Our Members Speak Out

“The nicest gifts we have received from our guest are smiles; thank you’s; sending other guest to our B&B; or the same guest returning again and again. Our guest have left lovely gift baskets filled with jams, jellies, note cards, candles etc., monies ranging from $5 to $100, and even a professional Kitchen-Aid mixer (Nancy and Donald have been return guests since we opened and know I love to cook). We have been in business for five years, and all of our gifts have been lovely!” – Bob and Dianna Chandler, Grandma’s Cottage B&B, Port Republic, VA

“It was a rainy, dreary afternoon in April, and the doorbell rang. When we answered the door, we found a lady and a tall gentleman in motorcycle leathers climbing off a Harley in the driveway. They were looking for a room, which we had available. They turned out to be a recently retired couple from England who were taking a six-week tour of the United States and making their way to a Harley gathering in Alabama.

“A couple of months after they stayed with us, we received a package in the mail. It was a framed collage that they had made for us. It included pictures of them and us on our front porch, along with a couple pictures from their travels.” – Ellen and Jerry Roth, Ivy B&B, Warrenton, NC

“We have received a variety of odd and interesting things over the years. Probably the most interesting was a bottle of dirt. A young couple from Oklahoma got married here a couple of years ago. He was a farmer, and he bottled up some dirt from his farm in a very pretty small jar and attached a note: 'For this is what was in the beginning and what will be in the end...as it is with your life...it is what you do with it in between these times that makes the difference – your piece of the farm. From, Ron'

“Our piece of Oklahoma is proudly displayed along with an old wooden iron board with a hand painted Victorian Santa and our dog, Shamus, seated at his feet. These represent the biggest and the smallest gifts we have received.” – Beverly Williams, The Inn at Bella Vista, Bella Vista, AR

“Two of our gifts tie for first place for nicest. Two of our earliest guests after we opened in the fall of 2004 were previous innkeepers. They shipped us 120 irises after they returned to their home in Florida. The irises are Iris Reticulata, a very early variety that bloomed on the following March 15, right through the snow! We received an unforgettable iris gift the summer of 2004 when we were preparing to open: An iris grower in eastern N.C. sent us ‘five bushels and one wheelbarrow full’ of iris rhizomes! She had dismantled her iris gardens and was looking for a new home for her irises; mutual acquaintances linked her offer to us. That gift included many beautiful heirloom quality irises, whites, deep wines/ambers, and yellows with antique growth habits.

“Since this venture began with our purchase of this old house in May of 2004, we have had guests, friends, and online gardeners send us irises, as they all know that the flower is our namesake and my favorite flower. We now have over 100 varieties in our gardens. We are tracking all iris gifts and are sending photo progress reports to the people who have given them to us. We keep a scrapbook of the ‘Iris Meadows Garden Club’ with pictures of both plants and people who have/are helping us. That ‘club’ also includes a couple who have given us lots of spectacular day lilies, and a young newlywed couple who has ‘adopted’ us and our little pond in the rock garden – including pond advice, fish and plants.

“Our mail today has just brought perhaps our best guest gift of all to date. With an inn full of guests last weekend, we were glad to learn that most were pet lovers, as our wonderful kitty of 20 years, Little Molly Sunshine, passed away late Saturday morning. After the hustle bustle of breakfast, I was in our quarters holding Molly in a soft towel, cuddled next to my heart as I checked the emails. Realizing how frail she was, I felt a few tears trickle down my cheek. Little Molly, purring softly, reached up a tiny paw and stroked the tears running down my cheek...and ceased her purring forever.

There was snow on the surrounding mountains, and it was snowing softly that afternoon when we placed her in the iris gardens in a sunshiny spot. Cold tears were on our cheeks, and our hearts were heavy. Today in the mail we received a cassette tape, with a song and lyrics written in tribute to Molly. One of our weekend guests, Judy Arnette, a bluegrass singer from Greensboro, N.C., and lead singer for the bluegrass band Steel Magnolia, has written and taped a song for Molly. She said in her accompanying note that she wanted to thank us for so graciously taking care of all the guests’ needs when our own were also so pressing. She said the tribute to Molly was her way of saying thanks.

“The song has this verse as the chorus:

‘There was snow on the mountain the day that Molly died
We held hands at her graveside and bowed our heads and cried
She always walked in sunshine and stayed close by our side
But there was snow on the mountain the day that Molly died.’

