I am a retired high school art teacher, fifth grade teacher and elementary fine arts coordinator. As a child I loved to go somewhere quiet and draw. Sam Savat, Marguerite Henry and other animal artists were my heroes. I received my BA from Augustana College and MS from Western Illinois University. I retired from teaching after 35 years. I now spend my time gardening, growing award winning orchids in my greenhouse and creating watercolors and colored pencil works. I’ve had several 1 person shows, displayed watercolors at the Quad City Botanical Gardens and the Fairchild Botanical Gardens. I also display my work at orchid and gardening shows throughout the midwest. I have also had my work published in Orchids, the journal of the American Orchid Society and also the journal of the Native Orchids of North America.