Reviews

Jackson Free Press
A Man Living His Passion, by Mary Mack Jones 

When Eclecius Franklin was a seventh grader in Natchez, his nickname was “Vice Grip” – a moniker awarded him by the older boys for the strength of his hands. Growing up in Natchez as the grandson and son of an electrician and mechanic, Franklin learned early the value of strong hands and the gift of touch.

During his high school years, Franklin was an outstanding athlete– playing football and earning a state championship in track. Entering his freshman year at Mississippi State University Franklin played football as one of Jackie Sherrill’s “Mad Dogs”— walk-ons selected to play on the strength of their athletic prowess.

After graduating from MSU with a degree in engineering and industrial technology, he took a job with International Paper Company in Natchez for a few years. From 1995 to 1997, Franklin lived in Atlanta where he held a management position with a plastics company. Returning to Mississippi in 1997, he accepted a job with Craft-Co in Morton as an engineer.

The back story on his transition from engineer to healer is a testimony to his art. While working at Craft-Co, he was approached by a co-worker who had suffered tremendous neck pain. In spite of a strained working relationship with her, Franklin agreed to share his gift of touch and after the first neck massage, the pain abated—an act of kindness that secured his first convert.

Realizing that his true calling was a sort of ministry—a laying on of hands—Franklin began a quest to find a school for massage therapy. At the time, there were few schools for training, but he was able to secure a spot, taking night courses at the Mississippi School of Therapeutic Massage while continuing to work in Morton. His first jobs were chair massages – house calls around the area. As the word spread, clients began to increase and in 1997, he took a risk and started doing massage full-time. These were lean years but his client base continued to grow and in May of 2004, he opened his own business at Fondren Corner and baptized it with the name Gifted Hands.

As his business prospered, he found that many of his clients suffered from over training at the gym and were coming to him “beat up” and in pain from overly zealous personal trainers. Realizing that there was a need for proper training at the gym, he expanded his business and created his own gym offering his skill as a personal trainer. Since opening his massage clinic and his gym, Franklin has served over 9,000 clients in massage and has trained over 700 in the gym.

One of his first clients and a dear friend and mentor, Zee Nobles commented on Franklin’s gifts as a therapist: “He is a wonderful person—always trying to help others. There is not enough interest in holistic medicine that involves mind, body and spirit. Eclecius really believes in the therapeutic emphasis of massage. He is the best I have ever encountered and I have had massages in China, Turkey, India and he is the top of the line.”

“I don’t mind making my clients holler,” remarks Franklin. “ Some times you have to make it hurt to make it feel better. That’s what makes me different.”

“Eclecius knows exactly where to go to help with the pain. He can find the pain,” comments a client waiting for her appointment.

A look around his office reveals much about Franklin and his interests. Photographs with friends on the snowy slopes of Montana, underwater shots of scuba diving adventures and memorabilia of a life in love with sports fill his small office space. Connecting with clients from many different professions and forging strong friendships as a result of his professional skill, Franklin is reaping the rewards of a man who is living his passion.