Our Path to Chocolate

The Story of Whetstone Chocolates

Whetstone Chocolates has been a confectionary staple in St. Augustine since 1967, although it didn’t start that way. Henry has always been a “doer” rather than a “talker”. The classical male youth of the ‘30s and ‘40s, he built motorcycles, furniture, skeeters, machines and much more. That was his fun-loving personality. Esther was also a “doer” and equally committed to an adventurous life, but with a more feminine touch. Although they grew up in two different cultural lifestyles, their personalities meshed together like it was written in a book..

Most important was their individual commitment to God, their family and to the business which they were about to build together. As entrepreneurial partners, they walked away from the security found in the employment of others and entered into a business about which they knew nothing. Making and selling a consumer product was not something that either had knowledge, but their total commitment to succeed in building their own business proved to be their foundation.

They researched, studied, planned and constructed their path, in many cases not knowing what the economic future held. They immersed themselves into their new occupation, at the same time they were building their own family and concurrently taking responsibility for their parents’ businesses. Time was a precious commodity, but Esther provided the perfect attitude: “It was fun!”