As I wrap up my first official season with Sacred Stones, I can’t help but feel both proud and grateful. What began as a hopeful idea turned into months filled with meaningful work, beautiful transformations, and a growing sense of purpose. What began as a new chapter for work I’ve been doing as a volunteer for years became a busy, meaningful season filled with families, history, and some truly rewarding transformations.

To everyone who trusted Sacred Stones with their gravestones this year: thank you. Your support truly means the world to me. If you feel I provided meaningful care to a stone that matters to you, I would be grateful if you'd consider leaving a review. Your feedback not only helps others understand what to expect, but it also helps me continue offering the best service I can.

Gratitude and Growth

I’m grateful to all of the individuals, families, towns, and organizations who trusted me with the care of their gravestones and monuments this year. Being invited to preserve such meaningful pieces of our shared history is something I never take lightly.

I’m also thankful for the conversations along the way — the questions, the memories shared, and the curious onlookers who stopped to ask what I was doing. Those moments reminded me that gravestone preservation isn’t just about cleaning stones; it’s about connection, history, and community.

This first year also came with some practical lessons as a new business owner. I learned the value of putting clear deadlines on quoted prices, the importance of verifying in person how many stones, and in what condition, I’ll be working on before estimating a job, and the self-discipline it takes to consistently track mileage. None of these tasks are glamorous, but all of them matter, and they’re part of what will help Sacred Stones grow stronger and more dependable in the years ahead.

Reflecting on a Year of Change

This first year in business was full of lessons — both practical and unexpected. I learned not to quote a price without first verifying how many stones are at a gravesite, that the folks working in the Concord Cemetery Department office are incredibly helpful and knowledgeable, and that I’m still figuring out the best places to spend money on advertising. Each experience, big or small, taught me something valuable about running a business and serving my clients well.

It was also a year of experimentation. Earlier in the season, I tested Endurance Gravestone Monument Cleaner, the new product from Atlas Preservation that emerged after their split with D/2 Biological Solution. I’ve continued using Endurance since that first trial on the Civil War monument in Concord, and it continues to impress me.

Its consistent performance — and how easily it rinses away biological growth — has made it a new go-to in my cleaning kit. I’m looking forward to seeing how it holds up over the winter months and into next spring.

Looking Toward an Historic Year

As 2026 approaches, our nation will celebrate 250 years of independence — a milestone that reminds us how much courage, sacrifice, and perseverance built this country. For me, that milestone highlights the importance of remembering and honoring those who served, and the monuments and gravestones that carry their stories. Each stone is a testament to endurance, and preserving them is a way to show our respect for the generations who came before us.

I’d love your help in shining a light on patriotic monuments across New Hampshire, so I'm launching an informal challenge: let’s find the patriotic monuments across New Hampshire that deserve a bit of attention before the 250th. If you happen upon a military or historic stone that looks like it could use a bit of care — whether it’s in your town or simply something you notice in your travels  — please email or text me a photo and tell me the location. I’m hoping to feature some of these monuments in future blog posts and, when possible, work with the towns that steward them so we can give these stones the respect they’re due.

Until the Next Season

For now, my tools are cleaned and packed away, but the mission remains the same — to bring stones from neglect to respect, one at a time.

To all who made this first season so rewarding: thank you for your trust, your kind words, and your encouragement. Here’s to a restful winter and a bright, meaningful year ahead.