GOOD FINDS
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BY KIMBERLY BONÉY
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PHOTOS: HARVEY SPECTOR
————— CROWNING MEMORIES————— C R OW N P H OTO A N D V I D E O F E AT U R I N G T H E R E S A’ S P H OTO S E R V I C E S
“Memories are the biggest part of our lives. They tell our whole story… it’s like seeing a whole family’s life right in front of me. It’s remarkable.” EVERY NOW AND THEN, the proverbial door comes within a breath of closing. If the fates align, there is a chance to slip through the narrow space, before the landscape is altered permanently. Last year, after serving the North State for 62 years as the owner of Crown Camera in Downtown Redding, Gary Engell decided it was time to retire. In the moment just before the door between the past and the future would slam shut – one week, to be exact – two people reached out, grabbed the handle and reopened the door. “What are we going to do when you’re not here anymore?” It was the question that Engell’s son, Jeff, and
Theresa Wood, who had worked at Crown Camera for 30 years, heard time and time again. As customers flooded into the store with projects during Crown Camera’s final days, their sense of panic and sadness at the thought of what they’d do without the business they had known and loved for decades was palpable. “You’d think the stock market crashed,” said Jeff Engell. Crown Camera was the only business of its kind in the North State and the realization that the community was feeling the sting of its loss prompted a big decision. Engell and Wood felt a sense of responsibility to keep its memories intact for future generations.4 continued on page 24
MARCH 2020
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