Jeffrey drew a tiny lightning bolt for the label.
By the time the boys turned eight, my folding table at the farmers’ market had grown into a small online business.
Then three local stores carried our tea.
Then twelve.
Then a regional grocery buyer called.
I nearly hung up because I thought it was a prank.
Within two years, I had employees.
Then a small production space.
Then a warehouse.
I named the company Ellis Hearth Tea Company.
The word Hearth was important to me.
A hearth is the center of a home.
A place that stays warm.
A place you come back to.
That was what I wanted our house to be for Jeffrey and George.
Something permanent.
Something no one could suddenly drive away from.
The business grew far beyond anything I’d imagined.
Eventually, we employed forty-three people.
We shipped across the country.
A private investment group once offered me more money than I knew how to process for a controlling stake.
