'A blanket says it all': How a Logan family built a blanket business based on love

LOGAN — While a blanket may seem like a simple thing to most people, the soft comforting accessories play an essential role in the Peterson family.

Emily Peterson's oldest daughter Eliza was born with microtia, causing her middle and outer ear to not fully develop. A few years later, the Petersons learned the surgery to fix their daughter's ear wouldn't be covered by insurance and would cost more than $100,000.

"Back then, we didn't have GoFundMe or different ways of fundraising ... so I always say the business was started out of love — love for our daughter," Peterson said.

A mother of three kids 6 years old and younger, Peterson was deep in the motherhood phase and surrounded by baby products, so she decided to make a baby gift baskets company.

And so Saranoni was born, named by combining the names of both her and her husband's great grandmothers.

"We took their examples and their sacrifices. These women put their faith first, their family first, their hard work and service and as they sacrificed, they blessed the lives of other people," she said. "How they had blessed us through their faithfulness and focus on faith and family and hard work, we wanted to do the same."

Peterson also wanted the company to be a chance to help other families rise out of poverty, so many of the products in the gift basket were sourced from other countries, such as sterling silver bracelets from India and handmade outfits from Peru.

But one of the central products to the gift baskets was a blanket. Luxury baby blankets had started becoming popular in the Hollywood scene, and Peterson wanted to create luxury blankets at a mid-range price point so mothers could afford them.

So starting out in her Logan basement in 2006, Peterson slowly built Saranoni. After a few years, the most popular item was the blankets so the company switched to solely blankets.

"That was a hard thing for me to let go of because I wanted to work with all these people in different countries," she said.

So Saranoni shifted to a different model of humanitarian work, donating a portion of their sales to women in rural Cambodia and countries in Africa to pay for moped rides so women can deliver babies safely in hospitals, providing clean water for communities and teaching women how to use a loom to generate income for their families.

'Prime of life'

What started out as just baby blankets soon grew to dozens of sizes and styles that Saranoni now sells.

In the early years, Peterson dutifully worked late into the night and early morning to keep the company growing, continually motivated by wanting to help and provide for her daughter's medical needs. Eliza didn't end up doing the reconstructive surgery, but in high school after technology had improved, she decided to get a prosthetic ear instead.

Peterson experienced multiple miscarriages and an unfortunate stillbirth before she became pregnant with her sixth child. With the company growing alongside her family, her husband Nathan switched from his day job to running Saranoni full-time in 2015, allowing her to spend more time at home with the kids.

What followed that move was a "beautiful time" in the Peterson family's lives. She described it as being "in that prime of life," raising her children, with her oldest heading off to college, the business growing to a point it could support them and the many sports and extracurriculars the kids were involved in.

But in November 2021, everything changed. Nathan Peterson started feeling especially fatigued after a busy weekend where the family attended a BYU football game and a long Sunday serving as the bishop of his local congregation.

Peterson didn't think much of it since they had been doing so much as a family and it was the busy season for Saranoni. But a few days later when her husband came home from work to take a nap, she got concerned. The next day, he sent an email with several spelling errors, which was also extremely unusual for him.

On Friday morning, they went to an urgent care clinic to see if it was a thyroid problem acting up and immediately were transferred to the emergency room for an MRI. The results showed Nathan Peterson had a tumor on his brain stem.

The family at first wasn't too worried after doing some research and learning brain tumors can be removed and treated. Two days later, however, he could barely walk on his own.

"It just went so, so quick," she said.

Nathan underwent emergency surgery. He was diagnosed with glioblastoma, and because the tumor was so large and embedded in the middle of his brain stem, it couldn't be removed or treated.

"He was given four weeks to live. And we just wanted to be home with our kids," Peterson said. "We just spent time snuggling in bed, spending time with him and ... praying and hoping for a miracle."

The Peterson family then had "the most beautiful, sacred eight weeks" spending time with their dad before he died on Jan. 5, 2022. Throughout the whole tragedy, the Saranoni community rallied around them, coming in to the warehouse to help fulfill orders and dropping food off at their home.

Continuing a legacy of love

Two months before Nathan got sick, he told his family he had a feeling there was a need to serve locally. So they started developing Saranoni Cares to donate thousands of blankets to Huntsman Cancer Institute and other hospitals.

When they were at the hospital to learn about his diagnosis and treatment, Peterson joked that maybe Nathan will get one of the blankets they donated to the hospital.

"Little did we know ... he didn't even make it to the time the blankets actually arrived. But we have been able to serve so much," she said.

A year after his death, the Peterson family returned to Huntsman Cancer Institute to pass out blankets to people receiving treatment.

"It was hard to go back, but it was such a beautiful experience to carry out his vision of what he wanted to do — to wrap all these people fighting cancer in our blankets. He had no idea at the time that he would be diagnosed with cancer and later pass away from it," Peterson said.

Peterson said her husband used to always say that when you don't have the words to express to someone in need, "a blanket says it all. It brings that comfort, that warmth, that love, that security."

Even though it was difficult to continue without her love, Peterson said it's been a blessing to have the Saranoni community and purpose.

"There were times with the busyness of raising all the kids, I was like, 'I can't do this. Let's be done with Saranoni.' But I'm so grateful for Saranoni, and I have a way to provide for our six children," she said.

Spreading comfort and warmth

Saranoni took a few years off from attending Swiss Days, a craft festival the company had attended yearly for more than a decade, after Nathan's death.

"It was something we did with Nathan. He was the one who set it up and I wasn't prepared and I didn't want to ... it's a lot of work. My kids said 'no question' when I asked about doing Swiss Days again," she said.

So the family affair has continued, with her children and in-laws all helping sell blankets at their booth while sporting Swiss outfits. The event is an opportunity for the family to interact with and meet their customers face-to-face.

"Saranoni was born out of love and continued in legacy. Our greatest desire is to help bring comfort and warmth to people and create meaningful moments. I believe that's what our blankets do," Peterson said.

She has learned through her tragic experiences that everyone is going through something difficult, and as members of communities, people need to lean on one another.

"Regardless of our age, we all need that. We find ourselves, wrapping in a blanket can provide that level of comfort and security regardless of what we are going through," Peterson said.

After 20 years in business, Peterson said she is grateful for the entire "Saranoni family" who have supported them throughout the two decades. Saranoni is a more than just a meaningful business to her; it's her way of serving others and continuing her husband's dream and legacy of helping those around them.

"We are just grateful to make giving back a huge part of Saranoni because in the end to me, that's what matters most to me and to Nathan," she said.

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