Bill Hohlfeld has been tending the grounds at Dunwoody Village for 38 years. Now residents and staff are bidding him a fond farewell as he heads into retirement.

His last official day at the continuing care retirement community in Newtown Square was Feb. 1.

The Dunwoody property had once been a working farm, and when he was hired, Hohlfeld was the only full-time groundskeeper taking care of 83 acres.

Thanks to Hohlfeld, the grounds of Dunwoody have evolved over the years into an arboretum-style setting for residents, staff and guests, with gardens, lawns, forests, flower meadows, wetlands, two bridges built from scratch, two miles of trails and more.

“We have something for everybody,” he said.

Hohlfeld said that a lot of attention has been placed on creating a campus that looks unplanned, even though every aspect was intentionally designed.

He and his four-man crew have plenty to do– from fall cleanup to winter pruning, putting up an annual Christmas display, snow removal, spring cleaning, mulching and planting, and mowing lawns. 

In between, Hohlfeld plans, builds bridges, builds walls, creates trails, and raises other structures.

Hohlfeld estimates he’s worked 10,000 days during his time at Dunwoody and averages five miles a day on foot. 

“I’ve gone around the equator two times now,” he joked.

Working the land has been a part of Hohlfeld’s life since his teen years growing up in Norristown.

“As a kid I was always pushing a lawn mower around the neighborhood,” he said. 

He went to work full-time as a landscaper right out of high school, getting experience in both residential and commercial landscaping.

Bill Hohlfeld did it all—planting flowers, bulbs, mums, cutting grass, trimming hedges and trees.

Things really took off when he was selected to attend a professional gardener training program at Longwood Gardens for two years, one of only 14 people in the residential program.

From there he explored some career options and decided Dunwoody was the best fit.

He liked the people, the variety of the work, and a chance to work in-house on a large campus.

“Over the years I’ve met a lot of interesting people, with fascinating backgrounds.”

Hohlfeld decided to retire on his 62^nd birthday so he can work on other personal projects while he’s still healthy.

“I’d like to do more volunteer work,” he said, adding he works with Team Rubicon, a veteran group that helps out at disaster sites.

Hohlfeld is married with two adult sons, both of whom have worked with him at Dunwoody in the summers.

“This is a great place to work,” Hohlfeld said of Dunwoody. “Thirty-eight years speaks for itself.”