Woman Makes 'Last-Minute' Decision to Stop After Discovering 'Nostalgic' Precious Moments Museum Exists (Exclusive)

"If I went here, I'd cry. I used to LOVE these as a child," a TikTok user wrote of the Precious Moments Chapel and Gardens

A Minnesota woman is sharing an up-close and personal look at a nostalgic place — one dedicated to the Precious Moments figurines popularized in the 1990s.

Mel Garcia's TikTok video of the Precious Moments Chapel and Gardens in Carthage, Missouri, has gone viral, with thousands sharing and commenting their own memories of the collectible figurines that inspired the space.

"This is odd, weird, sweet and nostalgic," wrote one commenter. "I remember my Precious Moments Bible I would take to church as a child."

"If I went here, I'd cry. I used to LOVE these as a child," wrote another.

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Garcia, 30, tells PEOPLE, that her trip to the facility was "quick and last-minute" and inspired by a discussion with her husband about toys they grew up with, and a trip to the thrift store.

"I had gone to a thrift store and I saw a [Precious Moments] Christmas ornament and I told my husband that I grew up with those," Garcia says. "When I got in the car, I looked it up and I saw that there was the museum."

On their wedding anniversary, the couple traveled to Minnesota to celebrate and, on the way back home, made a detour to see it in person.

"We decided that we were going for it last minute and I was so excited. I grew up with these types of dolls actually [and] my mom had a lot of the kitchen and ceramic decor," she says.

Garcia adds that she and her husband arrived when the museum opened and were initially the only ones there. As soon as they entered, she says, "I immediately started to feel such a nostalgic feeling. I'm not sure how to explain it. That’s when I decided to start filming since also there was nobody there."

According to its official website, the Precious Moments Chapel and Gardens aims to preserve "the art and medium through which Samuel J. Butcher communicated his unique message of loving, caring and sharing with the world."

Butcher was the creator of Precious Moments, a Christian giftware company most well-known for it's figurines of wide-eyed children — many of them purchased by collectors.

The Chapel itself opened in 1989 in Carthage, Missouri, and was Butcher's attempt at creating a Sistine Chapel-like facility that features painted stories from the Bible (featuring the iconic Precious Moments characters) adorning its walls and ceiling,

Garcia says that she and her husband's tour of the space took roughly four hours, and included a stop in the gift shop which, naturally, offered some of the collectibles for sale (with proceeds going to the foundation that runs and maintains the museum).

She adds that she recommend that others who grew up with the figurines pay the museum a visit, as they can learn about the beginnings of the company and the man behind the designs. And if you can, Garcia says, make it a family affair.

"I would definitely go back and this time with my mom — she had a big collection and I know she would be so happy to see it," she tells PEOPLE. "I never knew a place like this existed."

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