Keeping Nick's spirit alive
Keeping Nick's spirit alive
MOSES LAKE — Sandy Garcia thinks her stepson, Nick, would find her new business "awesome."
After Nick and a friend were killed in a car accident last year, Sandy decided to follow her stepson's example of living life to the fullest by pursuing a longtime dream and opening a salon, Jewel in the Lotus, on Feb. 1.
"I've always wanted my own salon, but I've never done it," she said. "He lived his life every day like it was his last day, so I've always wanted to do one, and I said, 'Well, if I thought about it, I should do it.'"
Many of the things in the salon were inspired by Nick's spirit, from the use of wood for the salon's counters — Nick liked nature and the outdoors — and utilization of feng shui in its set-up right down to the new business name.
"He was 19 years old and his favorite prayer was 'Hail to the jewel in the lotus,'" Sandy said. "That's how I got Jewel in the Lotus, and that prayer goes with being compassionate, having kindness, joy, treating others with great compassion. Everything that he had had that on it — he had it wrote in Sanskrit on his guitar, he had it on his homework papers … We found out how much he really loved that."
Sandy said Nick always wanted people to do their best, and even wanted her to teach him how to do his own hair, because he would sometimes come home from college with some less than stellar haircuts.
"I just think he would like the way the salon looks," she said, noting that Nick liked things clean and orderly. "He liked things soothing, so I tried to make it a soothing salon. I've tried to keep things neutral, so it's not more women's or men's. I think there's a good energy and a nice balance in here, kind of calm and peaceful. I think he would be really proud of it."
Nick's brothers and sister are all "stoked" about the salon, as is his father.
"We kind of feel like he's here with us, because everything that was done, he's part of the reason that we've done them," Sandy said.
Sandy has always liked doing hair and makeup, going over to an aunt's at a young age to hone her skills by styling her aunt's hair and makeup. When she moved to Moses Lake in 1992, she worked and attended beauty school, and has been doing hair ever since.
"I guess I just have a knack for it," she said with a small chuckle. "I enjoy the variety that you get. You meet so many different people, you get to help them with enjoying themselves, improving how they feel about themselves."
Sandy said she would hear from many people who wanted her to go back to work and had liked her doing their hair.
"A lot of people really pushed for me to get this open," she said, noting that the Saturday after she opened was very busy. At present, Sandy works on her own, but notes she has room for a total of four stylists in her business.
Jewel in the Lotus, located at 817 W. Third Ave., is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Tuesday and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The salon is open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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