2008-10 Elected Officers
Boca Raton Branch, NLAPW

CO-PRESIDENT
Diane Brenda Bryan
Letters

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Diane Brenda Bryan received her bachelor’s degree from New York University and did post-graduate work in education at Post College and Hofstra University. She worked as a secretary for the N.Y. State Labor Department and was the first executive secretary of the War Labor Board. She also served as supply officer on an air base in Baltimore, Md. She taught English and was a drama coach for more than 20 years in N.Y. BOSCES published her English curriculum for all levels of eighth grade, and she presented a History of the Theatre on Educational TV. Diane was an actor in off Broadway productions, as well as in summer theatre in Long Island, where she was an actor in THEATERAMA, a regional touring company on L.I. For the past twenty-five years she has lived in Boca Raton where she served on the Board of Directors and president of her community. She has written many editorials for local newspapers and lectures on film and theatre. For many years she has chaired the Boca Raton Writers’ Roundtable. Her interest in historical events led her to write her first novel, based on fact, Soldier of God. Other books include Journeys, her second published novel, and Memoir of Manhattan, The Way We Were, a nonfiction book. Diane is an active member of the Cassell Network of Writers, the Florida Freelance Writers, and NLAPW. She served as Membership Vice President for the Boca Branch for four years.

CO-PRESIDENT
Myra F. Levick
PhD, ATR-BC, HLM
Art & Letters

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Dr. Myra Levick is a psychologist and art psycho-therapist, who has held many positions in the Boca Branch, including secretary, treasurer, bylaws chair and parliamentarian, as well as for the Florida State Association, where she served as parliamentarian, bylaws and protocol chair. Myra is an exhibiting painter and author of three books on art therapy and numerous articles. She won a 1st Place Award at the FSA Conference for her book See What I Am Saying, What Children Tell Us Through Their Drawings. She established and directs the South Florida Art Psychotherapy Institute, through which she does consultations, evaluations, conducts seminars and lectures at universities, here and abroad. Dr. Levick was founder and first president of the American Art Therapy Association, and director of the first art therapy program leading to a master’s degree at Philadelphia’s Hahnemann Medical College. She is currently planning a new post-masters continuing education program in art therapy at the Palm Beach Community College on the Florida Atlantic University campus. In 2007, she was awarded the coveted Individual Achievement Award at the Pen Women’s Florida State Conference.

MEMBERSHIP VICE PRESIDENT
Bonnie Allan
Art

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Bonnie Allan says she was destined to become a pen woman. She was editor of her high school’s yearbook and the Chemistry Quarterly for two years. For 25 years, Bonnie was a pharmacist and owner of four pharmacies. She was also a florist, starting her own store, and played the organ at her church. When she became involved in Garden Clubs in Ohio, she became a horticultural judge. This led to her becoming editor of the Garden Path quarterly for eight years. Now, she is enjoying the creative fields of art and photography, while helping other artsy ladies meet the qualifications of this growing pen woman organization She is also tackling the job of editing the Boca Branch’s yearbook. Last year, Bonnie assisted with the yearbook while being in charge of receptions for art shows and book talks.

TREASURER
Pat Wilson
Art & Letters

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Pat Wilson has been a pen woman for 30 years, serving in various capacities, including bylaws chair, editor, and treasurer of the Florida State Association. In the Boca Branch, she has served as editor, publicity and yearbook chairs, photographer, program vice president, two prior terms as treasurer and is the immediate past president. A retired newspaper columnist and freelance writer, Pat is also an award-winning photographer, poet and lyricist, as well as a communications teacher. Her former students have twice seen to it that her name was included in Who’s Who Among America’s Outstanding Teachers. She proudly displays a Congressional Award for her work in Palm Beach County’s Private Sector Initiative. Pat was named Florida’s Pen Woman of the Year in 1993.

RECORDING SECRETARY
Carol White
Letters

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Carol White has been a member of NLAPW for seven years, serving the past two years as Letters Chair. She is executive producer and vice president of the Boca Raton Theatre Guild (BRTG), where she manages three out of five seasonal productions. She is instrumental in hiring directors, stage managers, cast and crew. Carol runs a BRTG Playwright Workshop once a month, which is open to the public. She’s also a playwright, whose work has been produced and staged across the country. She has won many awards for her short stories, plays, poetry and photography. She is a frequent fiction contributor to the East Hampton Star newspaper in New York, and has been a guest columnist for the Sun Sentinel, as well as a regular columnist for Senior Scene. Current projects include writing an essay for the New York Times Modern Love and finishing a series of children’s books.

