There are seasons in our lives where we take the "helm" and simply navigate and seasons that force us to take our "oars" and laboriously pull ourselves to dry land. Our hope is that whatever waters you find yourself in, whether endlessly troubled or peacefully still, that you would choose to behold the beauty that surrounds you.
Our Founder's Story:
I’m so glad you found us. I’m Brent Blossom, the founder of Helm & Oar.
I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself and tell you the story behind why I founded this company.
I grew up very very poor. I’m one of five, born in a barn in Cheribusco, Indiana. We later moved to a section-8 housing project a couple hours away with hopes that my parents could find better jobs.
One night, I was sitting on the counter next to the stove where my dad was cooking dinner - swinging my legs and asking a hundred questions of course. I looked over at my dad and asked: “Why do we have pancakes every night? All my friends have chicken and hamburgers and casseroles.”
Get ready… Because my dad’s response is the reason your reading this letter…
My dad turned to me and said with glassy eyes and bottom lip quivering as he flipped another pancake for the thousandth time: “Brent, we have pancakes every night because we GET to! How many of your friends get to have sweet syrup and yummy soft pancakes every night of the week?! You get dessert for dinner, every single night!”
It was in that moment that my dad chose to paint a picture of MORE not less, of OPPORTUNITY not lack. We don’t always get to decide what happens to us, but we do get to decide how we see it, learn from it and grow into better people because of it.
The Lesson: Beauty is a choice we make.
When I was 19, I decided to become a full-time humanitarian aid. I travelled the world for 7 years hosting orphanages in China, feeding and bathing lepers in the Tibetan region, building bathrooms and gates for tent cities in Haiti and hosting medical clinics for battered prostitutes in Czech Republic.
During my travels, not only did I see the deepest devastation this world holds within its bowels; but I also witnessed an awe inspiring, life-changing beauty in the eyes of real people while in the midst of some of the most incredible landscapes and sunsets this world so freely displays to all who open their eyes to it.
Throughout my life, I have come to believe two things: #1 The deadliest disease known to man is hopelessness and #2 beauty is the cure. Therefore, Helm + Oar exists to capture this beautiful world on canvas and place it in every space where hope and beauty is profoundly desired.
Beauty Is A Choice We Make.
My Best, Brent
With a strong resolve to make a better product, we exist to win the trust of every avid collector.
Something we learned very early in business was that our first to-do was to right the wrongs of our competitors and win the trust of the avid collector again. From the way we build our frames, to the quality of our papers, to the way we treat our customers; we have resolved to do things better.
Afterall... buying online should be effortless and the product you receive should pass the test of time and exceed your expectations.
