This International Women's Day 2021, we celebrate our favorite badass businesswoman and B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc. co-founder, Nancy Meyers.
Born in LaSalle Parish, Louisiana in 1944 to a home economics teacher and a U.S. Army officer, Nancy spent her youth in the rural town of Olla, Louisiana until the age of 8, when she and her family relocated to Trieste, Italy where her father was posted as part of Trieste United States Troops (TRUST) tasked to oversee security of the new independent free territory of Trieste on the Adriatic Sea following World War II. Here Nancy continued her school, learning and speaking Italian for several years until late 1953, when American dependents and families were evacuated due to riots and escalating tensions between Italian and Yugoslavian forces over control of Trieste. Missing the convoy departure time, Nancy and her mother then drove from Trieste towards Livorno to catch up with the US ship scheduled to take them back to the US, navigating post-war Italy’s small towns and tight streets with a map and a bag of candy. With Nancy helping to navigate by giving out candy to the local children and speaking in Italian to ask directions, they made it to the port of Livorno just in time to board the USS General H.F. Hodges (AP-144), through the Straits of Gibraltar and onto New York City. From there they drove, just mother and daughter, from New York City all the way back to Olla, Louisiana.
Nancy attended the The University of Oklahoma, graduating in 1966, helping to pay for her tuition as a secretary to noted professor of ornithology and artist, Dr. George Miksch Sutton of the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center. During her time there Nancy was also an active member of the Alpha Phi sorority. Graduating a semester early in 1966 with a BS in Social Studies and her teaching certificate, Nancy returned to Olla, Louisiana to teach high school before interviewing with United Airlines as a flight attendant, which in 1966 had a 1:150 chance of acceptance. She was hired and was based out of both New York as well as Seattle during her 12 years with United, travelling to 32 countries across 6 continents. As there were few private jets at the time, Nancy has fond memories of the “First Class” guests on some of her flights, including the Reverend Billy Graham, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, The Rolling Stones, and many other memorable passengers. The rules for stewardesses at the time were strict and appearance was paramount, including stipulations on a ban on flying if you didn’t make weight during monthly weigh-ins, termination if late to a flight more than three times, and the occasional pop on the rear by the head stewardess to ensure that female flight staff were wearing a girdle per policy. On her days off from flying, she substitute taught at high schools in the area, while also volunteering at a local school for children with developmental disabilities.
In 1972, Nancy met Brad Meyers, who was intrigued at all she had done and the places she had been, and he brought the excitement and spontaneity to a relationship that she didn’t know she was looking for. He was an explosives salesman for The Explosives Corporation of America (EXCOA), who had recently moved to the Pacific Northwest from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They were setup on a Valentine’s Day date by her friends. The second date was routine. For their third date, they went SCUBA diving off Alki Point in late February, and for their fourth date, he took her to throw hand grenades (which he had from work) and shoot his machine guns in a local quarry. Adventure found structure, and it was true love. Brad and Nancy were engaged a month later, marrying in Seattle in late July of 1972.
Nancy continued to fly for United Airlines, maintaining the sole source of stable income for the family while Brad worked to get several businesses off the ground. Brad and Nancy jointly owned several businesses, including Controlled Dynamics and later, SeaMesh Corporation, specializing in hydro-kinetic ship cleaning techniques.
SeaMesh Corporation was a unique underwater demolition company that started clearing away subsurface debris in the shipyards of Puget Sound, and evolved into providing a service for large ships to clear their hulls from marine growth while at anchor. With Brad’s patented method of utilizing a low-yield explosive mesh system, the explosive charge created a high-pressure wave effect that would clear barnacles from the ship, but leave the steel hull undamaged.
When she wasn’t flying, Nancy would work attaching explosive det cord (PETN) to netting in their Seattle home. Later on, they would create B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc., which first had its humble beginnings as an astronomy equipment businesses in their small home in Issaquah, Washington. As the Secretary-Treasurer and co-owner of B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc., Nancy would help manage the growth of their small business to success as it grew and established itself as a national brand. Known for night vision and surveillance systems for military and law enforcement use throughout the 1980’s, B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc. evolved its technology to focus on precision high-powered infrared and visible lasers for defense systems, aviation platforms, and optoelectronic integration which continues to this day.
Nancy Meyers currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc., where she focuses her time on her other businesses as well as the family philanthropic efforts through the Brad and Nancy Meyers Family Fund charitable trust. Through all her accomplishments, she is most proud of her ability to manage the challenges of running a business while also raising a family, which Nancy cites as her favorite job and her best priority.
#internationalwomensday #internationalwomensday2021 #IWD2021 #bemeyers #ollalouisiana #advancedphotonics #redmondwa #AlphaPhi #ladyboss #PNDC #womeninbusiness
