Articles and News

New Bern, NC--In a recent essay published in her high school alumni magazine, Epiphany, Madison Hearne of Hearne's Fine Jewelry reflects on her return to New Bern, and her role in the family-run store founded by her grandparents in 1972.

[Image via Hearne's Fine Jewelry/Facebook]

The article, titled "Family, Jewelry, and the Art of Intention," was written by Hearne for the publication and shared by the business on July 31 via Facebook. The piece appears on pages 4–6 of the magazine.

According to the report, Hearne had no plans of returning to New Bern after graduating from Epiphany in 2016. However, after finishing college in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she moved back home and began working at Hearne's Fine Jewelry, a job she initially saw as temporary.

"Little did I know the significance of this unintentional journey," she wrote.

Per the post, she has spent nearly five years working alongside her father and grandmother at the store. She credits the longevity of the business to customer service and consistency across generations. "From helping customers with a ten-dollar watch battery or a ten-thousand-dollar diamond ring, they truly treat each and every customer who walks through our doors with the same attentiveness and care," the essay noted.

Many customers who first came in during the 1970s now bring their children and grandchildren. Hearne wrote that the store's focus is on relationships and service, not just sales.

She also addressed the challenges of retail, noting that not every interaction is ideal, but that effort and consistency matter: "The key is to always try."

Read the entire essay here.