by Michele Newbern Gillis
Staff Writer
The Commercial Women of Jacksonville held their holiday luncheon at River City Brewing Company last month where they viewed artwork created by the girls at the PACE Center for Girls, a charity they support.
The art was auctioned off during the event.
Dave Colangeld, teacher/advisor at PACE Center, told the members more about PACE and tell how the art was created.
Colangeld told how the girls stayed after school everyday for a week to create their art. “Some had never even picked up a paint brush, but their creations were very impressive,” he said.
The idea was first to create something that reflected architecture in downtown, but then he and Rhetta Nussbaum of Grubb & Elllis Phoenix Realty, an advisor to the center, decided to let the girls get creative and do whatever they wanted. The result included peace signs, buildings downtown, handprint painting, obstacle courses and other paintings that meant something personal to each girl.
“It was very therapeutic for the girls,” said Colangeld.