When Connie Bryant chaperoned a weekend marching band trip in Memphis this spring, it changed her career path.
Bryant, 52, of De Soto said she had been an in-home child care provider for 30 years and enjoyed it. But when she watched the marching band group’s tour guide in action, helping others make lasting memories and creating adventures for them, Bryant knew that was what she wanted to do.
“I told (the tour guide) I wanted her job,” Bryant said. “The job just looked really neat. I was totally intrigued.”
When Bryant returned from Memphis, she looked into tour guide job opportunities in the area. After some thought, she decided to open her own tour guide business, based in De Soto, for day trips. Her husband, Brad, who has a full-time job elsewhere, co-owns the business with her.
When choosing the name for the business, Bryant said she thought about her widowed mother who would enjoy getting out with other people and chose the name, Out & About Tours.
“I could provide trips for people like her,” Bryant said.
She said the business also arranges tours for couples who don’t want to mess with the hassle of fighting traffic or driving at night.
The tours also are great for those who want to hang out with friends or make new friends, Bryant said.
For the tours, Bryant arranges for a bus or passenger van through Huskey to pick up people behind the De Soto Community Center and transport them to the various venues.
Bryant’s first guided day trip was to the horse races at Fairmount Park in Collinsville, Ill., on Aug. 5, and 27 people took part.
She said she was pleased with the trip.
“It was great listening to them talk and make friends,” she said. “It was a fun atmosphere and a fun night.”
Bryant said planning and guiding the tours are fun and don’t seem like work.
“I’m having a great time,” she said.
The next two tours are already booked.
Up next will be “A Night at the Muny.” The group will see “Sister Act” after they take a backstage tour, eat a charcuterie-style dinner and listen to live entertainment. The other booked tour is a trip to the Amish community in Arthur, Ill., which will include shopping and eating a home-cooked meal at an Amish home.
Bryant has come up with a few more ideas and people have made requests. Possible tour destinations include wine country, a casino or a dinner cruise in St. Louis.
“There are so many places to go,” she said. “I keep asking for suggestions.”
For more information about the business, visit its website at outandabouttours.llc or its Facebook page or call 636-535-7775.
