Jewelry travels on sentimental journey

 Jewelry travels on sentimental journey
By Romola M. Rigali
April 11, 2013
From left, Jenny Bourgeois, Deb Brown and Jane Giat, owners of Art From Ashes, which memorializes
loved ones by putting their ashes into glass art. Courtesy of The Republican by Don Treeger
Adornments that assume new meaning, and in a sense, immortality, when they prompt treasured memories.
Here are some area women who generously shared their stories about pieces of jewelry that symbolize their
connection with ones they want to hold dear.
Janice Beetle Godeski, of Easthampton, lost her beloved soul mate to cancer about three years ago. Here is
her story.
In the months after my husband, Ed Godleski, was diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer, he lost weight at
an alarming pace. A man once described as a “cinder block” by his massage therapist, he shrank to nothing.
One day, his wedding ring fell off.
“I tucked it in a safe place and then, not long after he died on Sept. 14, 2010, I stumbled on it. I wanted it
close to my heart, where everyone would see it, so I strung it on a simple gold chain and clasped it around
my neck. When I woke up in the morning, I would slip my finger through it. It helped to ground me,” she
said.
Sometime around the first anniversary of Ed’s death, she was ready to take off her own wedding rings, and
added them to a necklace.
“It was a wonderful reminder of a trusting, loving marriage,” Beetle said.
But when the chain came unclasped one evening, and the rings fell to the ground, she decided to put the
necklace in a safer location and hung it on the urn that holds her husband’s ashes.
The story of Beetle’s wedding ring necklace is in a book recently published through Off the Common Books
in Amherst.
Called “Divine Renovations: A Carpenter, His Soul Mate and Their Story of Love and Loss,” it’s available
locally at Collective Copies in Florence and Amherst and Eastmont Gallery and The Botaniste, both in
Easthampton.
The book is also available online at janicebeetle.wordpress.com, where you can read her blogs and see the
schedule of upcoming public readings.
For Tami Nelson Bresnahan, of Longmeadow, a piece of jewelry connects her to her heritage.
“My grandfather came to this
country alone from Greece in the 1920's,” she said.
He died at age 53 so Bresnahan never met him, but her father inherited a diamond tie clip from him who
had it made into an engagement ring for Bresnahan’s mother.
As Bresnahan prepared for her own wedding, her father
died at the age of 53, just a few months before the special date, Bresnahan said.
“On the day of my wedding, my mother gave me the ring. This year will be our
25th wedding anniversary, and I have proudly worn the ring that to me
symbolizes not only the connection to the past, but also the future.
It reminds me how life continues on, and I ponder what the future holds
for my special ring.”
Joyce-Lewis-Jones, of Springfield, has a “beautiful emerald and diamond gold dome ring. The emeralds are
my birthstones and the diamonds are the birthstone of my late son Marcos,” she said.
Her son died in June of 2003 in a horrible motorcycle accident, she said.
“He was born in April of 1976. He was 27 years old. I was at Smith & Sons jewelry store getting a battery
for my watch and noticed the ring. It has four vertical rows of emeralds and three rows of diamonds. This
ring will be willed to my granddaughter Kaylee who was born in April of 1996.
“This ring is very special to me,” she added.
Pamela Grasso, of Springfield, sends this touching story about her uncle, Ray Alexander:
During World War II, her uncle was assigned to the 871st Chemical Company stationed in Lavenham,
England. On April 12, 1945, he visited the PX and purchased a rose-gold colored Bulova watch with
matching flexible wristband to celebrate his 27th birthday, she said.
“The watch is unique whereas he had the numerals on the dial replaced with 12 letters which spelled his
name,” Grasso said.
The earliest photo from our family album of him wearing it in 1947 while celebrating her
older brother’s third birthday, his namesake, Raymond, she added.
“As a young girl, I always admired his watch. The last time I saw my uncle in 2005, he was wearing the
watch. I asked if someday I could have it. He said, “Yes, baby.”
“A month later he passed away in Florida nursing home at the age of 87. Surprisingly, 5 years later, the
watch was mailed to me. Every time I wear it, I recall fond memories and say, “I love you, Uncle Ray.”
Jacki Reardon’s late father, Arthur Corey, was stationed in Europe during World War II. When he arrived
home to his wife and baby daughter (Reardon), he brought cameos in all different sizes and settings.
“I have a beautiful set,” said Reardon, of South Hadley. “It includes a bracelet that looks like a modern-day
tennis bracelet.
“My mother had brooches and a ring. It is a beautiful memory of my dad who served his country and
thought to bring something home to his wife and daughter.”
Art From Ashes in Amherst is creating beautiful ways to remember loved ones.
The business, on South Pleasant Street, is the brainchild of three women, Jennifer Bourgeois, Deb Brown
and Jane Giat.
A minute amount of ash - about a teaspoon - from loved ones are enshrined for eternity in one-of-a-kind
glass creations by local artists. Those cremains rest beautifully in a vase, perpetual pendant, paperweight,
cufflink, sculpture and several other forms. Custom designs are also available.
We noticed one particular design in their studio, a glass baseball replica. It stood out and, as with many
other pieces, has a story behind its inclusion in the business’s offerings.
A client lost her husband at a young age. Bourgeois said.
“The woman knew that her husband loved baseball,” she added. A year after his death, the young widow
asked them to help create a baseball in glass, a memento she wanted to pass on to their son.
Another client had her mother’s ashes enshrined in 42 multi-colored marbles and handed out those globes at
her memorial service.
Their connection with their clients is profound as well as with the artists who create each piece, Giat said.
“That’s the rewarding part of this business,” said Brown.
About half of the business is devoted to memories of beloved pets, Bourgeois said.
“Most of them are dogs,” she said. “But we’ve had a rabbit and a chimpanzee named Washoe. He was the
first chimp to learn sign language.”
To see their handcrafted remembrances and for more information, visit www.artfromashes.com or call 413303-1793.
Romola Rigali is a freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected]