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Dressed in a tuxedo, the florist’s courier delivered one dozen long-stem red roses in a crystal vase on her desk. He returned the next day with another bouquet and again with the same until after 10 days, her office was a fragrant sea of red.
This was one of many gifts that Art Isaac gave his wife, Karen, during their courtship. This was when Art promised to spoil Karen by providing her with “the best of everything” or “TBOE,” as Art says.
Married in a formal ceremony at The Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC, the couple celebrated with a reception at Jacques where Art and Karen had had their first dinner together and where Art later proposed – at the same table as their first dinner. It wasn’t long until they were on their way to a two-week honeymoon in Fiji.
Now married 14 years, the gifts keep rolling in.
Gifts of a Lifetime
How about a 1999 Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph, the first new design for the 21st century, in Sunset red with an incredible Alpine sound system, reversing aid with pop-up video screen, GPS navigation system, electric sunroof, retractable rear shade, and fold-down trays as a birthday gift? This present, which cost in the $200,000s, wasn’t a secret, but one that Art commissioned and Karen designed.
After design sessions with EuroMotorcars Inc. in Bethesda, Karen selected accenting red trim around the wheel rims, special emblems or quarter badges both inside and out, the wood grain for the dashboard, and the piping for the seats. The shade of the interior and the lambskin carpet contribute to the overall feel of luxury.
The Rolls-Royce is “the most luxurious car,” Karen says. With a V12 cylinder engine, this vehicle provides a solid, quiet ride that makes her feel very secure.
On another birthday, Art gave Karen gifts that included a diamond-encrusted Rolex watch, first class seats on the Metroliner to New York City, a suite at the Plaza Hotel overlooking Central Park, dinner at the top three restaurants in the city, prime seats to three Broadway shows, and a no-limits shopping trip down Fifth and Madison avenues. Art is keeping his promise.
“I like things as perfect as man can make them,” says Art. So he purchased a 1998 Limited Edition Bentley Continental R, one of 10 in the world, as a present to himself. “It’s a car of a lifetime,” says Art and he feels like “king of the road,” adds Karen. With 583 pounds of torque, a 385 horsepower turbo engine and a weight in excess of 5,400 pounds, this machine, priced in the upper $300,000s, just glides down the road. Black Steinway piano-quality wood and chrome accessories also grace his Bentley.
Art is amazed at how generations of Rolls-Royce and Bentley employees dedicate their entire lives to finding and matching the very best wood and prime leather for these vehicles and to building engines by hand. This pursuit of perfection is one that both the Isaacs admire and know.
The Road to Success
Art and Karen met once 12 years earlier and then again by chance when Art was returning shirts to a drycleaners because he wasn’t satisfied with the service. Rethinking his shirt ordeal, he turned toward the garage and there she was. “Don’t I know you?” Karen asked. “I hope so,” Art said to himself. Their first phone call lasted six hours and their journey has taken them to Maui, Bermuda, Cozumel, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Tortola, Cancun, Nassau, The Turks and Caicos Islands, Jamaica, Curaçao, Antigua, Barbados, St. Maarten, the Cayman Islands and Aruba, and as scuba divers, to other tropical destinations.
“We could live any place in the world,” they say. But for now, while raising son, Damon, and daughter, Seychelle, who was named after the islands in the Indian Ocean where they plan to go this summer, Potomac is home.
And inside their sprawling home are mementos of how they got to this stage of their lives; awards for Art’s work in making the country a safer place as president and CEO of Mnemonic Systems Incorporated (MSI), with an abbreviated version of it, “Nemonic,” gracing the license plate of his Bentley. Started in his Reston basement with three employees and a loan for $10,000, Art sold the company, which ended up with 225 employees, 10 years later for millions. “It was a fantastic 10 years; I don’t believe it myself,” he says. To him, the real rewards come from what he accomplished during the years that earned Mnemonic Systems 1994, 1995 and 1996 Washington Technology Fast 50 Awards, as well as leadership awards for developing crime fighting tools and for implementing database systems.
But life was not always easy for Art, who grew up in Vallejo, California as one of seven children raised by a single mom. At age 19, he vowed to buy her a house one day. After 20 years in the Army, rising from a private to chief warrant officer, obtaining four college degrees, building a high-tech company and then selling it, Art kept that promise to his mother.
Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Karen grew up in Detroit, Michigan and moved to Washington, DC to attend college. With a bachelor’s degree from Howard University and a master’s degree from Central Michigan University, Karen also earned success in several positions, including as a personnel management specialist, a special investigator and senior vice president of MSI.
Part of their success lies in their positive attitudes and their promotion of others’ work. After just meeting recent college graduates Chris Dutrow and Jonathan Burnette, the young owners of A Perfect Shine, the Isaacs are touting the two’s service and their involvement with giving back to the community. For every dollar spent with one of several one-time and ongoing packages, such as A Perfect Shine Signature Detail, the premium mobile detailing company donates five dollars towards sponsoring a child through the Christian Children’s Fund. This good deed accompanies a quality detailing thanks to a dual action polisher that “keeps them looking brand new,” says Burnette.
The third Isaac car to experience this finish is their 2000 Limited Edition Holland & Holland Range Rover used for grocery shopping and carpooling.
Art and Karen Isaac know what it takes to succeed and keep rolling on.
