President’s Message May 2012

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who worked together to make these past 3 three years a success.  It would never have been possible without the support of you, our members.  I thank you.

We’ve seen some changes in our branch during this time.  Our new webpage, the Artists’ Gallery, where artists submit their artwork, has been a big success.

Pen Strokes, our old newsletter, has been archived on the website.  It’s been replaced with a shorter “Where to Find It” Pen Strokes information sheet.  

Our Ekphrasis program, which gives both artists and writers a chance to show their work, is in its third year and still going strong.  Prior years can be found on our website under Branch Activities.

This year, in keeping with our mission “… to encourage, recognize, and promote the production of creative work of a professional standard in Art, Letters, and Music …,” we offered workshops that were free to our members. These workshops are hosted by some of our Pen Women who are willing to share their knowledge and creativity.

Our Blogging Workshop was a big hit with workshops being held once a month. We also held a one-on-one Poetry Workshop.

This month’s workshop will be “Write Your Own Obituary” held on Saturday May 26^th. Learn the why and how of writing your own obituary. There is still time to sign up.  Contact Marge Dodge at margedodge1@aol.com.

During the summer months, when less is going on, there will be two other workshops offered:  Beadweaving where you will learn how to make a bracelet or necklace using some basic beading stitches and a three-part Photography Workshop where you will learn the basics of taking good photos.

It’s still not too late to sign up … contact me at janpix40@aol.com and I’ll let you know the dates and times. If you can’t make a summer workshop, but would like to sign up for a workshop when we start back in October, let me know.

There will be a new summer workshop offered: Using Social Media to Market Your Work.  Contact Lynne Spreen for details at LMSpreen@gmail.com.

I want to thank all of you for your support of our Scholarship Drive. It is through your generosity to this annual fundraiser that we are able to award six scholarships to talented young women graduating from Coachella Valley High Schools to help further their education in the arts.

Joan Petit-Clair

President

janpix40@aol.com

President’s Message, March 2012

Dear Members,

It was nice to see everyone again at our February meeting.  As most of you already know, it was a joint Southern California State Association and Branch meeting.

Our guest speakers were Sharyn Bowman Greberman, our National President, and author Lynette Brasfield.    Sharyn  presented the Southern California State Association and the Palm Springs Branch a certificate congratulating us for promoting professional Pen Women for 54 years.

Sharyn also gave us a recap of what’s been happening on the National level and what their future goals for the organization are.  Be sure to check out their new National website at http://www.NLAPW.org, especially the galleries and contests that are open to members. You might want to consider submitting some of your own work.

Lynette Brasfield told us about growing up in South Africa, coming to the US, then returning to her homeland and the feeling she had when she got there. She told us her process for writing Nature Lessons was based on using experience, imagination, research and serendipity.

This year, I’ve tried to focus more on members helping members by offering workshops for members by members.  Workshops are forming up nicely … many of you have attended the blog workshops.  If you missed out, there is still time to sign up, contact LMSpreen@gmail.com.

A page on the website is being set up now with a list of all the Workshops that are offered and who to contact if you’re interested.  Dessa Reed’s One-on-One Poetry workshop starts in March.  If you have any questions you can email her at dessareed@aol.com

Our scholarship drive donations have been coming in. If you haven’t already sent your donation in, there is still time to do so

Provisional members will be receiving a letter regarding their status and when they see themselves becoming full members.

In the near future we will be looking for members to assist some of the officers in their positions as a way to get more members active in the operations of the branch.   Also if an officer, for some reason, isn’t available, the assistant would be able to fill in for her.  It just keeps things running smoothly.

On a final note, a PayPal link has been added to the website for the Women of Distinction event.  There will also be another link added so that you can pay your dues on line.  There will be a small additional charge for that service that we have to pay which will be passed on to you.

Looking forward to seeing you at our March Luncheon.

Joan Petit-Clair

Branch President

Southern California State Association President

President’s Message January – February 2012

Dear Members,

It’s February and the New Year is whirling by. The New Year also finds our branch busy with activity.