CORRESPONDING SECRETARY
Mary Unterbrink
Art & Letters

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A Floridian since 1968, Mary Unterbrink has been a pen woman for nearly 20 years. She is the author of three published books, and more than 100 articles and Haiku poetry. Her art membership came when she won awards for her watercolors and mixed-media collages. Mary has previously served as vice president and art co-chair and enjoys working with the art committee on exhibits. Two of her short plays were included in the Play Reading Festival at the Willow Theatre in 2007. She also received a 1st Place Award for her adult plays at the pen women’s 2007 Florida State Conference.

2008-10 Appointed Officers

ART CHAIR
Phyllis Emmett
Art

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Phyllis Emmett began her pen woman career by joining the Fairfield County Connecticut Branch of NLAPW. Upon moving to Florida, she immediately became involved in the Boca Branch’s art committee, later serving as art co-chair and now chairperson. Phyllis is certified to teach art and has been exhibiting and selling her watercolors for a number of years. As a small business owner, she hand-painted large murals for professional portrait studios, some as large as 10 feet long and 8 feet high. One order was for 50 winter scenes to be delivered in one month’s time. Although she spends a good deal of her time setting up art shows and exhibits for the Boca Branch, she enjoys South Florida’s relaxed lifestyle by playing tennis, dancing, and serving as hostess at area art and drama productions. She still has time to win awards and sell her paintings.

LETTERS CHAIR
Marlene Klotz
Letters

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Marlene Klotz says that joining a creative writing class was the most worthwhile gift she ever gave herself. Her prime concerns centered around her family, until she fell into a health crises, which left her emotionally drained. Creative writing became Marlene’s savior. She sold her first poem to The American Journal of Nursing within a matter of weeks. That first $5.00 check was the beginning of an intense interest in writing poetry. Later on, her poem, A Mountain of Shoes was accepted by the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. to be included in their permanent archives. Since then, she has published articles and poems in Newsday, True Confessions, True Romance, True Story, Secrets, Mature Living, and Christian Parent. Everyone enjoys reading her light verses in the Hadassah and Pen Women newsletters. She self-published Alphabet Zoo, a book of children’s poetry. Her two books, Shared Memories and The Poetry of Life, were inspired from her volunteer experiences at a Delray Beach senior residence. Marlene previously served as the Boca Branch’s hospitality chair for four years.

MUSIC CHAIR
Sheila Firestone
Music

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Sheila Firestone is a member of ASCAP, a composer and retired educator of the Gifted and curriculum developer She is also a past coordinator for the Dade County Special Arts Festivals. Sheila was named Teacher of Note by the Young Patronesses of the Opera in Miami. Founder of Songs for a New Day, she conducts educational workshops, in which she incorporates a participatory children’s ballet, “The Peace Patch.” She has won awards for both her compositions and educational work. There are periodic, local performances of her new-classic, post-modern and spiritual works; a number of these are available on CD. Sheila is the recording secretary for the Florida State Association.

EDITOR
Mary Twitty
Letters

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Since her early childhood, Mary Twitty has had a passion for creative writing. However, life got in the way and she was not able to pursue her writing until retirement. Upon retiring from the United States House of Representatives in Washington, D.C., she moved to Florida to be with her daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter, where writing became her exclusive occupation. Her two published novels are Hannah’s Journey and Selective Discretion. She is currently working on two more novels, as well as a play.

MEDIA CHAIR
Bette Lee Crosby
Letters

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Much of Bette Lee Crosby’s early career was spent in the fast paced world of advertising, where she co-owned and was creative director of the award-winning OTK Advertising Agency. She also served as the U.S. marketing director for the world famous M.I. Hummel figurines’ distributor and was editor-in-chief for Innovations, and a contributing editor for numerous trade publications. In 1997, she left all this behind to become a novelist. In 2007, she received the 1st Place NLAPW Florida Biennial Award for her novel, Girl Child. The previous year, she won an award for her yet-to-be-published novel, What Matters Most. She is currently working on her seventh novel.