Soliciting advice from the Oklahoma State University Cleveland County Extension Office and local beekeepers, Richtmeyer said within three years of the incident, he and his wife, Betty, were maintaining up to 500 hives of the swarming insects in their rural back yard.

Bees, Richtmeyer said, have fascinated him throughout his entire life. And though many Americans may fear the flying habits and hive activities of bees, the New York native says bees are a part of nature and don't deserve a bad rap.

"I've never been afraid of bees. I think that's why we get along so good," Richtmeyer said. "People kind of like to build up those fears of bees. They don't realize that without a bee, you wouldn't have any vegetables, any food."

Their business grew quickly, at first focusing on maintaining hives and providing bees to local farmers for pollination purposes, but it wasn't long before byproducts of honey and pollen became a part of the Richtmeyer's business.