Perhaps you have already participated in one of the organization’s workshops offered as a perk of membership. If you look on the Pen Strokes page of the website, you will find more information for signing up. Don’t miss this opportunity. Choose from blogging, watercolor, photography, poetry, memoir, and bead weaving.

Have you signed up for the premier of NLAPW’s Webinar Program offered by our national organization? It’s February 21 at 4:00 p.m. Pacific Time and features our own Lynne Spreen. The topic is How to Create an Online Presence. An eblast with sign-up information was sent out.

Woman of Distinction will have a whole new look this year. Special Event Chair Marge Dodge will soon be letting us know about the exciting event she and her committee have arranged.

By now you should have received your Scholarship Drive letter. We look forward to your support of our Scholarship Fund and the young women it benefits.

Lastly, our luncheon on February 21 combines a meeting of the Southern California State Association and our regular branch meeting. Invitations have been sent to other branches. Our special guest is National President Sharyn Bowman Greberman. Our featured speaker is author Lynette Brasfield. Don’t forget to make your reservation with Kathy Bjork.

Looking forward to seeing you at our February Luncheon.

Joan Petit-Clair

Branch President

Southern California State Association President

President’s Message 2011

As you all know, the mission of the League, a not-for-profit 501 © (3) corporation, is to encourage, recognize, and promote the production of creative work of a professional standard in Art, Letters, and Music.  One of the ways we do this is by awarding scholarships to deserving graduating seniors who want to further their education in the arts.

Our scholarships make a difference to those who receive them. In order to continue awarding the number of scholarships we’ve awarded in the past, we will be holding a Scholarship Drive this year.  In January, you will be receiving a pledge letter asking you to be as generous as you can afford to be. We look forward to your support.

On another note, our first WordPress Workshop was held on Saturday, November 5^th and was a huge success.  The next one will be held on Saturday, December 10^th from 9-12 at The River in Rancho Mirage.  If you’re interested, contact Lynne Spreen at lmspreen@gmail.com

In addition to the WordPress Workshop, we will be offering other workshops after the holidays.  An email will be going out shortly with information

If you have any suggestions for other Workshops you think members would be interested in, please contact me at janpix40@aol.com .

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving,

Joan Petit-Clair

President

President’s Message for October, 2011

 

Welcome back for the new season.  I hope you all enjoyed the summer break.  I
want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their time and hard work in
making last season the success it was.

At the NLAPW Southern California State Association Creativity Conference,
hosted by the Palm Springs Branch last season, Anne Hoiberg , President of the
NLAPW Southern California State Association, and Bette Miller, the Treasurer,  discussed the possibility of our branch representing the NLAPW Southern California State Association, with me serving as President and Kathy Bjork as Treasurer.  After much discussion, Kathy and I both agreed to take on that responsibility and have both been installed.

On our Branch level, I want to welcome Judy Steinberg as our new Second VP
Membership.  She can be reached at sclassact@aol.com.   Judy is busy planning for the Membership Tea.  It is set for Saturday afternoon, November 12^th
from 2 to 4 PM so watch for your invitation.  Let Judy know of any potential members that you’re planning to bring.

Our first meeting is October 18^th.  Our guest speaker is Barbara Mortensen aka
“The Opera Lady” who will present a “primer” on enjoying the opera.  Also,we are starting something new this season … The Member Showcase … a seven minute segment where a member “promotes” herself and her work.  DeAnn Lubell will be the first member to kick off the Member Showcase.

In addition to our programs for the year, we plan to hold a variety of
workshops, dates and times to be announced in the near future.  Watch the website for more information.  The sessions planned so far are: Poetry
Writing Workshop; Memoir Workshop; WordPress Workshop, and a Photography & PhotoShop Workshop.

If you have any suggestions for other Workshops you think members would
be interested in, please contact me at janpix40@aol.com.

Here’s to a successful year,

Joan Petit-Clair

President

President’s Message for May 2011

Those of you who were unable to attend the Fifth Annual Women of Distinction in the Arts Luncheon at Wally’s Desert Turtle this year missed a great event. I would like to thank everyone who worked tirelessly to make this special occasion happen. Through community generosity and support of this annual luncheon, we are able to award scholarships to talented young women graduating from Coachella Valley High Schools who wish to further their education in the arts.

