three generations and a dog named max
by julie savage parker

Nevaeh Kirschbaum Carver is learning the family business from the ground up—literally. She is one of three women working together to build their business, Heaven Rains Boys and Girls, at the Grove Arcade.

Okay, so Nevaeh*, if you want to be technical, is a "baby woman". Her primary task is to enchant the customers while her mother Annah Kirschbaum and her grandmother Rosiland Whiteley mind the store. She is also a major reason for the store's existence: it was Rosiland's dream to create a business that would be her legacy for both her daughter and her granddaughter—a family business they could create and run together.

Mother and daughter together took a leap of faith that they could, with no previous retail experience, create a thriving upscale shop in the highly visible Grove Arcade—and so they have. At Heaven Rains Boys and Girls, mother, daughter, granddaughter, and even the family schnauzer Max are minding the store together. The store serves these women beautifully: Annah, a young woman who is gifted, socially aware and emotionally mature at 19, is also dyslexic. Consequently, she did not fit neatly into the school system, and eventually dropped out. The family business offers her an opportunity to use her ample gifts, and to stretch her wings and grow in ways that had not been available to her before. And now she has a place where she can work, nurse her baby, and keep her close at hand.

Rosiland, like many women, has a full plate: she also works as a hospice nurse and is restoring her home in, uh, her spare time... She proclaims her love for downtown Asheville: she's lived a few blocks from The Grove Arcade for the last 17 years. The short walk from home to work is a daily joy for her, as she weaves home, work, family and community into the tapestry of her life. She is delighted that Heaven Rains Boys and Girls—being in the Grove Arcade—is in the thick of the revitalization of a part of town she loves.

The idea for the store really began when Annah was little: Rosiland wanted Montessori and especially Waldorf-style toys for her children and was surprised and frustrated not to find any in this area. From the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America website—awsna.org:

In the nursery-kindergarten, children play at cooking, they dress up and become mothers and fathers, kings and queens; they sing, paint, and color. Through songs and poems they learn to enjoy language; they learn to play together, hear stories, see puppet shows, bake bread, make soup, model beeswax, and build houses out of boxes, sheets, and boards. To become fully engaged in such work is the child’s best preparation for life. It builds powers of concentration, interest, and a lifelong love of learning.

(Incidentally, Rosiland would love to see a Waldorf school established in this area and is happy to hear from other parents and grandparents who'd like to see that happen. Contact her at the store if you want to move together in that direction.)

So while Rosiland was not able to find the outstanding toys in this area for her daughter Annah when she was little, she was determined that her granddaughter Nevaeh would have them if she had to open such a store herself. She's filled the store not only with Waldorf and Montessori-style toys, but with other heirloom quality toys, vintage-style clothing, elegant children's apparel, and organic children's clothes. More than one customer has commented: "This is not a children's store, this is a grandmother's store!"

Rosiland and Annah put a high priority on being as green as possible. They carry lines that are 100% certified organic Egyptian cotton and clothes that are pesticide-free, including closures that are wood, shell or nickel-free metals. Carrying clothing made of cotton grown with environmentally friendly, gentle-on-the-Earth methods is one way they put their money where their mouth is. They also seek companies respecting fair trade practices, and cottage industries supporting stay-at-home moms.

Heaven Rains Boys and Girls is a model of a business putting the values of the business owners into action. Rosiland and Annah have been able to create for themselves a life that supports their highest values of family, community, joyful learning, and respect for the Earth.

Visit Nevaeh, Annah, Rosiland, and Max at the Grove Arcade Monday - Saturday 10-6, and Sunday 12-6. 828-252-1484. Let them know you read this article and they'll have a small gift of appreciation for you coming by.