Wow it has been a while!  Because time goes by so fast, right?  Soon the kids will be on Summer Break, which reminds me -does anyone enjoy the Free Friday Night flicks at Crown Center as much as I do?  I look forward to spreading my blanket on the grass early in the evening and waiting on my sisters and their families (they always arrive late)!  This summer they have a great line-up: July 2nd: Pretty In Pink, then Jurassic Park, Hairspray, Julie and Julia, Groundhog Day, and Oceans Eleven, the last one is a Harry Potter movie, can't remember which one, though.  Hope to see you out there!!! I looove movies! Especially free movies:)))

SI SE PREGUNTAN POR QUE A VECES MIS JEANS ESTAN 

UN POCO MANCHADOS DE PINTURA, LA FOTO DE MI ESTUDIO

LES DARA LA RESPUESTA.

Looking forward to April 2nd at La Salsa

"NOCHE RANCHERA" 

This upcoming event is going to be so different from anything I've ever been involved in before. 

 There is going to be KARAOKE, DANCING, I am going to be doing CARICATURES of all the guests all night. 

I had an idea, to pre-draw the cartoon bodies, one for the men, one for the ladies. 

And since it is "NOCHE RANCHERA" I thought, mmmmm well its going to be a surprise! 

 and not the only surprise, mind you!  

We are doing a RAFFLE OF A PAINTING of "El Rey" VICENTE FERNANDEZ!!!

(No additional purchase necessary, your $10 donation to the event automatically enters you in the raffle!) This is truly going to be a great evening! No faltes, come down and participate, you may go home with an original oil painting on canvas!  If you dont sing, it's okay, I don't either.  We will have lots of fun any way:)

SCHOOL DAZE

WESTPORT HIGH SCHOOL

BACK IN TH DAY

Following is an article from The Messenger at Children's Mercy Hospital...

VOLUNTEER CARICATURE ARTIST

SHOWING CHILDREN AS THEY REALLY ARE, NOT THE CONDITIONS FROM WHICH THEY SUFFER

      Little Deborah Moreno was in a car accident.  The month she spent in

 Children's Mercy Hospital could feel like a lifetime for any 12-year-old.

But when her portrait was drawn by two artists that had come over from

Hallmark, Moreno's life in fact, was forever changed.

"At the time I had scars on my face from the wreck," explains Moreno,

 "but they drew me as if those never existed."

Those artists provided Moreno with a picture of how she was seen by others,

 not how she viewed herself or the injuries.

"Like so many children, I already liked to draw.  But after receiving that portrait,

 I knew that's what I wanted to do for others," says Moreno.  "The incredible feeling

 it gave me, I wanted it to be shared with everyone."

So during the last 20 years, Moreno continued to draw, practice and hone

 her skills.

Now returning to Children's Mercy as a volunteer, Moreno continues

the tradition of drawing children as they really are, not based on the conditions from

which they suffer.

Moreno never asks the children to pose, but simply uses the opportunity to talk with them.

"Sometimes in the begining they're quiet or bashful," says Moreno.  But inevitably

 while being drawn, the children open-up and start sharing stories with me."

Moreno begins by drawing their faces, and while talking to them, is able to sketch

an individual body that fits their personalities.

If they have no hair, Moreno asks if they wear hats, or would they like a flower in their portrait.

  If there is a big scar on a child's face, she may draw the other side.  As Moreno stresses,

 ther's always a way to bring out the beauty and joy of every child.

"I often focus on their eyes," says Moreno.  "No matter their condition, I can always

 see their true personality -their inner-child - through the eyes."

When Moreno started volunteering, she thought it would be fun for the patients.

"The children do get so excited when I give them their very own portrait," says Moreno.

  "But I'm the one that's truly rewarded in the experience. 

They offer me so much more than what I give them in a drawing."

Upon completing the portrait, many times the patients will ask for colors and sketch pads

 to create drawings of their own.

"It's exciting to me when the children share how they too like to draw," says Moreno.

"I offer suggestions and encouragement, for I expect that one day,

one of these children will return to Children's Mercy and continue the tradition

of drawing patients as they really are, not the conditions from which they suffer."

-By Roger Barnhart

January 29 2010 - Save The Date!

Thanks to all that have confirmed attending this Fundraiser event -Im sure

 its going to be a great night!

DON'T FORGET, YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN THIS ORIGINAL OIL PAINTING OF SALMA HAYEK WITH EVERY TICKET PURCHASED!