| Mr. Sam Butcher started out over 30 years past | | | | who helped bring Sam's art to life. Sam was so |
| creating wonderful drawn gifts for his friends and | | | | touched by the figurines outcome he actually |
| his close family depicted lovely children with tear | | | | wept upon first seeing it. That was literally the |
| dropped shaped eyes, he called these his | | | | most crucial moment in its history. |
| "Precious Moments". | | | | Twenty-one beautiful and original figurines were |
| Sam's talent for artistic creations blossomed at a | | | | out in the markets by the year 1978. The |
| very young age and most of all he had his | | | | collection was a major success all over. Sam |
| Mother's encouragement to learn more and | | | | received hundreds if not thousands of inspirational |
| become even more creative in his talents. He | | | | letters from customers who told him how those |
| went to Art Formal Training after his high school | | | | figurines had meant so much to their lives and |
| years and received a scholarship to attend | | | | how they had brought such joy into them as well. |
| Berkeley's Arts & Crafts College. | | | | In the year 2005, Precious Moments, Inc. came to |
| Around the 1970's Sam along with Mr. Bill Biel | | | | life and the figurines found a new home outside |
| started their own Precious Moments line of art | | | | of Enesco. Every year new figurines are introduce |
| such as posters, stationery and cards with all of | | | | to the world and web sites are found with all |
| Sam's drawings upon them, they named this first | | | | sorts of collectors and fan links to them. Did you |
| business "Jonathan and David". Bill and Sam | | | | know that there is also a Precious Moments Park |
| traveled to the Christian Booksellers Association | | | | built in the year 1989 which has a Precious |
| and Convention where they both became | | | | Moment chapel on the grounds and has over |
| bombarded by retailers enthusiastically waiting to | | | | 350,000 visitors through its gates each year in |
| place many orders for their wonderful and | | | | Carthage Missouri? |
| creative line of the new artwork. | | | | Today there are thousands of these on the |
| A few years afterwards the Enesco Corporations | | | | markets today and they even more sought after |
| Head Mr. Gene Friedman contacted Sam and | | | | and collected than all those years ago. They still |
| talked him into letting Enesco create a figurine | | | | inspire, enlighten and make us feel joy and |
| based on Sam's artwork called "Love One | | | | happiness every time we look upon those lovely |
| Another". Fujiokasan was the master sculptor | | | | and precious tear dropped eyes. |