Some of the best childhood memories are made in the outdoors, and Glenn Wiley is looking to bring that joy back to eastern North Carolina families.

Wiley is a businessman by nature, having been a business owner since early adulthood and opening his first one in 1996. He and his family are also longtime Greenville residents, so Wiley is right at home in this area.

It was his family that inspired him to explore the franchise business Mosquito Joe, a company that works to keep mosquitoes away from a family’s outdoor property.

“I have a 5-year-old son, and I remember growing up I’d always play outside, and I’ve been trying to get my kids to play outside more, but what I’ve noticed is that my son would always come in with these big welts from mosquito bites,” Wiley said. “That made me start looking into what I can to do to prevent mosquitoes in my yard, so my son can enjoy being outside because he loved it so much.”

The Greenville-based Mosquito Joe operates with two technicians at this time, with plans to add more, and will start serving clients in early April.

Wiley said his business will service Beaufort, Pitt, Craven, Edgecombe, Nash and Wilson counties.

“I’ve learned a lot probably in the last six months of mosquitoes,” he said. “It only takes a bottle cap full of water to breed 1,000 mosquitoes. … The one thing we try to do is eliminate any standing water.”

What attracted him to the Mosquito Joe franchise, however, was the strong customer service aspect, and he said he plans to place a large emphasis on that.

Part of that customer service aspect is giving families those experiences in which lifelong memories are made.

“I want to make outside fun for everybody — for kids to go out and enjoy playing on trampoline, play swing sets, or even playing in the woods if they have woods in their yard.”

For more information, visit www.easternnc.mosquitojoe.com.