Family-owned Bethesda jewelry store closing after 45 years

O’Rourke Ltd. Jewelers has been a fixture in downtown Bethesda for more than 45 years. Located at the corner of Norfolk and Del Ray Avenues, the family-owned and operated business will close up shop on Friday, Jan. 31, 2014.

Founded in 1968 by Edward and Katherine O’Rourke, the full-service jewelry store is renowned for its collection of cultured pearls, custom designed jewelry — particularly wedding and engagement rings — and repair services. It also offered a full line of precious stones, gold, and platinum along with a large selection of antique and estate pieces. Mr. O’Rourke, a master gemologist, was known for his high standards and expert repair work.

“For a long time, this store was my parents’ passion,” says Katherine Graf, one of the O’Rourkes’ daughters, who took over the business several years ago. “They were committed to [the store]. . .to providing their customers with quality jewelry and services that they couldn’t find elsewhere.”

The O’Rourkes worked at the store well into their 90s, personally attending to customers. Edward O’Rourke died in 2009; he was 95. Katherine O’Rourke worked at the store just three weeks prior to her death in 2012 at age 95.

Graf held an open house on Jan. 25 to help sell out the store’s inventory before closing for good.

Several friends and customers stopped in throughout the day to say goodbye to Graf, share memories of the O’Rourkes and take advantage of the last opportunity to purchase some of the store’s remaining one-of-kind jewelry, from rings to watches to earrings to, of course, pearls.

Longtime family friends Jim and Carol Wyble were headed into work, but decided to stop by the open house to help with the flood of customers coming in the shop. The Wybles operate an engineering consulting firm located just above the store and have known the O’Rourkes and their children for about 40 years. The couple’s wedding rings were designed by Mr. O’Rourke.

“I’m sad to see Kathie go,” said Wyble. “It feels like losing a part of the family — the O’Rourkes have been here as long as we have — but it’s the right time. I’m happy for her.”

Mary Jo Rogers, another longtime family friend, showed off the mother’s ring — a type of memorial jewelry embedded with the birthstone of each child — and grandmother pendant that were custom designed for her by Mr. O’Rourke. Rogers’ daughters, Ann Rogers and Margaret Norris, have worked at the store periodically over the years — the younger Rogers began working there in 1979 as a teenager. Both daughters came into work on Saturday to help with the open house.

Making the decision to close the family business after 45 years wasn’t an easy one for Graf who began working in the shop alongside her parents when she was about 11.

“Having the opportunity to run this store for so many years has been a great experience,” said Graf. “I’ve become friends with many of my customers, neighboring shop owners, even the store’s landlords. But it’s also been a lot of hard work and sometimes long hours. I’ve just reached a point in life where I want to relax a bit and see what else is out there for me to do.”

O’Rourke Ltd. Jewelers is located at 7950 Norfolk Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland. It will close its doors at 6 p.m. on Jan. 31, 2014.