It all began with a pair of cowgirl boots and a load of ductwork.

In 2014, Heather had just moved back home from Texas and was working for a supply company as the Warehouse Manager. One fine day she was tasked to bring a load of ductwork to J Goods Plumbing and Heating. She arrived at the shop and hopped out of the van, grabbed a box of duct work, and then proceeded inside the building. Walking out of his office, Jon's jaw hit the floor when he saw this 5'2" woman wearing cowgirl boots with a load of ductwork thrown up on her shoulders. Immediately. Jon tried to assist but Heather politely declined saying "I got this". Jon did not want to offend her so just showed her the way. Unknown to Heather, this was the day Heather would forever be referred to as "Boots".

Fast forward to 2016. Heather decides to take her Military background and put it to use. She secures a job as a Corrections officer for Marquette County. Heather relocated to Negaunee, moving into a rental near J Goods Plumbing and Heating. October came around and through social media Jon could see that Heather and her daughter Solana were in the area so Jon reached out to invite the two over to the Annual J Goods Halloween party that he had always enjoyed hosting for the children in the community. Heather and Solana attended the event where Jon was the hostes with the mostest showing the kids the Haunted trail and making sure everyone was having the best time while he was covered in sweat from bearing the heat of the best ever Wolf costume.

After the party was through, some time went by as Jon and Heather were each in the midst of their own busy lives with work, children, and relationships. In 2017, one long dragging nightshift at the Jail, Heather was called to the control room to process an incoming booking. She went down to the intake area, and to her surprise, it was Jon was standing there! Heather patted down Mr. Gooding and placed him in cuffs before taking him upstairs to intake. Heather in disbelief and Jon in total embarrassment proceeded through with the booking process as quickly as possible so Jon could be on his way as bond was already posted for him. The entire situation turned out to be a big misunderstanding and Jon should have never been brought in for the booking but it is all a part of the story of us and we can laugh about the time Heather cuffed, fingerprinted, booked, and released Jon from jail.

Some time went by after this encounter where Heather and Jon would not see each other again. They went on with their lives, Heather would end up getting burnt out by the 16hr shifts with little to no time off at the County Jail and move back to her family area of Gladstone. Jon continued to thrive with the Plumbing and Heating business growing along side his son, Sid, in the winters and spent any free time he had in the summer down at the dock or out in the water doing what he loved the most, fishing.

Heather and Jon would soon cross paths again. In 2020, Heather had made the decision to move back to the Negaunee area that she had enjoyed so much before but would need to first secure employment in the area. Knowing the type of Managing position she had currently been in for the prior 3 years, she reached out to Jon to see if he had known of any other business owners in the Negaunee or surrounding areas looking for someone with the experience she had gained in industrial setting management and her prior experience with the HVAC industry. Jon received this message whilst out in the middle of the lake in one of the very limited areas his phone picked up cell reception. Jon reeled in his lines and headed back to shore. He knew he needed to act fast as his shop was in desperate need of an experienced Service Manager, the individual working it at the time was not a good fit. Jon asked Heather to meet and interview for the position in his business. Heather accepted the job offer and gave a months notice at her job she was working at the time so she could finish up tasks there and Jon could in that time reappoint the person he currently had in the management position to the field where he would be more useful.

September 1, 2020 Heather joined the team at J Goods. Jon knew within the first month of her hire that he had made the best business decision taking her on as she would quickly unravel and clean up the mess in the service department and get things flowing at a better pace. Heather also knew that she had made the best decision to take the job offer with J Goods as Jon was the kindest employer she had ever had the chance to work alongside. Jon's passion to help others and contribute to the community really spoke volumes of his character to anyone near and far. Jon made coming to work the best day ever, every single day.

Fast forward 2 years. Heather and Jon would both find theirselves going through hardships in their personal lives. These hardships they were both facing would unknowingly bring the two much closer together. "Trauma Bonding" as they call it, is what ultimately brought Heather and Jon to a much deeper understanding of each others personal lives.

With the 2+ years of friendship behind the two, Heather and Jon decided to go all in on joining their families and Basset Hound, Marshall, together. They would spend the next year making many memories and enjoying activities with the kids like fishing, biking, skiing, snowboarding, ect. Jon always made sure to involve the kids in our planning of activities and the smile on his face would be so telling of the joy it brought him to get to experience life with them as well. Jon just loved nothing more than to see the kids happy. So happy in fact, Jon would take Solana to UPAWS to pick out a cat to join the family and eventually a snake too! If you know Jon, he is a dog person, never really cared to have a cat, and he was never a fan of snakes. Jon actually slightly feared snakes in a way, so this was a big deal for him to talk himself into housing these animals all to see the smiles it would bring to the children faces. Jon and Heather would eventually decide to get another Basset Hound to accompany Marshall. Maybelle joined into the chaos and quickly showed Marshall who was boss.

About a year after living together in Negaunee, Jon would come across a home for sale in Rapid River on Little Bay De Noc and instantly fall in love. Heather and Jon would uproot their home and move to what they both believe to be their families "Forever Home". Their love of nature and water was all in one and would bring the family closer to the activities they enjoyed right through the front and back door of their home.

One fine night, November 9th, 2024 Jon would take Heather for a ride down to the Stonington Lighthouse to go stargazing. Little did she know what was to come. Up on the top of the lighthouse, gazing out at the moonlight skyline across the bay and looking at the stars, Jon wrapped his arms around Heather and turned her around. When Heather turned, Jon got down on one knee and proposed the Heather. He told her that he could not imagine live without her and the children by his side and promised that if she would marry him he would forever be there by her side and continue to love protect her and the family. Reading this love story you can easily guess the outcome, of course, she said YES! This is just the end of the beginning for the two and their children as they come closer to their commitment in marriage and the Happy Ever After story begins.

Q + A

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