05/28/2026
In the 1953 book "Where Main Street Meets the River", author and newspaper editor Hodding Carter credits an anonymous “wise woman” with this beautiful expression:
“There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One of these is roots, the other, wings.”
The great hope is that every home grows children’s roots and wings. But beyond the home, every school, every church, every community organization, and dare we say, every workplace, should help deepen the roots and expand the wings of every young person entrusted to its care. One of the greatest privileges of our work at Brownfield’s is getting to watch young people learn, grow, and mature into remarkable adults who will impact the world around them.
Today, we celebrate two such people: Creed and Emelia.
Creed was a bright, clever, rambunctious, and effervescent little boy who could not wait to become part of our team. In fact, his first day of work was on his 14th birthday — the very first day he could legally become employed in the state of Colorado. From the beginning, he was like a giant sponge, soaking up every opportunity to learn something new. He was extraordinarily confident, endlessly curious, and kept growing in wisdom and stature. Not only did he become one of the fastest folders in Brownfield’s history, he also learned merchandising, introduced new products to the store, and became exceptionally skilled in customer service.
A couple of years after Creed joined the team, a darling young lady was brought to us by a loyal customer. Her family had recently moved to Estes Park from Oklahoma to pastor a local church. Emelia was gentle in spirit, kind, intelligent, and clearly someone we wanted on our team. After working with her for only one day, we knew she possessed all the qualities of a quiet leader. Her ever-present smile, her servant’s heart, her willingness to come early or stay late, and her relentless work ethic are every employer’s dream. She exudes a gentleness of spirit balanced by a calm confidence that changes a room. She dreamed of becoming a nurse, and truly, she has been gifted with every skill and personality trait to become one of the very best.
Then, very quickly — and we mean very quickly — we watched these two amazing young people begin to fall in love.
They hiked together, worked together, laughed together, folded together, served together, and slowly began building a life together. They fit so naturally and beautifully together that watching their relationship unfold became one of the joys of our staff. They logged countless miles with the Brownfield’s hiking group and, on May 11th, were united in marriage in Rocky Mountain National Park.
We thank Creed and Emelia for the countless memories they have given us and for the dedication they showed to Brownfield’s during their years on staff. We celebrate them, we honor them, and we pray abundant blessings over their new life together. And we thank God for the privilege of playing even a small role in deepening roots and growing wings in the lives of the precious young people in our midst. It may just be the very best part of the business.