The last verse goes:
‘The irises are blooming now 'round Molly's bed of rest
Waving in the sunshine upon the mountain's crest
We always will remember her joyful heart of love
When we see the iris blooming on the hillside up above.’
 -- Becky Fain, Inn at Iris Meadows, Waynesville, NC

“We hadn't been open long when a gentleman called to get reservations for him, his wife and another couple during the Pella Tulip Time in the neighboring town. They had a reservation in that town for one night and wanted to stay longer and made the reservation here, sight unseen. When they got here, they were so overjoyed to find our home. He forgot his camera case and a sweater in the closet, so when I called him to ask if he'd like me to send them, he said they would be coming back the next week as they hadn't seen all the rooms with all the guests we'd had. When they got here, he proudly showed us the photo album he had made for us of the part of the home they'd seen the first visit. He then sent us the pictures of the rest of it a week later. His wife said he had never gone so crazy about a place before. Turns out, he had made a photo album not only for us, but one for himself and one for his friend. We asked them to send a picture of themselves to put in the album, and we share the treasured album with people at bridal fairs and with those who can't climb all the stairs to the third floor." – Virginia and Gary Walker, McNeill Stone Mansion B&B, Oskaloosa, IA

"Some guests stayed with us for a couple of weeks. We hit it off and loved having them call Main Street Inn home. After they left, we received a large, robin's egg blue gift box from Tiffany & Co. Inside the box was a lovely platter. The reason: our breakfasts were like having breakfast at Tiffany's. The next year, before they left, they gave us another gift, a large Depression glass bowl. The reason: they were depressed about having to leave." – Jan Zehr, Main Street Inn, Highlands, NC

"We looked up from our inn desk one day to see a beautiful exotic wood frame made by a guest who spent a very special weekend with us. This guest, a former engineering professor, was suffering from an undiagnosed condition that mimicked multiple sclerosis. He had turned to woodworking as an outlet for his creativity and as a discipline to control his body. During his stay, he investigated every nook and cranny of the inn, especially the collection of books from the 1800s. He and my husband, an engineer and pilot, exchanged ‘war and work’ stories. His curiosity was endless, and we enjoyed many hours of stimulating conversation. A few weeks after his stay, the frame with a first issue sheet of historic aircraft sheets arrived in the mail. On the back he had written a note of appreciation. He is now gone, but his gift keeps his memory vivid in our hearts." – Richard and Lani Eklund, The Inn at Locke House, Lockeford, CA

“Last year, four sisters stayed in one of our cottages. They were absolutely delightful. We could hear them out in the backyard in the evening laughing and talking, and one could tell the years had rolled back and they were girls again. It was so wonderful to hear.

"We had only been innkeepers a few months and had not yet refined all of our amenities. We had ice buckets with crushed ice for our guests, but had mindlessly purchased tongs inside of scoops. Try putting crushed ice into your beverage glasses with tongs! I apologized to them about that when I was ‘tucking them in’ to their cottage upon their arrival. I told them I was having such a hard time finding scoops locally in our small town.

"When they left and I entered their cottage, I found a beautiful gift bag sitting on the dining room table. Inside were four beautiful silver plated ice scoops – one from each of them. Every time I ready those lovely scoops for our next guests, I think of four beautiful sisters who graced our cottage." – Kate & Skip Wentworth, 2 Wee Cottages Bed & Breakfast, Fredericksburg, TX

"My mom lived in one of our cottages until she passed away. We turned her cottage into part of our inn but left many of her decorations. One item she had for as long as I can remember is a four-inch ceramic birthday angel with her birth month written on the lower bottom. I imagine it was from the 1950s. Anyhow, I was in there dusting and noticed that there was an August birthday angel next to the December angel. A few months later I was in the cottage again and noticed there was a September angel. Guests have been going to antique stores and buying me these angels and leaving them anonymously for me. Sweet way to remember my mom!

“Another gift: We were the first inn to open in Gainesville, and we used every penny we had and then some to restore our house. We hardly had any guests the first two months. I was sitting at the kitchen table one evening trying to figure out how we were supposed to pay bills. I told Joe we couldn't even pay the electric bill, not to mention the mortgage payment. Maybe our mission in life was to restore this house and then sell it to someone who had the income to run the place as an inn. He told me that our dream was to open the inn, not restore a house. Before things got any more heated, he went out to the mailbox. When he came back, he was visibly shaken. He handed me an envelope and said, ‘How can you not believe in our dream when others believe in it more than you do?’ I opened the envelope, and inside was a money order for $500. The remitter was ‘From a grateful guest for a life-changing experience’. It was just the kick that I needed to start believing in our dream. That was 15 years ago, and we are still living the dream (sometimes the nightmare)!” – The Magnolia Plantation Bed & Breakfast Inn, Gainesville, FL

“Some guests stayed with us three years ago, shortly after the husband retired. This year they returned. The husband came in the front door smiling and carrying a box that was obviously a present. When I opened it I found a handmade kaleidoscope. This gentleman had always worked with metal, and his retirement hobby was stained glass. He made the kaleidoscope for us as a surprise and as a challenge to his new hobby. It is beautiful and now resides in our lobby. Almost every guest picks it up and turns it to see the beauty within. We have had many gifts, but this was a labor of love and three years in the making so it holds a special place in our heart and our home.” – Sheila & Harlan Tyler, Architect's Inn-GC Mason House, Newport, RI

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