How berries became business

Jodi Keegan

Photos by Tuesdaie Williams

By Randy Capps

SMITHFIELD — John Lennon's “Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)” contains a lyric that says “life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans”

One could forgive Jodi Keegan for having a similar thought every time she opens her hatchback to make a delivery.

She's a mother of two who studied Health Promotion at Coastal Carolina, but she's also the Jodi of Jodi's Elderberry Syrup.

In 2017, she was taking time away from her job as a physical therapy assistant to raise Bryson, 7, and Alexa, 4, when everyone in her household fell ill.

“My family and I had all gotten really sick,” she said. “I had never even heard of elderberry syrup at the time. And a good friend of mine who's very holistic — she's into oils and other homeopathic remedies — turned me on to elderberry syrup. So, I took a jar from her and tried it.

“My symptoms and my kids' symptoms

lessened in a couple of days. My husband (Joe) didn't want to take it … so he stayed sick for a little while longer. Eventually, he caved and he took it and he became a believer in it.”

Elderberries have been used in holistic medicine for centuries. They have a long list of potential health benefits, including cold and flu relief, boosted immunity, allergy relief, sinus infection relief and improved respiratory health — to name a few.

“My particular elderberry syrup contains raw, local honey, cinnamon, ginger and cloves,” she said. “So, it's very high in anti-oxidants. … I just saw a need for it in the area. So, I looked up a a couple of different recipes. There are several different elderberry syrup recipes out there, so I played with a few of them. I tried to find the ingredients I thought would make it taste the best and help people take it and feel better.”

She also makes a version for children under the age of one, which is made

from berries, water and simple syrup. In addition, she make a version that works with Keto 30 and can also whip up specialty versions upon request.

When she first started out, that meant hanging out in her own kitchen. These days, it means something a bit different.

She makes her batches in a commercial kitchen, and each one takes about seven hours.

Elderberries contain cyanide in their natural state, so there's a bit of preparation involved in the making of the syrup.

“Don't ever eat raw berries or dry berries, because they will hurt you,” she said. “They need to be boiled for at least 45 minutes.”

She adds the spices to the berries, but allows the mixture to cool off a bit before adding the raw honey — to preserve its benefits.

The honey comes from a beekeeper in Chapel Hill, which is the only place that

can meet her large orders. The dried berries come from Europe

“You can grow them (here), but it's very labor intensive,” she said. “I wouldn't want to be the person harvesting them.”

She got her start just making extra for the other members of her Clayton moms group, and now she's keeping 10 different stores around the area in stock.

You can find Jodi's Elderberry Syrup locally at C.E. Barnes store, 9BAR coffeehouse, Happy Tails Pet Grooming, Davis Drug Store in McGee's Crossroads, Bulldog Express and Crooked Row Produce.

Demand is on the rise, it seems.

“It works,” she said when asked about the growth of her business. “That's the

whole thing. It works. I like the whole concept of buying locally, and not buying something that's been sitting on a shelf for who knows how long with all the extra additives in it.”

She has the date the syrup is made on the bottom of her jars. And while it needs to be refrigerated, each jar is good for three months.

Some people add it to teas, coffee, smoothies or yogurt, but the Keegans prefer a more direct method.

“My family does little shots,” she said. “You know the little ibuprofen medicine cups? Everyone does a shot every morning and every night. … Some people don't like the taste of it. I add a lot of honey to mine to make it taste

better. Some people just don't like it. I think it tastes like Christmas.”

In addition to learning the ins and out of elderberry syrup production, Keegan had to learn how to operate a small business.

“I wish I had gone to school more for (that),” she said. “My biggest struggle is trying to balance social media and family life. I'm so used to having a job where I go to my job, do my work and then come home and I'm off. My job isn't like that anymore.

“I never thought I would be here. I never wanted to be a business owner. I worked for a couple of small business owners and I saw their struggles and how hard it is to stay afloat, manage employees and everything. This just kind of came about, and I feel like everything happens for a reason.”

The business is a family affair. Her dad helps with deliveries, Joe helps out after his regular job and Bryson and Alexa even let their sick school friends know how they can get better faster.

But most of the time, it's just Jodi and her syrup.

Whether she's whipping up a batch or driving around making deliveries, she may not exactly be living the work life she planned to be.

But if one considers that her other professional life was focused on making people feel better, too, perhaps the rise of Jodi's Elderberry Syrup isn't so accidental after all.

For more on Jodi's Elderberry Syrup, visit her Facebook page at facebook.com/jodiselderberrysyrup or email jodisberries@gmail.com.