Most people think the elves at Bronner’s all wear that bright red vest. But one day in 2017, the Jordan family brought the real Christmas magic!
The Jordan family was visiting all decked out in their Bronner’s red elf hoodies. But just as radiant as that shade of Christmas red were the smiles beaming on their faces! Intrigued, we wanted to know more about this sweet tribe.
There’s no greater honor in being in business than knowing you are more than a store. Being a part of Christmas traditions and memories for generations makes us feel so special, and that’s just where the Jordan family started!
An Interview With The Jordan Family
How long have you been coming to Bronner’s?
While we wouldn’t want to date Brad (he couldn’t be more than 29 years old!), his wife Lisa was proud to let us know when we asked how they discovered Bronner’s that he has been visiting all the way from Toledo, Ohio, for more than 40 years!
“Brad is originally from Toledo, Ohio, and throughout his childhood, his family would take a day trip to Bronner’s each year. He’s been visiting for more than 40 years! When we were dating, Brad wanted to share this childhood favorite with his new love, so the two of us took a day trip. After we got married, we began making an annual weekend trip to Frankenmuth our own tradition. Bronner’s is always our first stop in town! In 2003, we had the pleasure of meeting Wally Bronner in the store, and we will always remember that. Brad shares Bronner’s with just about anyone he talks to🙂! He even sent his brothers and sisters each a memory book a few years ago as a reminder of their childhood trips.”
What it is about Christmas that you love?
“We love that Christmas is the time of year chosen to celebrate the birth of Christ! Generally at this time of year, people are more caring and loving. It is great to slow down and really enjoy friends and family making new memories and reminiscing about previous Christmas seasons! We also love and always look forward to our annual trip to Frankenmuth, which always includes Bronner’s!”
What does a typical visit for the Jordan family look like?
“We visit at least one time per year! Every once in awhile, we sneak in an off-season visit🙂! We’ve only missed ONCE in the past 18 years when we had a newborn. Over the years, we’ve invited grandparents, aunts, and family friends to share our trip with us. Typically, we have our kids take the day off school and arrive at Bronner’s on Friday around lunch time. We find Friday to be less crowded so we are able to really take it all in🙂! When we arrive, we immediately begin choosing ornaments to have personalized for us and as gifts for friends and family. Our goal is to eventually have our ENTIRE tree at home decorated with only ornaments from Bronner’s!
After we drop the ornaments off for personalization, we get tags to visit Santa. This is the only time our kids see Santa for the season. We shop around while we wait – looking at every section! Our kids really enjoy the villages. Sometimes we stop in the area where we are able to watch a video telling the Bronner’s story [Bronner’s program center in section 2]. We see Santa when it’s our turn and then usually have a snack in the snack area. After that, we pick up our ornaments and finish up by looking at the trees and outdoor decorations. We always make our way back in the evening to see the lights!”
We’d say the Jordan family could be professional Bronner’s trip planners and have really figured out how to have themsELVEs a very Merry Christmas! Still, the question begged …
What do you like most about visiting Bronner’s?
Brad chimed in to let us know:
“There are so many things we love that it is hard to choose. I think the best thing is that SO MANY of our wonderful memories are attached to Bronner’s. As we fell in love, we visited Bronner’s; after we were married, we also visited. We visited with Lisa’s parents the year that we had our first daughter, and we thought she’d go into labor while we were there! DeLaney was born on December 29 that year! We visited a few years later with a second child and grandparents from BOTH sides of the family! Another few years and another child later, and we were blessed to visit with our best friends and their children. So many of our holiday memories are connected to Bronner’s! As we decorate our tree each year, we have ornaments and decorations that bring those memories back! Bronner’s gives us such a great place and opportunity to enjoy each other and make more of those memories.
Of course we enjoy that Bronner’s has friendly employees, and the atmosphere is so welcoming. And lastly, we enjoy knowing and supporting Wally’s message. We always remember that JESUS is the reason for the season, and we love the way Bronner’s shares CHRISTmas with the world!”
So with all this talk about their family tree, gift selections and their infectious Christmas spirit, we had to know just one more thing!
What are the Jordan’s favorite items to pick up as gifts or for decorating their home?
“Our favorite items are definitely the ornaments! We always buy ornaments for each of our children’s school teachers as their gift for Christmas. Over the years we have bought ornaments not only for teachers, but also for grandmas, grandpas, cousins, friends, church family, and, of course, ourselves! We have a first Christmas ornament with the date we were married, an ornament representing the birth of each of our three children, big brother and big sister ornaments, sports ornaments, ornaments for our dog, and many of the BEAUTIFUL Nativity ornaments. As I said, we hope to someday have our ENTIRE tree decorated in ONLY Bronner’s ornaments – each attached to a wonderful memory!
We also like to pick up pieces for our Christmas village. We’ve been building our collection over the years. We have purchased small Nativities over the years, as well as many other Christmas figurines and knick-knacks. A couple of years ago we bought matching elf sweatshirts, and last year we bought a beautiful handmade bow for the top of our new Christmas tree!”
Thank you for allowing us to get to know you better. We can’t wait to see you soon, Jordan family!
