita. “She has gone out of her way to support me. It’s not every day you tell your wife, ‘I’m thinking about buying a zebra,’” he said. But even though he faced many early failures, he said, Anita has been by his side every step of the way.
His advice to someone starting in business is this: “When you decide, ‘Hey, I want to go into business,’ do not do it for money. Fulfill a need. You’ve got to enjoy it. “You have to give your life. You have to be all in. The money will come. But, when I invested in Sweet Valley Ranch, my goal was to have the best possible attraction farm ... I’m trying to fulfill a need. I’m 100 percent all in.”
Part of what being “all in” means to Surgeon is participating actively in the community. He serves on Lumbee Guaranty’s board now and as the chairperson of the Fayetteville Area
Convention & Visitors Bureau board.

Surgeon has a message for the local community: Great opportunities are ahead. “I’m listening to the areas where your readers are,” he said. “We’ve been through some downturns related to the pandemic and a whole lot of other things, but the future is bright. I see things building back, not just in terms of my industries,
but in all the industries. The sky’s the limit. I encourage folks, if they have the desire to make a difference, and there’s a need out there, and they have passion to follow those entrepreneurial dreams, I promise it won’t be easy, but when they get to the end of the
road, they’ll look back and say, ‘Wow, it’s definitely worth it.’”

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