Recently
our community lost one of its most dedicated and civic minded citizens.
Nina Stringer was an elegant and beautiful woman who possessed an extraordinary
sense of etiquette and was always warm and charming to everyone she met.
She was a highly intelligent woman who provided countless hours of volunteer
time, strong leadership and generous financial contributions to many organizations.
When I interviewed for the position of Director of the Art Museum Nina was
the Board President. My interest in the job in San Angelo was based on the
fact that this was a new museum with no established precedents. I had a
desire to experiment with ideas that I felt would help connect the Museum
closely with the citizens of our region. When I presented those ideas to
the Board I believed there would be some objection or concern. I recall
vividly Nina's exclamation: "I think that's the most wonderful thing
I have ever heard!" To me Nina personified the openness and creative
frontier spirit of San Angelo and West Texas. After I came here Nina continued
to provide encouragement and support and indeed as we undertook exciting
projects she was always there to help out. The Museum challenged everyone
to think creatively about our region's future and through its Board and
staff played a pivotal role in such things as the RU/DAT project and downtown
redevelopment. That spirit of deep community involvement that Nina believed
in continues to this day. A good example of that is noted in this issue
of our newsletter. The Museum is addressing environmental issues and developing
programs combining art and science while engaging and encouraging the community
to think about its future. We remain focused on the idea that "the
community is the greatest work of art" and that is how we will memorialize
and remember Nina Stringer.
Howard Taylor
San Angelo Museum
of Fine Arts
One Love Street
San Angelo, Texas 76903
Fax: (325) 658 - 6800
Phone: (325) 653 -
3333
e-mail:
museum@samfa.org