Many of us don't realize how precious our stories are until they're taken from us.

Howdy! I'm Katie Clemons. A couple of years ago, NPR's StoryCorp was in my Montana hometown during my grandma's 90th birthday. She and I hopped into their recording bus to capture some pieces of her story. I had all sorts of prompts to launch our conversations.

But we ran into a problem . . .

My grandma couldn't remember many of the most basic, significant details of her life. All those years, she never really thought her experiences were worth anything. Now just as she was seeing their value, too much time had passed.

Her stories were gone.

Later, my dad turned to me and said, "Katie, I need you to write down your story." I knew he wished he had his mom's stories. So I started writing and wondering: How many folks have stories deep inside of them that aren't being celebrated?

In 2009, my thought-provoking journal business was born!

Today, I'm a storycatcher, award-winning journal crafter, and author. I help folks celebrate their life stories and nurture deeper bonds with their families while finding greater joy and gratitude.

My proudest professional moments to date are giving a TEDxTalk (watch it here https://gadanke.com/pages/tedxtalk/) and creating "Between Mom and Me," the mother son journal inspired by my deep desire to understand what makes my son jump out of bed in the morning and what makes him pull up the covers other nights. It turns out I'm not the only mom wondering, and our sons are craving a deeper connection, too!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/188869965/

Wholesale for nonprofits and retail welcome.

I'll see you under the stars,
Katie