A Dedication - to the echoes that came before me.
If heaven has a front porch, I hope you’re sitting on it right now— side by side, coffee in hand, watching me do all of this and shaking your heads like:
“Well… would ya look at that.”
Because if I’m being honest? None of this was part of the original plan.
But here we are.
Mema and Dadidee,
You helped raise a girl who talks too much, feels too deeply, asks too many questions, and somehow turned all of that into a calling.
(You’re welcome.)
You taught me how to work before you ever taught me how to rest. How to treat people before you taught me how to succeed. How to keep my word before I ever worried about keeping up.
You didn’t teach me these things with speeches. You taught me by living them—every single day—whether anyone noticed or not.
Which, ironically, made everyone notice.
You built a business in a backyard. I built a platform on the internet.
Different tools. Same backbone.
You believed in:
Doing the job right the first time
Taking care of people like they’re family
Letting your reputation speak for you
And not quitting just because it got hard
I just added Wi-Fi and a microphone.
You never chased recognition. You never needed applause. You just showed up.
Day after day. Year after year.
And somehow that quiet faithfulness turned into a 50+ year legacy that still echoes through generations.
No hashtags required.
When life knocked me sideways—and it did, hard—I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was surviving on muscle memory you gave me.
Get up. Do the next right thing. Take care of people. Don’t cut corners. And for the love of all that is holy, don’t forget who you are.
That voice in my head? That was you.
Be the Echo exists because you proved something important:
That you don’t need a stage to change lives. You don’t need a title to lead. And you don’t need perfection—just consistency, integrity, and a whole lot of heart.
Also apparently a stubborn work ethic and zero tolerance for nonsense.
Thanks for that too.
So this is my dedication.
To the grandparents who never knew they were building a blueprint. To the love that showed up early and stayed late. To the legacy that didn’t shout—but still changed everything.
I hope I’m doing you proud.
I hope you see your fingerprints all over this. And I hope you know that every time I choose purpose over pride, people over platforms, and faith over fear—
That’s you.
Still working. Still teaching. Still echoing.
Love always,
Me
(The loud one you helped raise.)
Jack and Bobbie Holton.
My sweet grandparents - with no idea of the echo they’d leave behind.