I love the fact that Lexi Kern tells me that her most marked characteristic is honesty, because that’s the word that comes to mind when I think of her. My dad loved Rolex watches and I wanted to own one to remind me of him. For months, I repeatedly visited the Churchill Jewelers on State Street, the store that Lexi owns with her father, but I was indecisive and apprehensive for this purchase. Time after time, she patiently and warmly showed me all the timepieces they had on display, and never once seemed annoyed that I couldn’t make up my mind.
Her dad, Dick Kern, was an employee of Churchill Jewelers when he went off to fight in World War II, where he was involved in the Battle of the Bulge. But the store’s founder, Roy P. Churchill, kept Kern’s job open, rehired him when the war ended, and, in 1951, helped Kern buy the store. In honor of their friendship, Kern kept the original name. Lexi, who was born and raised in Santa Barbara, carries forward that tradition of integrity and loyalty.
Here, she answers the Proust questionnaire.