The Founding of Precious Moments
If you’ve been following along on the blog, you know I started this Precious Moments Series talking about the Original 21 Precious Moments, along with their fun back stories. Bill and Sam’s friendship lead to the creation their company Jonathan & David Inc. These two men valued Love, Faith, Family & Friendship above all else and chose to intertwine these values with their business. If you’ve not read the story of their friendship, you’ll want to read it before you read any further!
The Founding of Precious Moments
If you’ve been following along on the blog, you know I started this Precious Moments Series talking about the Original 21 Precious Moments, along with their fun back stories. Bill and Sam’s friendship lead to the creation their company Jonathan & David Inc. These two men valued Love, Faith, Family & Friendship above all else and chose to intertwine these values with their business. If you’ve not read the story of their friendship, you’ll want to read it before you read any further!
I Will Make You Fishers Of Men
Gene Freedman is another key character in the Precious Moments Story. Gene was a WWII veteran with no specific future plans. He began his career in giftware and by the 1950’s had his own business that produced decorative figurines and injection-molded plastics. Then in 1958 he partnered with six employees of N. Shure and bought the import division of the company.
In a clever turn of phrase, the new venture kept the initials of the well known company N. S. Co and was named Enesco. Twenty years later, in a moment all three men accredit to God’s divine intervention, Gene found himself at the LA Spring Gift Show. Seeing the I Will Make You Fishers of Men poster and the greeting cards of Jonathan & David Inc, he immediately envisioned the art as bisque porcelain figurines.
Shortly after this chance encounter with Sam Butcher’s artwork, Gene called Sam & Bill to discuss turning their work into 3D figurines. To say they were hesitant is an understatement. Neither Sam, not Bill believed anyone could show the deep commitment to the inspirational messages that was needed. Based on this phone call, Gene knew he had to prove his commitment. Instead of immediately scheduling a meeting, Gene reached out to the fourth man responsible for the creation of Precious Moments Figurines. That was Yasuhei Fujioka.
I Will Make You Fishers Of Men
Gene Freedman is another key character in the Precious Moments Story. Gene was a WWII veteran with no specific future plans. He began his career in giftware and by the 1950’s had his own business that produced decorative figurines and injection-molded plastics. Then in 1958 he partnered with six employees of N. Shure and bought the import division of the company.
In a clever turn of phrase, the new venture kept the initials of the well known company N. S. Co and was named Enesco. Twenty years later, in a moment all three men accredit to God’s divine intervention, Gene found himself at the LA Spring Gift Show. Seeing the I Will Make You Fishers of Men poster and the greeting cards of Jonathan & David Inc, he immediately envisioned the art as bisque porcelain figurines.
Shortly after this chance encounter with Sam Butcher’s artwork, Gene called Sam & Bill to discuss turning their work into 3D figurines. To say they were hesitant is an understatement. Neither Sam, not Bill believed anyone could show the deep commitment to the inspirational messages that was needed. Based on this phone call, Gene knew he had to prove his commitment. Instead of immediately scheduling a meeting, Gene reached out to the fourth man responsible for the creation of Precious Moments Figurines. That was Yasuhei Fujioka.
Yasuhei was a master sculptor in Japan, and Gene went to him with one of Sam’s most loved works, Love One Another. With this artwork, Yasuhei went to work, transforming the art from paper, to a 3 dimensional porcelain figurine. When asked where his inspiration for Precious Moments came from, Yasuhei was quick to point out the emotional tug of Sam’s work and the lovely children with tear-drop shaped eyes.
With a model figurine in hand, Gene set a meeting with Sam and Bill. According to Gene, when he first showed the figurine to Bill & Sam, “It was a tearful moment; so beautiful to behold. Sam dropped down to his knees and cradled the figurine, whispering, ‘Look, Bill, look.’” As they discussed not just business, but their mutual respect for the values of faith, love, family & friendship, all three men were in tears.
