18
OCTOBER 6�13, 2021
MIXED MEDIUM
THE ARTS AROUND
EASTERN OREGON
Pendleton Center for the Arts
bids farewell to J.D. Smith
Go! staff
P
ENDLETON — After more
than 20 years of service,
J.D. Smith is retiring from the
Pendleton Center for the Arts.
Robert Lavadour, executive
director, describes Smith like
this:
“In almost every arts orga-
nization there’s one person
who has shaped the heart
and soul of the mission. While
the work of artists, advocates
and donors gains most of the
limelight, those working behind
the scenes are often the ones
keeping the institutions fi nan-
cially sound and able to do their
important work. J.D. Smith is
one of those people.”
In addition to writing grants
and managing PCA’s member-
ship program, Smith has been
instrumental in conceiving what
have become the center’s most
successful programs. Lava-
dour said that Art Rocks Teens,
the free after-school/summer
program for ages 13-18 and
its accompanying Rock & Roll
Camp, were inspired by a desire
to see positive activities for
his own then teenage son and
other youth. She said Art Rocks
Teens continues to be a central
part of PCA’s programming, and
the Rock & Roll Camp celebrat-
ed its 15th year this August.
“Smith’s success comes
from the intersection of a belief
in the power of art and music to
elevate the human spirit, a pas-
sion for helping those who may
not have a voice in the commu-
nity, and his skill in being able
to clearly communicate the sto-
ries of the organizations he’s
representing,” Lavadour said in
a press release.
Smith has also made con-
tributions to the Walla Walla
Symphony, the Oregon East
Symphony and other organiza-
tions, raising money for perfor-
mances and youth program-
ming.
Smith holds a master’s
degree from Tufts University in
Medford, Massachustts, where
he studied Latin and Greek, and
he worked toward a doctoral
degree at Harvard until leav-
ing to teach in a one-room
schoolhouse in Montana. He
was heavily involved in the civil
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rights movement in the 1960s
and served as a key member
of the Amite County Project
in Amite County, Mississippi,
where some of the most hor-
rifi c violence of the Jim Crow
era took place.
At the age of 26, Smith
served as manager and editor
of the Whole Earth Catalog,
contributing his own commen-
tary and sharing in the honor
in 1972 when the organization
received the National Book
Award for The Last Whole
Earth Catalog.
His column “From the Head-
waters of Dry Creek” has ap-
peared in the Long Valley Advo-
cate in Cascade, Idaho, and the
East Oregonian. He also makes
fi nely crafted leather and wood
works that are sold in fi ne-craft
venues across Eastern Oregon.
“J.D. leaves enormously
big shoes to fi ll in hiring a new
grant writer for the Arts Cen-
ter,” said Board President Su-
san DeMarsh. “He has shaped
Pendleton Center for the Arts/
Contributed photo
J.D. Smith is retiring after 20 years
with Pendleton Center for the Arts.
the cultural life of Pendleton in
a profound way. We’re excited
for him to enjoy retirement and
look forward to reading about
his travels.”
The Pendleton Center for
the Arts has the half-time grant
writing position listed at www.
pendletonarts.org/join-the-
team-2.