Wild Rose Jewellers is ending its 35 year reign. 

After 35 years in the same building on Elizabeth Street, the family-owned business will be closing its doors to the public in May. 

Garo and Anne Yanikyan opened Wild Rose Jewellers in 1985, where Garo would use his skills as a goldsmith to create, fix and sell his custom pieces. Garo and Anne married in the early eighties, had two children, Natasha and Rosie. Natasha, born in Calgary, and Rosie, born in California. 

When the Yanikyan's moved to Okotoks in 1982, the population was just 1,981 people. 

"We have seen Okotoks grow and change so much over the years. The people here have just been so wonderful to us. I remember when we first opened the shop, we gave ourselves a five-year limit. If we weren't successful, we would close up and move on," says Anne Yanikyan. Yanikyan talks about how different the town was back then and how they got to watch it evolve from one of the most popular areas of town.

When Garo was diagnosed with lung cancer in early 2017, it was devastating news, but they decided to keep things as normal as possible. Just about a year later, the decision was made to close the store once Garo decided it was time. 

Garo Yanikyan passed away April 21 surrounded by friends and family. 

The Yanikyans say "Thank you to all of our regulars from Okotoks and all around the world. Thank you so much for being patient with us through the last few months. The support we're receiving right now is so overwhelming, we appreciate every single person who reached out to us. Dad loved this town so much, he was thinking about running for mayor."

"Dad's english was very broken. Once he learned the word 'flabbergasted' and pronounced it 'fibergasted' and it was his new word. He thought it was just the funniest thing." Rosie Yanikyan recalled when asked what her favorite memory of her dad was. 

Anne remembers how Garo never took a day off for the first 16 years.

"He never ever took a day off or even a vacation. I would go away with my girlfriends and he would stay here and run the shop. I finally got him to go to Cuba with me, he loved it so much we've been there every year for the last ten years." 

Garo Yanikyan will always be remembered as the Wild Rose jeweler, bringing a sparkle to the town of Okotoks for the last 35 years. 

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