Yes, we open real oysters, guaranteed to have a real pearl inside each one!
Hi. I am Laura Diehl, author, speaker and co-founder (along with my husband Dave) of Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope). Let me tell you what happened to me, and why we are doing this.
4/13/1982 - 10/12/ 2011
Our daughter, Becca, died at age 29 on October 12, 2011 from heart damage due to one of the chemo drugs she was given at age three (along with having her tiny left leg amputated) as part of her treatment for cancer.
The first two years after her death were a blur of suffocating darkness and confusion. The next couple of years I started doing a bit better, but the fifth year was another weepy one. That Christmas, my oldest son purchased some oysters to be opened live on Facebook, and the pearls inside were mine to keep as my Christmas present. It was so fascinating to watch them being opened and to see the gorgeous different colored pearl in each one.
While waiting for them to arrive in the mail one day, I found myself in tears thinking about how deeply touched I was to be able to have something tangible in my hands to remind me of the hope I have that God keeps His promises to take something so horrific, and somehow (as only He can) turn my shattered life into something of beauty that was still valuable and worth living!
Right then and there I knew I wanted to find a way to give this same "gift" of this gorgeous symbol of the HOPE we have in Him into the hands of others who are struggling like I was.
It was a bit of a journey to figure out how to be able to offer them, but as you can see, my desire to do so became a reality.
DO I HAVE TO BE A BEREAVED PARENT TO GET IN ON THIS?
Absolutely not! There are lots of other reasons to purchase an oyster for the pearl inside:
- You have faced a deep loss and want this tangible symbol of hope in your own difficult time
- You know someone who has lost a child and want to bless them with this tangible gift of hope
- You are looking for a great unique gift (birthdays, weddings, bridal showers, congratulations on an achievement, Mothers' Day, graduations, etc.)
- It's something fun and you just want to do it!
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Step one: Go to pearls.gpshope.org and PURCHASE YOUR OYSTER(S). (All oysters are guaranteed to have at least one pearl in them.)
Step two: Add any jewelry you want to purchase (to wear and display your beautiful pearl) into the cart.
Step three: Check out and pay for your order.
Step four: After we contact you to coordinate a day and time, join us live on Facebook (www.facebook.com/gpshope) to pick which oyster you want opened, and watch us open it to reveal your beautiful pearl. (If you are not on Facebook, we will Facetime you or work something else out like using Zoom or Skype.)
Note: If you are purchasing an oyster as a gift for someone you can either
- Set up a time for you to pick out an oyster, watch it being opened and have it shipped to you so that you can wrap it and give it to a recipient
- Let the recipient know what their gift is and schedule a time you can both watch (you don't have to be together since it is a live feed you can join from anywhere). The recipient will be able to pick out the oyster they want and watch it being opened, knowing it will be shipped directly to them as your special gift to them
Step five: Wait for your pearl to arrive. (It will be shipped out to you within 1-3 business days.)
Oh, one last thing...
For each pareavor (bereaved parent) who is sent a pearl, the following will be printed out and sent, along with the pearl.
