Friends of the Cape Canaveral Pen Women

Gwynne Eldridge, Friend -  

Elmira Hooge (Friend) - I was born in Persia; today's name is Iran. I started painting in my teenage years. After a couple of years, my parents hired a private tutor who had studied painting in Germany and from him I learned the Old Masters style of classical painting, so that became my style too. I learned how to use oil painting for my portraits and flowers and that has continued with me from Iran to Britain to the US and Canada. In Canada I learned how to paint classical portraits and flowers using watercolor, and when we moved back to the USA, I started using acrylic, and acrylic was added to my collection of media. Since my retirement I thoroughly enjoy myself by doing more arts and crafts, like painting on rocks, greeting cards, and bird houses, but I am still painting on canvas quite a bit. I also make delightful earrings.

Deby Johnson, Friend, Meeting Coordinator  -   

My bio is short! I love crafts and reading, and since joining Pen Women I am writing poems.

Anne Parks Mitchell, Friend  -  I was born in Syracuse New York and moved to Fort Lauderdale when I was 10 years old. At age 13, I moved to Satellite Beach to live with my aunt and uncle. I attended Eau Gallie Junior High for 9th grade. Courtney and Elaine Stone were family friends, so I got to know Cathy in ninth grade. What a small world now that I am living in Viera we will meet again so many years later. After graduating from Fort Lauderdale high school, I received a bachelor’s in education from Temple University and then a master’s in early childhood education from Westfield State I taught kindergarten and gifted education for several years both in Massachusetts and Florida. I earned an Ed. D from Nova University in 1983 and later received a M. Ed In Counseling/Psychology. My final years in education were spent as a guidance counselor at a performing arts elementary school in Fort Lauderdale. I retired in 1999 to travel extensively and enjoy all the performing arts venues that South Florida has to offer. Some of my favorite trips were to Israel, Australia, and Germany. I’ve enjoyed visiting other cultures and meeting new people. Last August I moved to Viera to be close to my daughter and her family. I’m really enjoying my life here. I joined a book club, attend many activities at One Senior Place, and enjoy taking water aerobics classes. I found you ladies through One Senior Place and I’m very happy to become a Friend!

Barbara Rios, Friend  -   Capturing the fleeting beauty of life with a camera or a paintbrush has been a lifelong need for Barbara. She has learned that it may not be there tomorrow… Barbara is self-taught from constantly reading, observing other artists, making notes on scraps of paper, and experimenting. The result is a wide variety of subjects, styles and materials, but she is best known for her use of vivid and, sometimes, unnatural colors, such as a green and blue zebra! Many of her “failed” paintings have been dumped in the tub, soaked, squeezed, torn, and recreated into something new. Artist Sterling Edwards’ phrase “creative restlessness” best describes Barbara. Her recent “Whimsey” series is created by making a story out of marbleized webbing randomly sprayed onto paper. Not only has this challenge expanded her imagination, it has given her many hours of pure joy. As part of the National Art in Public Places Program, her paintings are actively displayed throughout Brevard County, Florida, in city halls, libraries, hospitals, and many other public locations. She is most proud and honored that her painting, “Your Brothers Salute You” is a permanent part of the All Veterans of Brevard’s Traveling Wall which continuously exhibits across the United States. Her painting depicts a solemn, military ceremony with a horse-drawn caisson which bears the body of a veteran in a flag-draped casket. Since retirement from a career in real estate, Barbara has been very involved with the Brevard Watercolor Society (BWS), but is currently affiliated with numerous, professional art groups. She actively enters juried shows and has won a number of awards, including 1st Place in the BWS Splash 2014 annual show. She enjoys sharing her artistic knowledge with others and has given countless demonstrations for BWS, on local cable shows, senior groups, and schools. Her website is www.ArtbyBarbaraRios.com

Beverly Skovgaard, Friend  -