Discover Lafayette welcomes Heather Borges, owner of Bee Organized Lafayette, a professional organizing and life-transition company serving the Lafayette area.

January is National Organizing Month, and this first conversation of 2026 kicks off the new year with practical insight into why organization is so personal and so powerful.

Heather shares her path from nursing to professional organizing. A graduate of UL-Lafayette in 2009, she spent 16 years as a nurse, including work as a dialysis nurse, in home health, and as a school nurse for Lafayette Parish for 11 years.

Heather explains that home health nursing, in particular, exposed her to how people actually live in their homes and how clutter can affect safety and daily functioning.

Burned out after COVID but still wanting to serve with compassion, she began researching professional organizing and discovered Bee Organized, a nationally based franchise that is locally owned and operated. After years of prayer and discernment, she made the leap, supported by her family and husband, calling it a step away from security but toward purpose.

Heather describes Bee Organized as a tight knit franchise community based out of Kansas City, Kansas, with regular Zoom meetings and a strong culture of encouragement. She explains that the company’s approach is grounded in compassion, sustainability, and truly understanding how each client functions in their space. As she puts it, “We’re not just going to make things look pretty on the shelf. We’re really listening to you and seeing how you function, how you want it to function.”

A recurring theme of the conversation is how overwhelmed people feel by their belongings. Heather says many clients tell her they feel paralyzed, explaining, “They go into the room, and then they just back out and close the door… ‘I can’t. I don’t know where to start.’” Her response is reassurance and process: “Nope, we got it. We are going to help you go through it.”

Bee Organized prefers clients to be present during sessions so the systems created are realistic and maintainable. “Our goal is for you to be able to maintain it,” she says.

Heather walks through Bee Organized’s complimentary in-home consultation process, where she assesses personalities, volume of belongings, and how a client wants a space to work. She emphasizes that square footage alone doesn’t tell the story: “A 1,400-square-foot home may have double the stuff as the 1,400-square-foot home across the street.” During consultations, she takes notes, photos, and measurements, and provides an estimate within 24 hours. She also offers flexible options for those who prefer to send photos or videos instead of an in-person visit.

A key part of Bee Organized’s philosophy is recognizing different organizing personalities. Heather explains several types, including the “Crammer Jammer Stacker,” which she describes as “organized chaos,” where someone has a lot in one space but knows exactly where everything is. She also discusses the “Aspire,” who buys supplies for hobbies they hope to do someday; the “Just in Case” person who stocks up out of caution; the “Memory Keeper,” who holds onto sentimental items; and the “Money Minded,” who struggles to part with expensive purchases. These insights help her team, called “the Bees,” approach each job with empathy and strategy.

Some of the most moving moments come when Heather talks about memory-based organizing. She shares stories of helping clients preserve meaning without forcing them to discard cherished items. One example involved turning her own late grandfather’s Western shirts into teddy bears for grandchildren, with the remaining shirts donated to a nursing home. “We do not force you to get rid of things because those memories are special to you,” she says.

Bee Organized also offers keepsake boxes, memory albums, T-shirt quilts, and access to a local vendor list to support these projects.

Beyond home organization, Bee Organized Lafayette provides packing and unpacking for moves, downsizing support, commercial organization for spaces like coffee shops and spas, donation drop-offs, help selling items online, and pre-estate-sale organization. Heather notes, “We’re not an estate sale company… we’re charging you our hourly rate,” emphasizing transparency and flexibility. Concierge services include holiday decorating, gift wrapping, personal shopping, and seasonal setup and takedown.

Heather also shares practical advice listeners can use immediately. One of her favorite tips is the “this-and-that bucket,” where items that accumulate during the day go into one container and must be dealt with within 24 hours. “Everything has a home,” she repeats throughout the conversation, explaining that visual clutter often becomes mental clutter. She encourages people to finish the task of grocery shopping by putting groceries away, rather than leaving them on the counter to become a source of stress.

Reflecting on what surprised her most about this work, Heather says she didn’t expect the emotional impact. “I’ve had people cry, and they tell me they can breathe again.” She describes seeing clients feel lighter, calmer, and energized by their spaces, sometimes comparing the experience to a “fresh start.”

Heather invites listeners to take advantage of National Organizing Month in January and begin decluttering, one space at a time.

Bee Organized Lafayette can be reached at https://beeorganized.com/pages/lafayette, heather@beeorganized.com, or you can call Heather at (337) 341-2025. As Heather reminds us, “One box at a time. One spot at a time.”

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