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We got the call. The call every family dreads. Our brother was traveling in his happy place, costa rica and on the day he was to come home instead of coming home he took his life. Our knees buckled. His 92 year old mother never recovered from the shock. I turned this horror into a ministry. Sixtyhearts exists to bring loving attention to those who have lost. And it doesn’t have to be death. Loss is loss. Grief is how we process loss. And Grief has the power to transform lives for the better.

 What is Sixty hearts? It is a not -for -profit organization that gives in layers. Layer one is the installations. You order 60 hearts to be installed to honor a family or celebrate a loved one. I custom-cut hearts to your specifications, glue them on sticks and place them in the ground or in a vase and deliver them to the address you request. You donate a suggested amount of dollars for me to do this. Layer two occurs when I give all of the donated dollars to an organization on the first day of every month! I have been able to deliver $500 to Southside Family Nurturing Center in Minneapolis, Second Harvest Heartland, TC Food Justice, Hope Breakfast Bar to name a few, because you have ordered an installation to celebrate or commemorate someone.

But Why? Because at the age of 60 years my brother-in-law went to Costa Rica, his happy place and for no reason known to us, took his life. He didn’t come home and we were shaken to our cores. Four days in to this nightmare I received a text that said, “ Look in your backyard. “ I couldn’t believe what I saw! Sixty handmade hearts mounted on sticks and stuck deep in the Minnesota snow. I felt seen, understood and NOT ALONE. I thought, ‘ everyone needs to feel this feeling,’ and just like that Sixtyhearts was born. Thank you Houltberg family.