The story of how Philip Lee Nelson (Artist and Designer) and I came together as business partners has been of interest to our customers and others — at least it’s something I’m frequently asked about.

My career background began at the age of 13 years volunteering and working with senior citizens.  Taking care of and protecting them in their fragile years when they could no longer speak their voice effectively has been my passion for over 30 years.

After working in the banking industry for nine years, I became self-employed in 1985 in a bookkeeping/financial management business that continually evolved toward serious legal issues with seniors’ estates and elder financial abuse.  I desperately needed a really good, honest lawyer who had a compassionate heart for seniors.  Finding one was another matter!

After years of searching, I met Phil, a lawyer at that time who was specializing in elder and estate law.  Being very detailed people, we hit it off right away and began working together.  Our cases consisted of guardianships, conservatorships, estates, fraud investigation, trusts, estate liquidation — the list goes on.

This continued for many years until one day Phil dropped a bombshell announcing he was retiring from law and moving with his wife to the northern most end of the state (opposite from me).  Well that changed everything!

Now what to do!?  Phil had an idea.

A multi-talented person, who besides law has worked in journalism and as the assistant to the publisher of  Sunset Magazine, Phil also had a lifelong love of art.  So, one day he sat me down in his office with a stack of photographs of benches and sculpture he had designed and sold periodically throughout the years.  I was shocked to say the least.  I didn’t know anything about powder coated steel, let alone modern sculpture!    And yet as an avid gardener and art lover, I was interested in and have always loved art, which set me to thinking.

After several days of persistent discussion and deliberation, Phil asked me to work with him to see if we couldn’t take his part time endeavor and turn it into a real business.  Well, I agreed.  The memorial bench idea just really hit home.  We’d been working with folks on death and dying for so many years, it just seemed like a wonderful idea to be on the healing side, making people feel better in a time of sorrow — allowing them a permanent place to remember a loved one who may be gone, but not forgotten.

So, that was then and this is now.  We love working with people and businesses on a personal level. Giving folks their choice of colors and designs.  Providing artistically designed custom benches that are not only comfortable and durable, but meaningful works of art.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have about our memory benches.  We’re only a phone call away.

Leeana Van Valkenburg

President

1-888-812-3624