This has been a wild and unexpected ride but totally worth the time and effort. What started as attending an "informational meeting" with a group of strangers quickly turned into a head first dive into an exciting new venture with some dynamic, creative, and very skilled folks. I wouldn't change one thing about these past few months.
A few details: A friend shared with me that a few folks had an idea to open an art gallery in our charming, historic downtown. She handed me a printout of a presentation she attended the previous day. I attended the follow up meeting and 3 hours later I had committed to being the Chief Operation Officer of a soon-to-be-established LLC, known as ArtWorks DeLand! From that day on, it was all hands on deck. We set up the LLC, assembled investors and a board, negotiated a lease in the oldest commercial building in our historic downtown which happens to be in the PERFECT LOCATION, and began the build out and interviewing prospective artists. While this entire whirlwind was unexpected, what quickly convinced me to hop onboard was the man behind the idea, one Jason Parodi. Along with Jason is Melinda Cummings, the President of W. Volusia Artists, and the chairman of the ArtWorks DeLand board.
That first meeting was on December 11. We opened the gallery with 30 fabulous artists and a waiting list on February 10 and held our Grand Opening on March 23. I look forward to a long and exciting adventure with ArtWorks DeLand and have already made many new friends for life!
