My favorite aunt passed away last year in California at age 91, having survived the death of my uncle by more than a decade. The instructions in her will left me with the bittersweet task of organizing, distributing, or otherwise disposing of her photos, slides, puppets, paintings, genealogical research, travel souvenirs, furniture, and so on. Many of these items held precious memories of happy days that I spent with my aunt and uncle. When the items arrived in Corvallis, they filled a 10 foot by 15 foot public storage unit to shoulder height. I needed help and Kristin provided it. She quickly organized the items in the storage unit, anticipating the tasks that we would would perform: sorting, distributing, donating, selling, recycling, disposing, etc. Sorting was the most difficult task, of course. When I got stuck in sentimentality, Kristin would have a suggestion for preserving a memory while reducing the volume of material, or she would ask a question that would give me a gentle nudge forward. Kristin’s sensitivity to family issues and her remarkable serial memory made it possible for me to assign many of the sorting tasks to her. When it came time to ship, donate, and sell items, Kristin’s experience, pickup truck, and computer savvy made it easy.

Thanks, Kristin. We are lucky to have such a professional and customer-friendly business in our town.

Steve Esbensen
Corvallis, Oregon
2/25/12