Page 12 - The Jewish Voice - February '25

Page 12, The Jewish Voice

Local Happenings from page 11 difficult world of nonprofit otherwise not have the opportunity to be exposed to this
art organizations. I say sort of experience. We have also awarded $85,000 in
difficult because it can scholarships to deserving students, offered 4,500 classes
be a whole lot easier to and workshops to 16,000, have conducted 170 tours to
obtain donations for a cure 5,500 of our senior citizens, brought in 25 renowned artists
for cancer or a hospital from all over the world, with 19,000 people attending their
as compared to an art sold-out demonstrations. In all we’ve accommodated more
organization. It’s true that 57,000 visitors. For the past two years we’ve started
that large art institutions working with special needs children and teens through a
get a lot of money, but wonderful Palm Beach County Program called Arts 4 All.
for smaller, emerging art But it’s not complete yet. We still want to build a metal
facilities, it can be a real casting deportment and finish the build-out of the west
struggle. I never quite side of the building into a “working sculpture garden”
understood why this is, Working one-on-one with dedicated to the production of monumental sculptures and
since it is the smaller and one of the many children who stone carving. At that point we will have all the major
struggling organizations come through our door for free 3-D mediums under one roof! The dream continues.
that need the money most.
Since opening in 2015, the Benzaiten Center for
Creative Arts has emerged as a significant tourist Shelley Muzylowski Returns
attraction. Besides our 2,000-square-foot fine art gallery for Our 10th Anniversary!
and gift shop, we have the largest glassblowing hot shop
Shelley working at our Grand Opening open to the public in the state. We also have a large, Canadian artist
air-conditioned fusing and flameworking studio, a glass Shelley Muzylowski
as Colorado or even to Mexico and Taiwan. What an ordeal casting department and a welding department. As far as returns to Benzaiten
I thought to myself. All that extra shipping can’t be making our outreach to the community, we have seen over 9,000 to help mark our
it cheaper for these artists to fabricate their work. So why children and young adults through our doors free of 10th Anniversary
didn’t we have a center of our own in Palm Beach County? charge. These children from neighboring Title-1 schools, Season. She was our
One thing I realized early on was it should be run as the Boys and Girls Clubs and other organizations would center’s first visiting
a nonprofit. Most foundries and other types of fabrication artist and was there
centers operate on such slim profit margins that it is difficult when we opened our
to remain in business. They are constantly losing their work doors on January 23,
force to other higher paying trade jobs such as construction. 2015. Shelley is one
Consequently, many of them have closed throughout the of the most world
country. To stay solvent, the operational costs must be renowned, celebrated
subsidized by other resources such as grants and/or donations. glassblowers working
Plus, another big part of my mission was to educate the public today, and Benzaiten
on what it takes to create 3-dimentional artwork. Running audiences are thrilled Chandelier made during a 5-day
galleries for over 30 years left me with the knowledge of how to see her again. We Benzaiten Workshop by 8th
few people understand the arduous, time-consuming nature will be holding two generation Venetian master Fabiano
and expense that goes into the process. days of events in her Zanchi last year. His workshop was
Therefore, it was a natural fit to run the center as honor starting with so popular that we are bringing him
a nonprofit with education being a large part of the our Meet the Artist back again this April for another
mission. But what did I know about running a nonprofit? Dinner, an elegant sit- Artist Blow-Out and workshop.
Absolutely zero. So, I hired a great team and started down dinner held in
assembling a board of like-minded art enthusiasts and our fine art gallery from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Thursday,
brought in a consulting firm, Charlotte Pelton and February 20th. The cost is $100 per person. The following
Associates, to help guide me through the minefield of night will be one of our now famous Artist Blow-Outs
opening a 501 (c)(3) organization. We started out in the starting at 6:30 p.m. and featuring Muzylowski doing a
Northwood area of West Palm Beach until politics got in three-hour glassblowing demonstration to live music,
the way. That’s when Charlotte convinced me to look at drinks and light bites. All this for only $25 per person!
Lake Worth. I met with the head of the CRA, Joan Oliva, Fifth-Third Bank has graciously underwritten these
and she showed us a map. I said, what’s that block-long events.
building? She explained that it was a historic FEC train JB Berkow, founder and president of the Benzaiten
depot building, which had been gifted to the city but has Center for Creative Arts,
been in a state of disrepair for several years, and currently For further information contact jbberkow65@gmail.
there was nothing planned for it. I asked if I could see it. com or (561) 310-9371.
11th generation Venetian master Davide Salvadore during
Ballet Palm Beach - Gtasby Seabreeze 012024 .pdf 1 1/20/25 10:10 AM
his sold-out Artist Blow-Out Local Happenings on page 13

Our Grand Opening in 2015

The minute I walked into the building I knew I had
found my center’s home. Of course, convincing my board
was a whole other can of beans. The condition of the
building was so bad that on several occasions it had been
used to film zombie pictures! However, after receiving
several major grants from the State of Florida, the Cultural
Council, my husband Steve Tendrich and I chipping in a
lot of our own money to the cause, and, of course, a lot February 28-March 2, 2025
of generous individual donations, we were on our way.
Together we were able to clean up the building, make
major renovations, replace every windowpane – all 650 Sponsored by
of them, obtain all the necessary equipment and open
within six months after receiving permits and approval
from the City of Lake Worth. Our grand opening was
held on January 23, 2015, was attend by 1,200 people and
was covered by our local NBC new affiliate. Performing For tickets visit
a four-hour demo that evening was world renowned balletpalmbeach.org
Canadian artist, Shelley Muzylowski who made a return
visit this past February to help commemorate our tenth
anniversary season.
A pivotal partner in this adventure who has been by my
side from before we opened our doors and who I stole
from Pelton and Associates, is my CEO and grant writer, Photo credit: © Steve Caras. All rights reserved.
Anita Holmes. She was a long-time nonprofit executive
in the world of diseases who had never worked in the