Everyone could hear the soft hum coming from inside the wood shop in the quiet halls of Reveriew Retirement Company. Who knew Lanny Burril, an 82-year-old man, would be at a mission inside? The mission of shaping and spreading love through wooden hearts.
No one has ever seen a woodshop for anything other than building furniture or repairing and renovating old furniture. Even after years of working throughout life, the man has turned his working hours into meaningful labor. The scent of sanded wood and covered with sawdust, he chooses to turn the scrap that was supposed to be thrown away into tiny hearts.
With so much effort, each heart is unique and can make anyone who receives it smile.
While he cradled a freshly sanded heart, he stated that he wanted everyone to feel special and loved—most people don’t for most of their lives!
His journey of turning scrap into creativity started from his basement over 20 years ago, and since then, Grandpa has made thousands of hearts. He recalls finding a beautiful piece of wood one day and knowing what he wanted to do with it. He shaped it into a lovely wife and gifted it to his wife, and she was in love all over again!
Seeing her happiness, he knew what to aim for next. To spread love through what he is best at. He made 1500 hearts in the following year. Each with full dedication- carefully cut and carved, and not just this, his efforts can be seen in how he chose to sand the hearts with three different grits of sandpaper. Hearts as smooth as silk!
One heart takes him over 20 minutes, but he never gives up. Imagine how good life would feel if your only mission here was to spread smiles and love.
Previously, when Lanny was young, he used to craft popcorn bowls and truck racks, so woodworking was a skill he learned early in life. But now what has changed is that he doesn’t use the skills to earn but to impact people emotionally. He mentioned how he has a pocket full of hearts and offers them to random people, from workers at the store to kids. He also said something significant and showed his will for the world to become a better place. Danny says, ‘I just want to make sure everyone has a heart.’
One random day, Lanny came across a woman and offered her a heart with a knot right in the middle. The little act made the woman tear up. But why?
She shared how, since her son passed away, she had a hole in her heart, so probably the heart she was gifted with was a sign of hope. The woman’s story is just a single story; there are cuntless others from so many years of his endless efforts!
Another beautiful act he practices is sending a bunch of these hearts to the local schools. Each time a child is seen struggling, the counselors make them pick a heart—who knows, they might feel a little more loved that day. All these heart-warming moments don’t let Lanny give up on cutting, sanding, and polishing every day. It isn’t about money or getting recognition, but he aims to heal people with broken hearts.
Only love can do the job!
One day, when a little boy was asked to choose a heart, he picked one with a man carved with outstretched arms and said the heart had his angel on it!
Lanny, about carving scrap wood into little hearts, has said: “It’s not about me, it’s all about the heart.’
Thus, his story is nothing but a message to spread love. The world is a better place with this man carving hearts for people!
