From Paper to Porcelain: The Meeting That Brought Precious Moments to Life
In 1978, NASA selected its first female astronauts. Dallas premiered on CBS. A horse named Affirmed won the Triple Crown. And in a hotel ballroom at the Los Angeles Spring Gift Show, a businessman named Eugene Freedman walked past a display of greeting cards and stopped cold.
He didn't plan to be there. He was on his way to Asia on a buying trip for Enesco Imports, the giftware company he had built from a small import venture into one of the most respected names in the industry. A friend brought him a few of the cards and posters from a small display at the show — illustrations of children with soulful, teardrop-shaped eyes, drawn by a man named Samuel J. Butcher for a company called Jonathan & David.
"A friend brought me some cards and posters with illustrations of children with soulful teardrop eyes," Gene said. "I knew immediately that these drawings were something special."
The first piece he saw was a poster called "I Will Make You Fishers of Men" — two small boys carrying a fishing pole and a can of worms. Gene fell in love with it immediately. And in that moment, this man who had spent decades in the giftware business could see something no one had yet tried: these children, these drawings, translated into three-dimensional bisque porcelain figurines.
He also knew exactly who could sculpt them.
The Man Who Could See What Sam Saw
Yasuhei Fujioka had been working with Gene Freedman for more than twenty years. A master sculptor based in Nagoya, Japan, he had a rare gift — not just technical skill, but emotional sensitivity. Gene trusted him completely. Without calling Sam and Bill first, Gene flew to Japan and asked Fujioka-san to create a prototype of one of Sam Butcher's most beloved drawings: "Love One Another."
"I remember the enthusiasm I felt in translating those lovely children into figurines," Fujioka-san said.
When Gene saw the result, he called Sam and Bill.
They were reluctant. Protective of what they had built. Wary of anyone who might not understand what the artwork truly meant.
"They were very reluctant," Gene later recalled. "I could sense the Precious Moments artwork was everything they had in the world; it was like their own children."
Sam remembered it the same way: "At first, we weren't all that interested in his proposal. But we didn't have the money or expertise to take on such a project ourselves."
Gene Freedman was not the first person to approach Sam and Bill about turning their artwork into giftware. But he was the first one they took seriously — because unlike the others, Gene seemed to genuinely care about what the art meant, not just what it could sell.
"Gene seemed very serious and appreciative of the artwork," Sam said. "He was the one who really seemed to care."
The Gift That Changed Everything
Rather than trying to convince Sam and Bill with words, Gene decided to show them. He flew to Enesco's headquarters just outside Chicago with a wrapped gift. Sam and Bill flew in from the other direction. They sat across from each other, and Gene handed the package to Sam.
It was the figurine. "Love One Another." The first Precious Moments figurine ever made.
"They were sitting in front of my desk and when I showed it to them, it was a tearful moment — so beautiful to behold. Sam dropped down to his knees and cradled the figurine, whispering, 'Look, Bill, look.'" — Gene Freedman
The future partners passed the figurine back and forth in silence. The sculptor had not only captured the artwork in three dimensions — he had captured the feeling. The faith. The tenderness that Sam had poured into every line of the original illustration.
All three men were moved to tears. They knew, without saying it, that something holy had just happened in that room.
Sam and Bill asked to keep the figurine while they prayed and considered. Gene said yes. A few days later, Sam and Bill gave their answer: yes — but with one condition. They wanted to work directly alongside Fujioka-san in Japan to perfect every detail of the figures together.
Gene didn't hesitate. "Without hesitation, I said, 'Yes!' It was the very best news I could have heard."
Heart to Heart, Across a Language
Sam flew to Japan shortly after that meeting and began what would become one of the most remarkable creative partnerships in the history of American art. He and Fujioka-san didn't share a spoken language. It didn't matter.
Sam drew the eyes of the Precious Moments children over and over, in his relentless pursuit of the exact feeling he was after. Fujioka-san sculpted the backs of the figurines exactly as Sam had imagined them — details that didn't even exist in the original drawings. The sculptor seemed to read Sam's heart directly.
"I don't feel we are dealing with business," Sam said of their relationship. "I am dealing with an artist who can relate to me heart-to-heart. It's as if we would go off into our own little world. Only God could have created a relationship such as ours."
Gene watched from nearby: "You could just sense what was going on between them. There was a tremendous feeling of mutual respect for their different talents."
The first 21 Precious Moments figurines were introduced to giftware retailers in the fall of 1978 — sold, remarkably, not under the name Precious Moments, but under the name Jonathan & David. Retailers were skeptical. They took a chance anyway, because of the quality of the work and the reputations of the people behind it.
The public had other ideas. The figurines sold not as ordinary giftware, but as treasures — pieces people kept, displayed, and passed down. Within two years, tens of thousands of people had joined the Precious Moments Collectors' Club. By 1994, Precious Moments had become a worldwide phenomenon.
None of it, Sam always said, was his doing.
"I don't look at my work as an individual effort, but as a joint expression that reaches out to others. Without God's help, my work would have no meaning." — Sam Butcher
The Man Who Made It Possible
Eugene Freedman was born in Philadelphia and grew up in Milwaukee. After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, he built a career in the giftware industry that would span more than five decades — eventually leading Enesco as president and CEO for over 30 years, growing its international sales volume to more than $500 million.
But the numbers never quite captured the man. Gene Freedman received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, along with humanitarian awards from Easter Seals, the Fraternal Order of Police, and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America's highest honor — the Herbert Hoover Humanitarian Award, previously presented to six U.S. presidents. He was, as Roxanne Spillett, then president and CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, said after his passing: "A giant of a man. He was a kind and gentle soul and he lived his life in a great way — not just to be successful as a businessman, but to give back to society."
His son Rick remembered a father who was always moving, always contributing: "Work charged his battery."
Gene had a saying he used to cap events and toast his family. He said it often, right up until his passing on February 19, 2008, at the age of 82:
"The best is yet to come."
After retiring from Enesco, Gene served as a Precious Moments Ambassador of Goodwill — a role he held even after Precious Moments separated from Enesco in 2005 to operate independently. When Gene passed, Precious Moments honored him with a commemorative figurine entitled You Are Always in Our Hearts, donating a portion of proceeds to the Boys & Girls Club of America, one of his dearest causes.
Coming Home
For nearly 20 years, Precious Moments and Enesco traveled separate paths. Then, in December 2025, the two companies announced what many in the industry had long hoped for: a renewed licensing partnership, with Enesco once again taking on the development, manufacturing, and distribution of Precious Moments figurines and giftware worldwide — beginning in 2026.Don Butcher, President of Precious Moments and son of the late Samuel J. Butcher, spoke plainly about what the moment meant:
"This partnership represents an important moment for Precious Moments, one that feels like a reunion. Enesco played a defining role in building this brand alongside my father, and working with Michael and the Enesco team over the past several months has reaffirmed the strength and potential of that relationship. We're excited about the future we will create together."
Michael Griffith, President of Enesco Worldwide, shared the feeling: "Almost 30 years ago I began my career with Enesco as a Sales Representative for Precious Moments and vividly recall the excitement each product launch brought to both retailers and collectors. Moving forward, Enesco will work closely with the Butcher family to ensure their father's legacy endures."
Gene Freedman looked at two boys with teardrop eyes on a poster at a gift show in 1978, and saw something the rest of the world hadn't seen yet. He spent the rest of his life making sure that something reached as many people as possible. And now, the company he built and the brand he helped bring to life are together again — carrying that vision forward, just as he always believed they would.
The best is yet to come.
→ The Original 21 Precious Moments Figurines (next in the series)
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