Right after I broke up with NoNeil, I moved back to my roots, that is the San Geronimo Valley where I stepped back into a community that I hadn’t revisited since the 1970s. In 2016, I had already reacquainted myself with that is the San Geronimo Valley Community Center food bank, where I became a volunteer and helped serve senior lunches. When I first began volunteering, I had no idea that it would become a lifeline, so when this event honoring Richard Sloan was planned, I knew I couldn’t afford to attend it, so I asked if I could document the event. They were thrilled.
I first met Richard and artist Donna Sloan when they moved onto our road in 1965. They had a young child, Bryn, and I was the default babysitter and housecleaned. Through the Sloans I was turned onto many ideas including the work of JRR Tolkien, and Phil Ochs.Through Donna and Richard, I became politically involved, I joined his peace and freedom party in 1970 and volunteered as a sign painter for Barbara Boxer’s, Marin county supervisor campaign, etc. so the Sloans were formative in my growing up years. But after Richard Nixon got elected, because of our split third-party votes, I became a reluctant Democrat. Never again.
Donna was instrumental in setting up the San Geronimo Valley Art Center in the old office of Lagunitas School, my alma mater. The building has been public use as a school because it couldn’t be retrofitted. The San Geronimo Valley Art Center morphed into the community center. Full circle. Note bene:Often times the loudest mouth wins the credit for the record. Jeanne Berensmeyer did not the art and community center. Sloan did, I was there. I was a volunteer.
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