Everyone handles the loss of a loved one differently. Amber Acosta refused to let her father’s memory fade away after his death in 2016. It was inside his workshop that Amber says she unexpectedly found inspiration.

“Someone can have such a large presence in your life. And to not have that anymore, it can take your will to want to live away. Grief is a painful, is a real physical pain you feel.”

It’s now been almost a decade since Amber’s father Kenneth “King” Acosta died of lung cancer. She says it’s felt like an eternity before finding peace after his loss.

“The world was a better place because he was in it. And I was blessed to have him.”

Desperate for reminders of every precious memory, Amber says she often found herself in her father’s workshop. Her family has lived on the same land off Highway 7 in Nacogdoches County since the 1880s.

“King,” a Vietnam War veteran was a carpenter by trade and loved to build.

“I could touch a tool. And I could just see him touching it. You know, I felt him here.”

With signs of her Dad surrounding her, Amber channeled raw emotion into a creative outlet.

“My daddy and God, probably both of them, put it on me to make my first cross.”

Using his carpentry tools, Amber designs custom memorials with rough cut wood. Much of it comes from salvaged fence posts on their property.

“I never would have never thought that. You know, making cedar crosses was going to help me heal from losing my daddy. But it did. And it is. It’s still helping me heal.”

The constant hum of this sander has become a welcome distraction — almost therapeutic.

“The more I sanded, the more beautiful it got. The more colors came out.”

Each cross takes around 22 hours of labor. Amber relies on memories of watching her father, but says much of the process is self-taught from YouTube videos.

After nearly 500 creations, she’s nearly perfected the process. With careful attention to detail, Amber keeps her focus on each name that’s painted on the wood face.

“That somebody loved this person. So I don’t just take it lightly when I make them. I make them with love.”

Some crosses are for strangers without a grave marker. Others are personal. Her latest cross is for a cousin who died a few weeks ago.

“Probably one of the coolest cousins I probably got. Let me tell you. I loved him dearly. Life of the party.”

It’s more than a hobby. This has become a way to mend broken hearts and a chance to rediscover peace together.

“And if you listen, you know, he’ll guide you on through whatever you’re going through. That’s why I have faith.”

She says she refuses to let a loved one “die twice” and that these crosses are a fitting way to keep their memory alive.

Acosta accepts commissions for her work. You may contact her by clicking here.

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