Marianne Styles is an attorney, musician, classically ordained cantor, thespian, and visual artist with a degree in Fine Art from University of Delaware (minor in French) with a JD from Widener University’s Delaware School of Law, and Cantorial Degree from JSLI in NYC. She has also worked as an art conservation technician for the Winterthur Museum in DE (bed hangings, upholstery, embroidery, wreck artifact recovery/textiles and storage), University of Pennsylvania Archaeological Museum in Philadelphia (Tlingit Collection), and the Smithsonian (NMAH, First Ladies Gown Collection), as well as on projects with the Woodrow Wilson House Museum and National Museum of Radio, Television and Film in DC. She is currently engaged in ongoing operatic vocal and music theory and composition studies and is excited to help promote the arts in Dorchester County.
Donna Newcomer has long been an advocate for the arts in a former community, including serving as a principal of an elementary arts school (Fountaindale School for the Arts and Academic Excellence, Hagerstown, MD) and Washington County Arts Council, past president, and member. Since moving to Dorchester County just a few years ago, she has taken several classes at DCA, displayed photography in the members show, and has maintained an active membership. She believes that arts centers and arts councils are a critical component for the growth and development of any community. She is looking forward to continuing her support of DCA, as she has in other communities, toward that growth and development in Dorchester County, believing that the arts provide a universal language that everyone can enjoy!
A Certified QuickBooks® ProAdvisor since 2005, Betsey Harrington has a degree in business and accounting, and fifteen years of experience advising and working with small business clients. Over the years, she has worked with diverse industries, such as, retail, restaurant, hospitality, publishing, graphic design, architecture, professional services, construction, trade service companies, recycling, landscaping,
trucking, distribution, automotive, and non-profits. She is a dedicated live music aficionado, and takes
pride in owning and living in the former home of Cambridge literary legend John Barth.
Christine Hudson is the Manager of the Shore United Bank branch in Cambridge MD, and holds a degree from Penn Foster in Business Administration and Management. She enjoys designing team-building projects for her staff using art. She resides with her family in Delaware, where she is a member of the Nanticoke Indian Tribe, formerly serving as Secretary of the Association. She is pleased to assist DCA with fundraising and sharing Native American art.
Marlene Lashuk was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. After graduating from high school, she worked at General Electric Company in drafting and engineering, which was where she met her husband Jerry. They soon moved to Syracuse, New York where their two daughters were born. Marlene was a Blue Bird and 4-H leader, taught Sunday School, held offices on PTAs, on a local pool board, and ran school concession stands. Ten years later after moving to Ellicott City MD, Marlene owned and ran two shops, a kitchen and a women’s clothing shop, in the old town of Ellicott City. Marlene retired to the Eastern Shore of MD because it reminds her of northern Indiana – flat and lots of farms, and she likes being near the water. Marlene enjoys needle arts, gardening, reading, and playing bridge.
Shelton Hawkins is an Eastern Shore native and Harriet Tubman descendant. He has been a community volunteer for decades and a lifetime basketball coach by profession. He spent the last 10 with college basketball and recently being an educator for high school art. Shelton’s mother, Patricia is a part of the Harriet Tubman committee and always involved in community projects. His daughter Parker has been an artist from day one and loves to create. Shelton is the founder of Play in Color, an initiative using public basketball courts to build community, and he travels the country bringing old courts to life by engaging community in the design process, and of course – painting them! Shelton has been involved in the Cambridge MD Black Lives Matter Street Mural and hopes to use his time with DCA to promote more public engagement around the arts.
John Lewis is a writer, curator, and educator living in Cambridge MD. He was arts editor at Baltimore magazine for 15 years, and his work has appeared in Oxford American, Rolling Stone, and many other publications. He taught in the English department at Goucher College and in the Curatorial Practice MFA program at Maryland Institute College of Art. Lewis was assistant director at the American Visionary Art Museum, where he curated artist Wayne Coyne’s popular King’s Mouth exhibit in 2015. He received a Literary Arts award from the Maryland State Arts Council in 2022.
Holly Gilpin is an experienced human resources specialist with a demonstrated history of working in the human resources industry. She is skilled in Administration, Workforce Management, Human Resources, Writing, and OSHA. Holly is a strong human resources professional with a Bachelor of Science – focused on Tourism and Travel Services Management – from Concord University. She also offers Corporate Training, Career Development Coaching, Resume Review, Resume Writing, Team Building, Leadership Development, and HR Consulting. Holly is pleased to work with DCA to promote the arts in Dorchester County.
Theresa Connors is a life-long resident of the Eastern Shore, graduating from Caroline County Public Schools and later from Salisbury University. She has been an educator for thirty years and is currently the Supervisor of English Learners, Fine Arts, Library Media, and Instructional Technology for Dorchester County Public Schools. Theresa is the mother of two grown sons, Robert, and Aaron, and enjoyed many years accompanying them to soccer games and cross country meets as they grew up. She is a former runner who completed twelve marathons, three 50K races, and numerous half marathons and shorter distance races across the eastern half of the US. She enjoys attending theatre and ballet performances and is an enthusiastic supporter of the arts both in the community and in the K-12 school setting.