June Chamber Member of the Month Heartland Jewelry
The Aurora Chamber of Commerce would like to recognize long time Chamber Member Heartland Jewelry.
Current owners Dan & Jeri Willis purchased the jewelry business from Weller’s Jewelry and changed the name to Heartland Jewelry in 1995.
Both Dan and Jeri grew up in the Marquette area and moved to Aurora in 1987. Dan worked many years in the auto parts and farm implement parts industry and Jeri worked as an administrative assistant prior to starting Heartland Jewelry.
Heartland Jewelry has been actively involved in the Chamber of Commerce in Aurora since taking over the business and have been supportive of many charitable organizations in the community.
They say the cornerstone of their business is fine jewelry, diamonds and gemstones, as well as custom jewelry design but they also offer so much more.
"The other side of our business is jewelry repairs. Some of our repair services include: soldering, repair of chains and necklaces, resizing of rings, redesigning, diamond and gemstone replacement, restringing, and much more," said owner Jeri Willis. "Here at Heartland Jewelry we do custom engraving and trophy and award creation, We also sell a variety of special occasion gift items. Plus we offer jewelry appraisal services, ear piercing, and jewelry cleaning. We are happy to share our expertise with those who desire diamonds, gemstones, gold, silver and new alternative metals." Jeri says that there is no typical day at their store as with such a small staff sometimes they are the chief executive officer, the janitor, and the maintenance person all within a few hours.
But, they say that the best days are the ones that they get to see how their work directly impacts people. "The best day of work is when we get to meet the bride for whom an engagement ring was purchased and to share her joy and anticipation of the upcoming wedding. We also love the day when a customer comes back after we’ve repaired or redesigned their jewelry. We love to hear their reaction to their own jewelry that we’ve made beautiful again."
Their staff consists of four people includes Dan and Jeri Willis along with Chris and Michelle Small.
"The four of us have formed a good team, and we all believe in excellent customer service. Throughout the years we have maintained that our customers are more valuable than our merchandise, and we strive to serve each of you with integrity," said Jeri.
In their spare time they like to remodel houses. Throughout 45 year marriage they said they have bought and remodeled at least 8 homes. They just recently finished one home remodel that is up for sale, if you have interest in seeing it please give them a call. Dan and Jeri says they have 3 children and six grandchildren who are the light of their lives.
"We have been actively involved in our church throughout the years, teaching Sunday School, singing in the choir, serving in worship service capacities, etc," Jeri said. Dan is a member and past officer of the Aurora Optimist Club while Jeri is currently serving as secretary for the Aurora Chamber of Commerce Board and says she was one of the originating forces behind Aurora’s Halloween event, “Scare the Square”. Jeri and Dan says they love going camping and Dan enjoys spending some time on the golf course.
"We love living and doing business in Aurora. There is wealth beyond dollar signs here. We are grateful for good people who have mentored us and encouraged us along our business journey." For more information about Heartland Jewelry, check them out on auroranebraska.com under the business directory.
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