In 2005, I was owner of a small poetry business. I personalized poems for various occasions. The poems were printed on parchment paper and presented in beautiful rustic wood frames. In April of 2005, I received an email from Jacob. He owned a gift shop in the North Georgia mountains. His parents were celebrating there 65th wedding anniversary. He wanted a poem created in their honor. Jacob only needed the poem. He didn’t need the frame. Out of curiosity, I asked did he mind me asking how he would present the poem. He agreed to show me after the celebration.
Jacob shared wonderful stories with me about his parents, Rick and Katy. I had plenty enough details to create a unique poem. Several weeks after the anniversary I received an email from Jacob thanking me for my help. In his email he included a picture of black marble that was cut into a heart shape. On the front of the heart was his parents’ wedding photo. On the back was the poem we’d created. It was the most beautiful personalized gift I’d ever seen.
Mother’s day was fast approaching. I thought the perfect gift would be to have my sister’s graduation picture created just like Jacob did for his parents. My siblings, Ryan and Tiffany loved the idea. We agreed to travel home to New Orleans and surprise Mom with her gift.
The gift idea was a hit! My mother LOVED IT! She immediately placed it on her mantel for every house guest to see. She has always been proud of her kids. No piece of jewelry, home appliance, or clothing item purchased for previous Mother’s day had received such a response. Brownie points for ME!!!
Later that year in August, New Orleans was expecting a storm that was predicted to be pretty bad. Nothing that we hadn’t heard many times before. The news media was exaggerating like they’d always done…. None the less I convinced my mother to travel up to Atlanta long enough to let the storm pass. After going back and forth she agreed. She headed up the road to Atlanta having packed two outfits and her beloved coffee maker. Two days max and she would be back home.
We spent the next few days glued to the TV. This was real. The city of New Orleans was under water. Eventually we were allowed back into the city to see the house. My mother and I stood in what used to be the living room. I looked around in dismay. Nothing was recognizable. My mother stood there unable to hold back her tears. “It’s all gone!” “It’s all gone!” “All of my memories!” I wiped the tracks of her tears while trying to hold back my own. As I walked around I noticed a portion of the Mother’s day plaque sticking out from beneath the television stand that had toppled over. I picked up the plaque and wiped all of the debris and mildew with the tail of my shirt. It looked brand new. I handed it to my mother. A sense of calmness came across her face. She stood quietly, clutching the plaque against her chest for what felt like hours.
We drove back to Atlanta, mostly in silence. I spent the majority of that trip reflecting on the importance of memories and being able to preserve them.
Fast forward to today. I am truly humbled and honored to be part of a business where the daily mission is to help preserve people’s most precious memories. My brother and business partner Ryan, has helped assembled a team of like minded people who understand our products are as unique as the person/event being celebrated. We work tirelessly to earn our customer’s trust one memory at a time.
We say THANK YOU…as we present to you
THE ENGRAVING HOUSE
“Where memories are set in stone”
Founder,
Troy Vincent