Since she left office at the beginning of the year, longtime former educator and two-term State Rep. Sue Cahill (D-Marshalltown) has started a new career working in the garden center at the local Hy-Vee store.

“It’s been very fun to see what other people plant and what their ideas are. Every time I walk up and down the aisle, I see something new,” she said.

Just before the Mother’s Day holiday, the mom of six and her fellow team members got a pleasant surprise when an American Robin took up residence on one of the racks and set up her nest there with three baby birds about to hatch. Assistant Garden Manager Taro Banes said birds have nested in the hanging baskets before, but this situation is a bit unique.

“(The mother) must’ve been ready to drop and she says ‘Hey, I need a place to live,’ and she just put it right on there,” he said.

In the beginning, Cahill added, mom was a bit protective if anyone got too close, but she’s warmed up to both the staff and the shoppers since then. Youngsters and adults from the CIRSI homes have both marveled at the opportunity to see the robin and her chicks.

“We just have had a great time,” Cahill said.

“I’ve never been that close to a robin before. I mean, that’s just pretty amazing,” Banes added.

Cahill believes the father is somewhere in the area around Linn Creek as well, and all in all, she’s enjoying her new gig even more with the company of her flying friends.

“We can fill your botanical needs and your avian needs. Come and see them,” she said. “Another day, we had some geese that live somewhere, and they wanted to go up and cross Center Street. And we had pictures of them up there. It’s like ‘Let’s stop the cars and let the geese go by,’ so we did. I think they have their nest over at the community center. It’s kind of a heartwarming thing to see them that close.”

Last year, Banes noted, the staff spotted seven or eight painted turtles wandering around the garden center area, and leopard frogs have also been sighted in the past.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.