Following the meeting Bill & Sam spent a few days praying over the decision. They returned to Gene with a resounding Yes! But there was one condition. Sam & Bill wanted to work with Yasuhei to improve the final figurines. Although it was an unusual and costly request, Gene said yes without hesitation. In the end all four men realized that the collaboration between designer and sculptor lead to the best results, and that was what mattered.
Love One Another
Love One Another
Yasuhei was a master sculptor in Japan, and Gene went to him with one of Sam’s most loved works, Love One Another. With this artwork, Yasuhei went to work, transforming the art from paper, to a 3 dimensional porcelain figurine. When asked where his inspiration for Precious Moments came from, Yasuhei was quick to point out the emotional tug of Sam’s work and the lovely children with tear-drop shaped eyes.
With a model figurine in hand, Gene set a meeting with Sam and Bill. According to Gene, when he first showed the figurine to Bill & Sam, “It was a tearful moment; so beautiful to behold. Sam dropped down to his knees and cradled the figurine, whispering, ‘Look, Bill, look.’” As they discussed not just business, but their mutual respect for the values of faith, love, family & friendship, all three men were in tears.
Following the meeting Bill & Sam spent a few days praying over the decision. They returned to Gene with a resounding Yes! But there was one condition. Sam & Bill wanted to work with Yasuhei to improve the final figurines. Although it was an unusual and costly request, Gene said yes without hesitation. In the end all four men realized that the collaboration between designer and sculptor lead to the best results, and that was what mattered.
I Believe In The Old Rugged Cross
Sam & Bill created the art, Yasuhei worked with them to turn the art into the bisque porcelain figurines we’ve all come to know and love, and Gene handled the logistics of manufacturing, importing and distributing the final product. He also served as the Precious Moments Embassador of Goodwill and when Gene passed away in 2008, Precious Moments honored him with a commemorative figurine, You are Always in Our Hearts. A portion of the profits were donated to The Boys and Girls Club of America as this was one of Gene’s favorite charities.
The passion and dedication of these four men is what took Precious Moments from giftware, to highly sought after collectors items with a collectors club of over 400,000 members. They firmly believe that God’s divine plan brought them together allowing them to create a legacy of loving, caring and sharing.
I Believe In The Old Rugged Cross
Sam & Bill created the art, Yasuhei worked with them to turn the art into the bisque porcelain figurines we’ve all come to know and love, and Gene handled the logistics of manufacturing, importing and distributing the final product. He also served as the Precious Moments Embassador of Goodwill and when Gene passed away in 2008, Precious Moments honored him with a commemorative figurine, You are Always in Our Hearts. A portion of the profits were donated to The Boys and Girls Club of America as this was one of Gene’s favorite charities.
The passion and dedication of these four men is what took Precious Moments from giftware, to highly sought after collectors items with a collectors club of over 400,000 members. They firmly believe that God’s divine plan brought them together allowing them to create a legacy of loving, caring and sharing.
I hope you love the tremendous story of these four men as much as I do! You can read more of their story in my post about Sam & Bill as well as reading about the original 21 Precious Moments. Thanks for being here and allowing me this space to share what I know with all of you. I'm so lucky to have you in the Fam' 💜
I hope you love the tremendous story of these four men as much as I do! You can read more of their story in my post about Sam & Bill as well as reading about the original 21 Precious Moments. Thanks for being here and allowing me this space to share what I know with all of you. I'm so lucky to have you in the Fam' 💜
Looking for more info? Check out more Precious Moments on their website:
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/precious-moments-story-enesco-sam-butcher/
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/call-passion-call-destiny-sam-butcher-calling/
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/precious-moments-story-jonathan-david/
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/original-21-precious-moments-figurines/
Looking for more info? Check out more Precious Moments on their website:
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/precious-moments-story-enesco-sam-butcher/
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/call-passion-call-destiny-sam-butcher-calling/
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/precious-moments-story-jonathan-david/
https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/original-21-precious-moments-figurines/