Page 12 - The Decorative Painter Spring 2015

Chapter Spotlight
CHAPTER MEMBERS GATHER FOR
THE 19TH POW WOW RETREAT
The Cherokee Trail Decorative Painters (CTDP) in Blairsville, Ga. celebrated their 19th Pow Wow Painting Retreat Aug. 25-27, at the Fontana Village Resort in Fontana, N.C.
The retreat consisted of three full days of painting camaraderie with this year’s painting project taught by CTDP’s first vice president, Wendy Holden. In addition to retreat attendees enjoying three fun days of painting and fellowship, they were able to squeeze in a beautiful sunset cruise on Lake Fontana, the perfect atmosphere for networking with other chapter members.
They concluded their festivities with a late-night pajama party, the theme for this year’s Pow Wow. All of the members came to the hospitality room in their finest pajamas to unwind and enjoy one last night of “rockin’ and a rolling” to great music and dancing.
The retreat was deemed a success, and all of the attendees are already anticipating and planning for the next Pow Wow retreat in 2015.
A beautiful sunset view of Lake Fontana.
SUITCASES OF HOPE
Recently, members of the West Michigan Decorative Painters
in Grand Rapids, Mich., painted suitcases for children who are in the Michigan foster care system.
Because many of these children have only paper bags or nothing in which to carry all of their belongings, the members thought it would be a nice gesture to give them a unique painted suitcase of their own.
Once completed, the members placed a thoughtful letter inside
each finished suitcase to let the
kids know that they are loved and cared about even though they find themselves in a situation where
they have no immediate family or anyone to show them affection on
a daily basis.
This project was in honor of chapter member Karen Rowan’s youngest son, who died in 2012 at the age of forty. He held the foster children’s cause in the highest regard and dedicated himself to working with at-risk foster children all of his adult life. Before he passed away, he had started a program called “One Hour – One Letter – One Life” in which people take an hour out of their time to write a letter of encouragement to a hurting child or teenager, which could inspire them and ultimately change their life.
10 The Decorative Painter
• ISSUE NO. 1, 2015
DECORATIVEPAINTERS.ORG
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