Kalona woman returns stowaway Elvis memorabilia to Graceland

MARION, Iowa (KCRG) - Elvis has left the building. Or, at least some of his stuff has left Iowa.

Lisa Jennings, from Kalona, got married at Graceland this summer. When she returned home, she discovered some Elvis memorabilia from the estate ended up in her luggage.

The items have now returned to the home of the King, but not before leaving Jennings all shook up.

“I’m like, Elvis touched this stuff. This is huge. This should not have left Memphis. Like, how did we get this?” said Jennings. Her husband had a clue.

“He goes, ‘Oh, so-and-so, the wedding planner. He put it in our car. I thought it was yours.’”

Jennings said after her discovery, she called Graceland. They initially wanted her to mail the items back, but she said she was too nervous.

“I want to trust that it’s going back to the Graceland where it deserves to be, so she agreed to come up to Iowa and pick it up,” said Jennings.

Jennings said she put the question to Graceland employees of how this box of artifacts was even able to get mixed up with her luggage in the first place.

“We don’t know. We don’t know. She said it was a big accident. They had to review videos and footage,” said Jennings. “She did say it takes two keys to get to the vault. And that, in 40 years, this has never happened.”

You could say Jennings was the perfect person to make this discovery, both because she immediately worked to get the items home, but also because of how much Elvis means to her.

“I was named after Lisa Marie. So that’s why we got married there,” said Jennings. “We incorporated some Elvis lines in our vows.“

She added, “My mom was pregnant with me when Elvis died, and I grew up an hour south of Memphis. So after he died, they opened up the gate, and she stole—not stole, but she took a leaf off his yard.”

Jennings said carrying a home a few pieces of Elvis’ life was surreal and exciting, but she also knew, in the end, the crown had to return to the King.

“It was just amazing. It really was. But I’m just thankful it’s on its way back to Memphis, where it belongs.”

Copyright 2023 KCRG. All rights reserved.