Friends and Neighbors: Making artwork, engraving is a large part of Amber Wilke's 'Story'

The 'Story' of Amber Wilke, nee Story, began in Kimball, where as a child she grew up with horses, bottle lambs and bucket calves and "anything else she could beg to take care of" at the end of her street.

Wilke comes from a family of self-proclaimed workaholics and her parents are now busier than ever since they retired, she said.

Her father is a wood worker whose talent can be seen throughout their home, and his creative side was passed on to his daughter.

Wilke learned needle work at her grandmother's knee when she was young and that ability came in handy as an adult, when she attended craft shows with her parents.

"I started going with them to help them set up their booth at the wood carving shows where I am the youngest there by 25, 30 years," Wilke said. "One of the ladies said I looked like I was bored."

That lady asked Wilke if she could stitch, a skill she learned as a child. She learned how to weave pine needles and began a new hobby.

"That's how I got started. It was just a hobby," Wilke said. "It was something to keep me busy. Our family is all workaholic and so I don't just sit and watch TV and do nothing."

Since she has always enjoyed having her own business and because she cannot be idle, Wilke found a way to make her hobby make her money by starting AW Prairie Art.

As the intense needle work affected tendons in her thumbs, Wilke had surgery on both hands, limiting her time working with pine needles. So she branched out to work with lariat ropes.

"I kind of got obsessed with it," Wilke said. "I have done that since 2012."

Though she still occasionally works with needles and lariats, Wilke added laser cutting and engraving single items and large orders when she quit working outside of her home to take a more active role in her husband, Byron's business.

"I love it because it is very versatile, I love it because I can work on just about any kind of medium, I can use my creative side, I love it because I can create things for people," Wilke said.

Though she tries to do some craft shows, she prefers going to farm and ranch shows.

"I'm more comfortable with that crowd. It is kind of how I was basically raised," Wilke said. "And my lifestyle now, it is with those people."

Currently she is working on nearly 1,500 items for the upcoming All-Class Reunion and singular graduation gifts.

The community has been supportive not just of this most recent venture, Wilke added, but of everything she has done.

She attributes that to the fact that she is a hard-worker, with hometown values and ethics, and that she built a good reputation early on.

"I was born and raised here, so everybody knows me, they know my work ethic," Wilke said. "My mom always told me when I was in high school, 'Don't ever do something you don't want to have to live down the rest of your life.' And I am so glad, those words come back to me all the time."

Amber and Byron Wilke, high school sweethearts, raised both of their children in Kimball County. Though their children are now 25 and 23, the Wilkes stay very close.

"We have been married 27 years this year and we've been together since I was a freshman in high school," Wilke said. "We are best friends, and that helps."

Wilke said she feels so blessed to have their children want to stay close and to have been able to raise them with so many supportive family members, especially grandparents.

"We used to tease them when they were young because they traveled with an entourage," Wilke joked.

Krystal, their daughter, will finish school in Wyoming this year and hopes to get a teaching job close to home, Wilke said.

Krystal plans on being an agriculture teacher and hopes also to sponsor an FFA chapter. Her teacher/mentor turned over three FFA teams to her while she was student teaching.

"They did really wonderful at (Wyoming) state convention," Wilke said. "Her ag sales missed nationals by less than 20 points. That was her first official team as a teacher."

Wilke added that the FFA program is the one that is near and dear to the hearts of everyone in the family since that is where they dedicated so much time while raising their kids.

"She would like to be close, all of our family is right here," Wilke added. "Both sets of grandparents are right here. So she would like to be close."

Their son, Dustin went to college in eastern Nebraska and lived in Lincoln for an additional year, but city life was not for him, according to Wilke. He chose to move back home.

"We said that was fine but he had to have a job and a place to live because he wasn't coming back into our house," Wilke said. "He just wanted to come back to where things are normal for him. At that time we didn't have enough work for him to bring him back, so he worked for a couple of places here in town."

Dustin still lives in Kimball, now with his wife. Dustin and his wife are expecting a baby in August.

"We will be first time grandparents in August. We are so excited," Wilke said.

Dustin now works for his parents as their "go-to" guy, Wilke said. His many duties are split between the fencing business and the family farm.

"It has just been a godsend. He knows the business, he helped start the panel business as part of their FFA project, so he is a natural fit," Wilke added. "He (oversees) the guys out there and is their go-to person. He is very approachable. He is priceless."

In addition to the support of the community, the help her family provides makes it possible for Wilke to do as much as she does with two businesses.

"Sometimes you don't own (the businesses), they own you. Don't make plans," Wilke said.

For her business, Wilke does not keep much product in stock, but she works with companies that are quick to send what she needs.

She then begins as quickly as she can, and she will often drop what she is doing to begin a project for her customers.

"It is kind of a pet peeve of mine," Wilke said. "If somebody orders something I try to do it as soon as I can because I want them to have it ahead of time."

She begins by making a few designs on the computer and then using her smartphone to send photos to customers for approval.

"I don't charge a set-up fee, for all my time on the computer," Wilke said. "Right now, people should take advantage of the fact that I don't, because I am still learning."

She also has not paid much out in the way of monthly overhead. Wilke said she cannot afford a store front downtown, but business is still picking up.

"I would love to have it on Main Street," Wilke said. "I can't double or triple my prices."

Wilke also remembers one more lesson her mom taught her years ago when dealing with others, from suppliers to customers. "You be fair to people."