Now that we’re getting ready to break for the summer, I want to thank all the officers, committee chairs, and volunteers for their time and energies this past year. We couldn’t have done it without you. Some of you will be leaving the desert for cooler climates while others will stay here in the valley. For myself, when I’m not teaching bead weaving over at Hacienda Anura Bead Company, or traveling, I’ll be catching up on things I’ve put off doing and just relax.

“Life is a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you can only spend it once.” (Author unknown)

No matter what you’re doing or where you’re going, have a wonderful summer; relax, rejuvenate, and just enjoy. See you in October.

President’s Message for April 2011

Throughout the month of March since 1987, Women’s History Month has been a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture, and society. The event grew out of a small-town school competition in Sonoma, California in 1978 where students participated in a “Real Woman” essay contest.  The idea caught on and spread through communities, school districts and organizations across the country and is now celebrated annually.

In 1980 Jimmy Carter issued the first presidential proclamation declaring the week of March 8 as National Women’s History Week.  The following year Congress passed a resolution establishing a national celebration, and six years later, the National Women’s History Project successfully petitioned Congress to expand the event to run the entire month of March.

Prior to 1970, women’s history was mostly invisible in traditional American text books.  Today almost every college offers women’s history courses and most major graduate programs offer doctoral degrees in the field.  The women’s movement of the sixties was an important factor that contributed to the emergence of women’s history and raised the aspirations and opportunities for women.  It was also part of a larger movement that changed the study of history in the United States.

To name a few of the accomplished women in the arts who have achieved greatness in the past…

Georgia O’Keeffe was a pioneer of modern American art.  With her own unique style and artistic brilliance she revolutionized modern art in both her time and in the present. She portrayed the power and emotion of objects of nature and her surroundings with her large vivid paintings of flowers, cityscapes and scenes of the American Southwest.

Georgia was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.  She had the first retrospective show of a woman’s art at the Museum of Modern Art and in 1985 when she was 97 years old, President Ronald Reagan presented the National Medal of Arts to her.  She died the following year.

Toni Morrison, born Chloe Anthony Wofford, is an American novelist, editor, and professor.  She began her writing career when she was in her late 30s and is one of the first important African-American women writers today.  She is noted for her examination of black experience within the black community, the central theme in her novels which she describes with realistic clarity.

Her characters struggle to find themselves and their cultural identity in an unjust society.  She uses vivid dialogue, fantasy, and richly detailed portrayals of black characters, focusing on the experience and challenges of racial, gender and class conflict that African Americans faced, particularly emphasizing the black women’s experience.

Her novel Beloved, published in 1987, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988, and in 1993 she became the first African American to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature.  She has been a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters since 1981.

Maria Tallchief, born Marie Elizabeth Tall Chief, is a Native American.  She is a world-renowned ballerina and one of the first-ranking ballerinas in American history.

She began taking ballet and piano lessons when she was 3 years old.  By the time she was fifteen years old she danced her first solo performance at the Hollywood Bowl.  After graduating high school she joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, a highly acclaimed Russian ballet troupe based in New York City and made her debut in Canada.  Her reputation grew and she was eventually given the title of ballerina.  Years later she was the first American to dance with the Paris Opera Ballet at the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.

She joined the Balanchine Ballet Society, now called the New York City Ballet, which she and her husband helped found, and came to be recognized as one of the greatest dancers in the world.  She was the first American dancer to achieve the title of prima ballerina and held it until she retired eighteen years later.  Throughout her career, she has celebrated and promoted Native American Culture.

On Sunday, April 10, 2011 the Palm Springs Branch of NLAPW will be hosting our Women of Distinction in the Arts luncheon at Wally’s Desert Turtle in Rancho Mirage where we will be honoring five women of distinction from the Coachella Valley.  Please plan on joining us in honoring these women. For more information, click here.