Running a business while living a life

Photo: Neighbors of the Wasatch Back // Jill Baker.

When I last sat down with the Mason family, they were balancing the momentum of their growing auto shop, L&L Repair, with the rhythm of raising teenagers, managing schedules, and building a life that felt both busy and full. Lynn and Theresa’s daughter, Peyton, was just starting high school. The shop had five employees. Weekends consisted of shuttling around to marching-band competitions, sports events for the couple’s sons, and the long days of hands-on ownership that define most small businesses.

Catching up with them now feels a bit like opening a book to a later chapter, where some of the hardest challenges are settling into a more comfortable, lighter pace and the main characters can breathe (just a little) easier. The business has grown, their family has changed shape, and the two of them have entered a season that is full of unknowns but is exciting at the same time.

Since their first magazine feature, the Masons have added a sixth employee and welcomed a full-time office manager. That one hire, Theresa explains, changed everything. “It freed up time so we could finally be creative. Before that, we were buried in the day-to-day. We were always hustling inside the bubble just to get through the grind.” With help in the office, they try to shift from running the business to leading it. They are implementing new programs for their technicians, updating the shop’s appearance, and even installed two giant 15-foot spark-plug signs that have quickly become a joyful symbol of the shop’s personality.

Lynn adds that stepping back from the pressure of daily operations made space for perspective. “When you are always in the weeds, you cannot lift your head long enough to step into real ownership,” he says. “Now, we finally can.” In the last year alone, the shop welcomed nearly 400 new customers and now services 60–70 cars each week. Even with this growth, the Masons remain committed to quality, consistency, and personal service. They take pride in being the kind of local business that remembers names, takes time to explain repairs, and treats customers with the familiarity of a long-established neighborhood staple.

Much has shifted at home as well. Peyton is now a junior in high school, focused on marching band and mastering the tenor saxophone. Porter and Parker are young adults living locally; Porter is employed at Deer Valley doing lift repair, and Parker now works alongside Lynn and Theresa at the shop, a detail that brings both pride and reflection.

Lynn grew up in a family business and remembers the pressure he felt to work because he had no choice. He is determined not to pass that experience to his own children. “I want the kids to know the option is always open, but not required,” he says.

Peyton, meanwhile, has her own job at a local soda shop and, somehow, still has found time to take on something extraordinary. Together with Theresa, she trained their Bernedoodle, Fish, to become a certified Rocky Mountain Therapy Dog. Peyton completed every hour of the training alongside her mom and is one of the youngest handlers the program has seen. Each week, they bring Fish to the high school, where she offers comfort to students who need a soft presence, a wagging tail, or a moment of warmth between classes.

For Theresa, this new commitment has helped her navigate the emotional process of redefining who she is as her children grow up. “You give so much of yourself as a mom,” she says. “Then one day, you look around and think, ‘Who am I now?’” It is an experience many parents can relate to, but Theresa speaks about it with a mix of vulnerability and strength. “Self-care is new for me,” she admits. “I am learning what it means to take time for myself. Sometimes that looks like meditation or reading a book. I am just trying to find peace with the future.” 

Theresa has also been navigating her own health journey. After going into remission for her thyroid several years ago, she now has yearly checkups to ensure she remains cancer-free. She also lives with rheumatoid arthritis, which once limited her ability to perform simple tasks. There was a time when she could not squeeze toothpaste onto her toothbrush. Lynn would prepare it for her, and Peyton would unknowingly rinse it away, wondering why her mom had left toothpaste sitting on the brush—a memory Theresa shares with warmth, humor, and gratitude. Thanks to new treatment, her arthritis is now in a much more manageable place. “The injections have been life-changing,” she says. “I have come so far from where I was.”

Her health updates bring perspective to everything else they are building. Stronger days ahead mean more trips, more energy, and more moments to enjoy the life they have worked for.

One of the biggest changes in their lives is surprisingly simple. For the first time in decades, they can leave the house without coordinating driving schedules, arranging carpools, or reminding anyone to finish their homework. It is a new era for their relationship. Last year, they purchased a motorhome and have been exploring places they never had time to visit. They have traveled to Glacier National Park, spent long weekends in St. George, and begun planning a meaningful trip to Hawaii, which will include a visit to Pearl Harbor, fulfilling one of Lynn’s long-standing dreams.

Lynn has a deep love for American history. He is fascinated by old coins, old money, and imagining the hands that passed them down through generations. After an enjoyable trip to Boston last year, the East Coast—with its historic streets and stories—is high on the Masons’ list of future destinations. The two of them have also grown to love long e-bike rides and desert trails. On weekends, they sometimes take their Jeep through the Arizona Strip, seeking quiet overlooks of the Grand Canyon that most visitors never see. As Lynn describes it, “Not tourist spots. Places where you feel like the only people for miles.” These are the adventures they have been able to experience in the space left behind when children step confidently into independence.

Balancing a rapidly growing business with newfound personal freedom has required thoughtfulness. Theresa and Lynn are still at the shop most days, and they still work long hours, but their approach has changed. They are building a company designed to serve their customers, create opportunities for their employees, and give them breathing room to enjoy the life they have earned. They are not waiting until retirement to live. They are living now.

For Lynn, the future is about experiences, seeing the places he has dreamed of and staying physically able to enjoy them. For Theresa, her future has a theme of self-discovery—caring for her health, embracing calm, and finding joy in new phases. The heart of both their stories is love for family, pride in work, and a commitment to growth that is manageable. In the center of it all is the shop, sporting its new spark-plug signs, along with the customers who trust them. The Masons move forward building, learning, and dreaming together. They continue to be an example in our community of what it looks like to grow in purpose with gratitude.