May 22, 2021
The story of Daniel’s Dragonflies:
We can smell spring in the air here on Old Mission Peninsula. It is one of the most beautiful and exciting times of the year. We have all been through many trials and tribulations this past year and hopefully, many silver linings for you and your family as well. The Secret Garden at Brys Estate will be celebrating its five-year anniversary on July 1st. As we reflect back over the past 5 years, we are so grateful to all of our wonderful visitors that have helped make the Secret Garden the special place it has become. It has been an honor for us to provide our Garden so that people can celebrate some of their most special moments. We have witnessed engagements, multi generations of families enjoying time together in nature, as well as photo sessions for weddings, graduations and family Christmas cards. It warms our hearts to hear stories from the amazing people who have been touched by this special place. The Secret Garden has been a place of solace for people going through some difficult times and illnesses as well as a peaceful place to escape the rigors of everyday life. Simple pleasures like cutting lavender and perennial flowers or picking strawberries for the first time is a welcome respite. I personally have enjoyed meeting and talking with so many amazing people from all over the world. I feel truly blessed to be able to live and work on our family’s estate. Thanks to you our guests and the beauty of nature, I am so inspired each day. This inspiration has led to our desire to give back.
The inspiration for the Secret Garden’s first endeavor to give back and help those in need began with the untimely death in May of 2020, of my 32-year-old cousin, Daniel Marks. Aunt Carol adopted Daniel at birth. At age 7, Daniel developed Duchene’s muscular dystrophy. Aunt Carol’s love, selflessness and dedication never faltered as she worked tirelessly as Daniel’s advocate to ensure that Daniel had everything he needed in this battle which ultimately resulted in an increase in his life expectancy by 10 years.
It is very interesting how sometimes things happen the way they do. One day as I was speaking to Aunt Carol on the phone after Daniel’s passing, she happened to mention some art that Daniel had created. Carol said that before he lost total use of his arms and hands, he created some block stamp prints of dragonflies, as he was particularly fond of insects. I asked Carol if she would send me a copy of them. I thought they might be something I could frame and put in my home. When I received them, I was amazed by the colors and creativity in the stamps. The idea immediately came to me that these should be shared with others and the Secret Garden would be the perfect platform. And so, “Propagate Kindness” was born! I often tell our visitors that I believe in life we are each given a unique and different platform and the key is how we use it to touch the people we encounter. We definitely can’t all be Mother Theresa (who I love and find so inspiring), but we can each, in our own special way, touch those who are put in our path in this world. Carol shared with me how Daniel used his difficulties to touch other people’s lives and encouraged them to find hope, even in hardships.
To celebrate Daniel’s life and as a way to give back, we are announcing a new product line at the Secret Garden at Brys Estate called “Propagate Kindness”. The premise is to use the Secret Garden along with the beauty of God’s nature and a bit of creativity, to help others. Each year we will pick a different cause and create a line of products to promote for a year. A portion of the proceeds will go toward that special cause. This is where you all come in. We are asking that during the next six months (May to November, 2021) that you send us your creative art of any kind that can be reproduced and put on a body product label or other products. Along with your artwork, send us a story and cause that is close to your heart. We will collect the art and stories and will pick a new cause in November 2021. We will work on the product line and label through the winter and introduce our next special cause in April 2022.
A portion of the proceeds from “Daniel’s Dragonflies” will be donated to a cause dear to Daniel’s heart – Muscular Dystrophy Association summer camps! Please help us support this amazing cause and together we can help bring joy to other children struggling with this incredibly debilitating disease. Daniel told his mom, that when he attended the Muscular Dystrophy Association summer camp, “It was the one time in my life that I felt NORMAL.”
Let’s work together to propagate kindness big and small! See all the details in the “Daniel’s Dragonflies” section of our website www.bryssecretgarden.com.
Katie Brys Elmasri
The story of Daniel’s Dragonflies:
We can smell spring in the air here on Old Mission Peninsula. It is one of the most beautiful and exciting times of the year. We have all been through many trials and tribulations this past year and hopefully, many silver linings for you and your family as well. The Secret Garden at Brys Estate will be celebrating its five-year anniversary on July 1st. As we reflect back over the past 5 years, we are so grateful to all of our wonderful visitors that have helped make the Secret Garden the special place it has become. It has been an honor for us to provide our Garden so that people can celebrate some of their most special moments. We have witnessed engagements, multi generations of families enjoying time together in nature, as well as photo sessions for weddings, graduations and family Christmas cards. It warms our hearts to hear stories from the amazing people who have been touched by this special place. The Secret Garden has been a place of solace for people going through some difficult times and illnesses as well as a peaceful place to escape the rigors of everyday life. Simple pleasures like cutting lavender and perennial flowers or picking strawberries for the first time is a welcome respite. I personally have enjoyed meeting and talking with so many amazing people from all over the world. I feel truly blessed to be able to live and work on our family’s estate. Thanks to you our guests and the beauty of nature, I am so inspired each day. This inspiration has led to our desire to give back.
The inspiration for the Secret Garden’s first endeavor to give back and help those in need began with the untimely death in May of 2020, of my 32-year-old cousin, Daniel Marks. Aunt Carol adopted Daniel at birth. At age 7, Daniel developed Duchene’s muscular dystrophy. Aunt Carol’s love, selflessness and dedication never faltered as she worked tirelessly as Daniel’s advocate to ensure that Daniel had everything he needed in this battle which ultimately resulted in an increase in his life expectancy by 10 years.
It is very interesting how sometimes things happen the way they do. One day as I was speaking to Aunt Carol on the phone after Daniel’s passing, she happened to mention some art that Daniel had created. Carol said that before he lost total use of his arms and hands, he created some block stamp prints of dragonflies, as he was particularly fond of insects. I asked Carol if she would send me a copy of them. I thought they might be something I could frame and put in my home. When I received them, I was amazed by the colors and creativity in the stamps. The idea immediately came to me that these should be shared with others and the Secret Garden would be the perfect platform. And so, “Propagate Kindness” was born! I often tell our visitors that I believe in life we are each given a unique and different platform and the key is how we use it to touch the people we encounter. We definitely can’t all be Mother Theresa (who I love and find so inspiring), but we can each, in our own special way, touch those who are put in our path in this world. Carol shared with me how Daniel used his difficulties to touch other people’s lives and encouraged them to find hope, even in hardships.
To celebrate Daniel’s life and as a way to give back, we are announcing a new product line at the Secret Garden at Brys Estate called “Propagate Kindness”. The premise is to use the Secret Garden along with the beauty of God’s nature and a bit of creativity, to help others. Each year we will pick a different cause and create a line of products to promote for a year. A portion of the proceeds will go toward that special cause. This is where you all come in. We are asking that during the next six months (May to November, 2021) that you send us your creative art of any kind that can be reproduced and put on a body product label or other products. Along with your artwork, send us a story and cause that is close to your heart. We will collect the art and stories and will pick a new cause in November 2021. We will work on the product line and label through the winter and introduce our next special cause in April 2022.
A portion of the proceeds from “Daniel’s Dragonflies” will be donated to a cause dear to Daniel’s heart – Muscular Dystrophy Association summer camps! Please help us support this amazing cause and together we can help bring joy to other children struggling with this incredibly debilitating disease. Daniel told his mom, that when he attended the Muscular Dystrophy Association summer camp, “It was the one time in my life that I felt NORMAL.”
Let’s work together to propagate kindness big and small! See all the details in the “Daniel’s Dragonflies” section of our website www.bryssecretgarden.com.
Katie Brys Elmasri