1994-95 CCM Home Youth Replica
#10 Ron Francis with Captain's "C"
Manufacturer: CCM
Size: Youth L/XL
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: NJK Lettering in Avella, PA
The Story: Ron Francis was in his first season as Penguins captain after Mario Lemieux retired. My son wanted his jersey badly, but it was hard to find jerseys, at that time, that had lettering that looked like that of those worn on the ice. Most had silkscreened letters that didn't look right. My son had heard me say that the lettering on a jersey was important to me, so he felt the same way.
I had had some jerseys lettered in the past by NJK Lettering, who had lettered jerseys for the team in the recent past, and I had built quote a rapport with Norma, the owner. She knew me to be a stickler for jerseys, but also knew she couldn't use her patterns (pre-made "lettering kits" hadn't been invented yet) and have them fit onto a youth jersey. So she was kind enough to take her stencils and make shrunken down photocopies of them. By doing this, she was able to make true-to-scale letters and numbers that would fit onto a youth jersey. Norma was sweet like that, and I always appreciated her going the extra mile for me, and in this case, my son.
This jersey went on to be worn hundreds of times, both by my son and my daughter, to games, practices, and even for Halloween. The stains on the jersey may not look like it, but for little kids, they both treasured this one. As a matter of fact, wearing an "old" jersey is what got my daughter into wanting her own jerseys.
Size: Youth L/XL
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: NJK Lettering in Avella, PA
The Story: Ron Francis was in his first season as Penguins captain after Mario Lemieux retired. My son wanted his jersey badly, but it was hard to find jerseys, at that time, that had lettering that looked like that of those worn on the ice. Most had silkscreened letters that didn't look right. My son had heard me say that the lettering on a jersey was important to me, so he felt the same way.
I had had some jerseys lettered in the past by NJK Lettering, who had lettered jerseys for the team in the recent past, and I had built quote a rapport with Norma, the owner. She knew me to be a stickler for jerseys, but also knew she couldn't use her patterns (pre-made "lettering kits" hadn't been invented yet) and have them fit onto a youth jersey. So she was kind enough to take her stencils and make shrunken down photocopies of them. By doing this, she was able to make true-to-scale letters and numbers that would fit onto a youth jersey. Norma was sweet like that, and I always appreciated her going the extra mile for me, and in this case, my son.
This jersey went on to be worn hundreds of times, both by my son and my daughter, to games, practices, and even for Halloween. The stains on the jersey may not look like it, but for little kids, they both treasured this one. As a matter of fact, wearing an "old" jersey is what got my daughter into wanting her own jerseys.