Robert’s Story

Robert was born in Brooklyn and spent time in Italy. During his years there, he developed a taste for Italian foods of all kinds, especially pasta. His ancestors were from Puerto Rico. His favorite pastime is to travel from Brooklyn where he still lives to cities in California. He is passionate about knowing everything he can about cars of the past. Because of the time of year he was born, Thanksgiving has become his favorite holiday.

Robert’s Life in a Gift Basket

Robert’s basket reflected his life and started at the very beginning of his life. His basket included:

The Thanksgiving edition of a magazine from the year he was born.
A book entitled “Born in Brooklyn” highlighted his childhood years in New York
A CD with sounds of Puerto Rico celebrated his ancestry.
Pastas were included since he is fond of Italian foods.
Some special California snacks and a plate that identified his favorite cities in California.
A book entitled “Automobiles of the World” provided a pictorial history of cars made in countries throughout the world.

The basket had a fall theme. Leaves with various autumn colors were arranged throughout the basket. Robert’s life basket was a birthday gift from his son.

Rachel’s Story

Rachel was born in France. When she was two, her family came to the United States. They settled in Iron Mountain, Michigan and she has lived there ever since. Her passion is gardening, especially plants that can be grown indoors. When she is not tending to her garden, she enjoys listening to Laurence Welk and the big band sounds of the 1940’s while sipping Hazelnut flavored coffee. Rachel enjoyed traveling to New Mexico and Easter is her favorite holiday.

Rachel’s Life in a Gift Basket

There were some very unique items that brought Rachel much joy when she opened her basket:

A postcard that featured unique photos of Iron Mountain, Michigan, the year that Rachel was born.
A postmark on the back and a description indicated that these pictures reflected the life of this city in her early years.
A French vase filled with pink flowers commemorated her time in France and her favorite color.
A small rug that was designed in New Mexico.
A pound of hazelnut decaffeinated coffee and a CD of the Lawrence Welk orchestra playing big band sounds.
A gardening plaque with a touching inscription about her life as a gardener. Some live indoor plants for Rachel to display on her windowsills complemented the plaque.

Since Easter is her favorite holiday, the basket had a spring theme. Chocolates, bunny ornaments, white and pink flowers adorned the basket. A lace trim originally made in France was used to decorate the entire exterior of the basket rim. Rachel’s basket was a gift from her children and grandchildren to celebrate her birthday.

Lei’s Story

Lei was born in Shanghai, China and lived there until he was five. His family eventually moved to the United States and settled in Kansas. As a child, Lei enjoyed ice-skating and skiing. He is a geologist by trade. Lei has acquired a taste for foreign beers and is fascinated with the masterpiece designs of Frank Lloyd Wright. Since he was born on October 30, the fall season, Halloween and Thanksgiving are his favorite times of year.

Lei’s Life in a Gift Basket

The centerpiece of his basket was a picture of a street in Shanghai near his home that was taken the year he was born. He was able to confirm this by comparing the picture in the basket to pictures from his early years in China. In addition to the Shanghai picture, his life was highlighted in the basket with:

A miniature of Frank Lloyd Wright’s original design studio
A beer book was found that provided the background on beers throughout the world.
A mug was personalized and engraved with his initials.
Halloween treats and decorations.
A current edition of Skiing Magazine.

The basket had a fall theme with leaves of varying fall colors. He received his special gift from his wife and children to celebrate Father’s Day.

Maria’s Story

She is originally from Florida and is Irish and Spanish. She has spent most of her life in Pennsylvania and dedicated her career to teaching the fifth grade. Her favorite holidays are St. Patrick’s Day and Halloween. She likes to cook chili and sip flavored teas and when not at home, one of her favorite interests is cruising the Caribbean Islands. She adores her two young grandchildren.

Maria’s Life in a Gift Basket

Her basket celebrated her early life in Florida. Since she was born in Jacksonville, a postcard was included with scenes of the city the year she was born. Also, a special pictorial book focused on the decade of her birth. Maria’s life was further celebrated in the basket with:

A touching poem highlighting her years as a teacher and the dedication she gave to this career.
A St. Patrick’s Day bear and a Halloween witch helped commemorate her favorite holidays.
Flavored teas along with a floral decorated teacup and a specially designed teaspoon.
A cookbook with legendary chili recipes along with a bag of chilies to get her started.
Cruise magazines with articles on sailing and the Caribbean.
A “Grandmothers are Special” keepsake book.

Florida’s state flower is the orange blossom. Flowers that resemble orange blossoms adorned the basket. Green leaves complemented the flowers because she is fond of St. Patrick’s Day. Her special gift was from her family for Mother’s Day.

Susan’s Story

Susan was born in a small town in Virginia and had quite a Beatles collection. When she was ten, her parents took her to the World’s Fair in New York City. After she graduated from high school, she entered the University of Pennsylvania nursing school and she has been a registered nurse for many years. She has a passion for cooking and has an interesting collection of cookbooks from places that she has visited. Her travels have taken her to several European cities. Since her ancestors were from Ireland, she is fond of everything that has to do with the Irish. Her favorite holiday is Christmas.

Susan’s Life in a Gift Basket

Susan’s basket was a unique celebration of her life starting with her days in Virginia. The basket included:

A booklet that highlighted key events, advertisements, foods and trends during the year that she was born.
A tray from the New York World’s Fair.
A video to commemorate the year that she graduated from high school.
A University of Pennsylvania nursing school scarf created during the time that she was a student.
A Russian nesting doll dressed as a nurse.
A plate from Austria with scenes of tourist attractions.
A cookbook entitled “Recipes from Around the World”.
A special Irish ornament to highlight her Irish heritage.

Since Christmas is her favorite holiday, a basket was used that had an interesting dark red color and displayed flowers with a blend of green and red. The basket was a gift from Susan’s brother for Christmas.

Joanna’s Story

Joanna was born in Texas and studied journalism in New York City. After college, she settled in Manhattan and began her career as a writer. She has lived close to Times Square for several years and has a room in her apartment dedicated to the New York Yankees. Since she is Italian, she is interested in anything that has to do with Italy. Her favorite city is Tuscany; her favorite foods are pastas, sauces and polenta. In her free time, she enjoys listening to Motown songs.

Joanna’s Life in a Gift Basket

The basket was a celebration of Joanna’s early life in San Antonio to her present day in New York City. Her basket included:

A tourist and visitors guide and map of San Antonio from the decade in which she was born.
A framed picture of the Yankees from the year she was born.
A dictionary of quotations to celebrate her career as a writer and journalist.
A book entitled “Bella Tuscany”.
Pasta, sauce, bread sticks and polenta for her next Italian meal.
A CD dedicated to the Motown sounds.

Joanna likes every color imaginable. A white basket was decorated with numerous red, green, blue, yellow and orange flowers and accented with a rainbow-colored bow. This basket was a gift from Joanna’s sister for her birthday.