Most likely I did not understand the first live theater performance I attended. At seven I was too young to understand Our Town, but I remember the ladders, umbrellas and Stage Manager. I’ve loved theater ever since. A high school English teacher introduced me to Shakespeare and theater at the university level. My interest grew with the arrival of the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and involvement with community theater. The Great River Shakespeare Festival’s arrival in Winona was a real WOW!

Little did I know that a little volunteering would lead to a continuing passion for the Festival or that GRSF would be the first of many festivals and artistic endeavors to enhance our lives in Winona.

I’m thrilled to be a GRSF board of Directors member and chair of the Friends of Will Volunteer group of over 250 dedicated volunteers. I also serve on the Winona County Historical Society Board of Directors and coordinate school visits to the Society’s annual Voices of the Past Cemetery walk. Other arts organizations I am involved with through volunteering are the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, Theater du Mississippi.

I continue in my professional interests writing for professional journals and serving as a mentor for the Library of Congress TPS Teachers Network, sharing and discussing ideas for using primary sources in the classroom. I especially enjoy the Arts and Primary Sources sharing.

Personal blog and writing    maryalicea.wordpress.com/
Friends of Will Volunteers    grsf.wordpress.com
Down the Rabbit Hole with a Teddy Bear: The TPS Teachers Network
Information Today, September 2018

Photo courtesy of Mary Farrell.