Down on Main Street

“Down on Main Street”

By Doug Jessop

(ABC4 NEWS – NEPHI, UTAH) It’s a sunny day cruising Main Street in Nephi, Utah.

Around lunch time people are gathering around the RJ Barbeque Food Truck owned by Ryan John. I come to find out that you better get in line fast if you want some of Ryan’s brisket before it sells out. A person in line tells me; “The loaded potato salad is top notch.” Another tells me “We’re here every time they come.” 

I visited with Seth Atkinson, City Administrator for Nephi City. He told me; “Nephi is almost centrally located right in the middle of Utah. We have crossroads, literally north, south, east and west and we can access any part of the state in just a few hours.”

We walk past some interesting historical buildings and stopped into what used to be an old grocery store way back in the day. It’s now a scrapbooking shop on Main Street that is a community gathering place. Atkinson said; “Having a shop like Remember Your Memories is critical to create that vibrant downtown feel for rural Utah.”

Ryan’s wife, Jaime John, the Owner of Remember My Memories, explained scrapbooking me to me; “Birth certificates show that you lived. Death certificates show that you died. But scrapbooks show how you really lived and that’s what it’s all about.”

It was interesting to watch the activity in this shop that has been a staple of Nephi for over a decade. A school teacher came in for supplies to decorate her classroom. Another person was coming in for wedding gift. The UPS driver came by to pick up packages. You get the idea.

Jamie is an enthusiastic person with a smile that lights up the room. She exclaimed; “My customers are my number one priority and they are the reason I am successful, and they are the reason I do what I do.”

I admit, I’m pretty passionate about storytelling and believe that if memories aren’t preserved somehow, it’s almost as if they didn’t happen. Jaime agrees and told me; “I’m going to make you a scrapbooker.”

We took and printed out pictures. She showed me different papers. Out come the cutting machine, tape and embellishments. Minutes later and I have my very own Utah Success Stories scrapbook page courtesy of Jamie.

With another Utah Success Story, from Main Street, Nephi, I’m Doug Jessop, ABC4 News.

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