Team

Shelly Landscaping

Owner

Steve began in Orange County, CA in the fine arts as a photographer, artist and designer. This passion soon led to bringing this love for color, composition, scale and texture into the landscape medium. After taking care of landscapes in Anaheim Hills, California for a couple of years, Steve moved to Albuquerque in 1980 to take graduate classes in Art History and Photography. He soon continued in landscape design and maintenance to take care of his family and “Art Habit”.

Over the past 38 years, these two passions have dove tailed into a very enjoyable and successful creative process. Click here to visit his Fine Art website.

The most enjoyable part of this job is meeting and listening to the ideas and goals of new and existing clients and developing a plan for bringing about their dreams and vision.

We are blessed with committed, skilled staff who have worked together for many years to serve our clients needs. Most of our team has been at Steve Shelly Landscapes for over 12 years, some up to 20 years. This longevity brings about a smooth working environment and a group who knows the goals and intricacies of this company.

Office Manager

John has been with us over 20 years. His commitment to this company and ability to make people feel welcome is an amazing asset to this company. His careful approach to bookkeeping and finance have helped Steve Shelly Landscapes develop an excellent reputation for paying bills on time and meeting the needs of our clients in an efficient and friendly manner.

Office Manager

John has been with us over 20 years. His commitment to this company and ability to make people feel welcome is an amazing asset to this company. His careful approach to bookkeeping and finance have helped Steve Shelly Landscapes develop an excellent reputation for paying bills on time and meeting the needs of our clients in an efficient and friendly manner.

Crew

Experienced, organized and self-motivated, these guys get the job done efficiently and aesthetically.

Sean Whalen

Weekly Maintenance Truck Lead

Sean Whalen is the weekly maintenance truck lead at Steve Shelly Landscapes, bringing an impressive 45 years of landscaping experience and 3 months with the company. His current strengths include native plant care, safety protocols, fertilizer application, and tree/shrub pruning. He’s certified in herbicide application and is interested in developing his irrigation skills. Sean enjoys mountaineering and camping in his free time and finds satisfaction in revitalizing neglected properties. He appreciates the plant diversity he encounters, the opportunity to maintain high standards, and the camaraderie of his coworkers. “Customer focus” is the value that resonates with him most, as he takes pride in delivering beautifully maintained landscapes. His work motto is “Get it done,” and he emphasizes a strong personal dislike for invasive weeds—proof of his commitment to quality and excellence in every job.

Elijah

Construction/Maintenance Team Member

Elijah is a construction/maintenance team member with 6 years of experience in landscaping and is new to Steve Shelly Landscapes. His expertise lies in irrigation installation and repair, tree/shrub pruning, lighting, water feature maintenance, and artificial turf. He wants to deepen his understanding of irrigation and plant care. Elijah is flagger certified and has attended the Think Trees Conference. Outside of work, he enjoys fishing, boxing, riding 4-wheelers, and working on cars. He has a particular fondness for the Yuka plant and enjoys making clients fall in love with their yards. He values being part of a strong team and expanding his knowledge. “Professionalism,” “team support,” and “customer focus” are important to him, as he believes in treating each job like it’s for himself. His guiding principle: “Treat your job like you’re doing it for yourself!”

Tia Huffman

Maintenance Team Member

Tia Huffman is a maintenance team member with one year of landscaping experience, having joined Steve Shelly Landscapes just 13 days ago. She considers herself a jack-of-all-trades and is eager to learn every aspect of the industry. She holds HAZWHOPPER training and has experience in customer care. Her hobbies include photography, playing guitar, reading, and spending time in nature. Tia loves working with her hands and seeing transformations through before-and-after results. She appreciates her supervisor’s willingness to share knowledge and values professionalism, honesty, and communication. Tia’s motto is to work as though her 92-year-old grandma will inspect the results—every detail matters. She wants customers to know she works fast, hard, and with a keen attention to detail.

George Owen

Landscaper

George Owen is a landscaper with 8 years of experience, including 6 at Steve Shelly Landscapes. He specializes in irrigation, native plant care, xeriscaping, hardscaping, equipment operation, and lighting and water feature maintenance. George is passionate about all aspects of landscaping and enjoys skateboarding and building with stone in his free time. His favorite landscaping element is rock walls. He loves working outdoors and values "respect" as a core company value, believing that without it, everything suffers. His approach is to do quality work that lasts: “Do it right the first time.” He believes in doing a professional job with honor.

Nicholas Griffin

Construction Crew Leader

Nicholas Griffin is a construction crew leader with 21 years of experience—all spent at Steve Shelly Landscapes. His expertise spans irrigation, native plants, equipment operation, crew training, and lighting/water feature maintenance. He's looking to improve his skills in technology, especially with wi-fi irrigation timers and lighting systems. A gamer outside of work, Nicholas enjoys working with irrigation and water features. He finds satisfaction in seeing completed projects and takes pride in client satisfaction. He values professionalism, as it builds client confidence. His guiding principle is that clients hire the team to make their yards more enjoyable, and their job is to make that happen. His ultimate goal is to provide a satisfying experience for every client.

Earlman Gandonegro

Construction Crew Lead

Earlman Gandonegro is a construction crew lead with 19 years of experience, all with Steve Shelly Landscapes. His skills include irrigation installation, hardscaping, equipment operation, training, safety, and lighting/water feature installation. Earlman is passionate about building waterfalls and wooden planters and is currently pursuing MS06 certification. He enjoys fishing and hunting outside of work and loves working with desert willows and setting boulders. Earlman enjoys teaching new workers and values "team support," believing collaboration is essential in a small-crew environment. His motto is to stay calm and find solutions with patience and creativity. He wants customers to know their vision drives his work, and believes that the proof is in the details.

Donovan Gordo

Maintenance Division Lead

Donovan Gordo is the maintenance division lead with 15 years in landscaping and 8 years at Steve Shelly Landscapes. His expertise includes irrigation maintenance, native plant care, hardscaping, equipment use, training, safety, fertilizer application, and lighting and water feature maintenance. Donovan is interested in deepening his plant knowledge, specifically scientific nomenclature. He’s certified in OSHA, Forklift Operation, and MS06, and enjoys fishing. He particularly enjoys installing flagstone. He values the joy of seeing happy clients and enjoys working with good people. “Team support” resonates with him most, as he prioritizes helping others grow. His motto, from Joe Dirt, is “Life’s a garden, dig it,” and he’s always focused on improving and satisfying the customer.

Chelsey Romero

Job Position

Chelsey Romero has 5 years of experience and 1 year with the company, contributing behind the scenes with crew training and broad support. She's eager to learn more about fountain and waterfall design and has a diverse background, including a painter's license, EPA lead certification, OSHA-30, Forklift Operator, and SHRM certification. Her hobbies include resin crafts and clay work. She loves sunflowers, echinacea, and unique water features. Chelsey appreciates the dynamic nature of her role in a small company where no day is the same. She values all company principles, especially team support and customer focus, emphasizing how aligned values build strong company culture. Her motto: “Work hard, play hard.” She enjoys connecting with customers and helping bring their visions to life.

Phaizon Osbourne

Construction Member

Phaizon Osbourne is a construction member with 1 year of experience and 10 months at Steve Shelly Landscapes. He currently specializes in native plant care and tree/shrub pruning and is working on improving his project planning skills. He has training in irrigation and equipment use. In his free time, he enjoys framing and crafting traditional longbows and arrows. He finds joy in working with trees and appreciates the camaraderie of his coworkers. The value of "respect" stands out to him because it’s essential in all aspects of life and work. His guiding principle is simply to work, reflecting his straightforward and committed approach to landscaping.