Luncheon Honors Betty and S. Preston Jones
February 16, 2016, Midland, Mich. – Creative 360 will host a Yes We Can! luncheon on Friday, February 26 in honor of Betty (80) & S. Preston Jones (80), community leaders, philanthropists, educators, artist. Lunch will be catered by Northwood University’s NADA Center and includes antipasto salad, chicken marsala, cheddar, chive and sour cream mashed potatoes, lemon butter broccoli and cheesecake with caramel and chocolate drizzle. Cost is $30. RSVP is required by February 22.
Dr. Betty Jones is known as an innovative leader in education. A teacher, author, social worker and mentor to young people. She is a role model for young women. She is one of Midland’s African American pioneers who made a difference in the community.
Betty retired from Delta College as Vice President of Instruction and Learning Services. She is a member of Midland’s Black Coalition, a charter member of the Mu Alpha Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. She led in creating a partnership with Delta’s Sister College, Rift Valley Institute of Technology in Kenya, which named their first real library the Dr. Betty B. Jones Library and Media Center.
Dow retiree, S. Preston Jones is a Master Photographer. Preston, a Florida native, attended Hampton University, graduating with degrees in Chemistry and Teacher Education. He was employed at the U.S. Patent Office in Washington, D.C. before coming to Midland. He has served on the Midland Art Council, initiated and teaches photography classes at Midland Center for the Arts, served on its Board of Managers, and taught photography at Delta College. His photographic series, Faces of Kenya, hangs at the Lord Egerton Castle Museum in Njoro, Kenya. The S. Preston Jones Endowment for Photographic Art has been established at the Midland Area Community Foundation.
Preston’s photography joins the art of Barry Brown, Robert Lauka and Moses (Nick) Millard in the Yes We Can Exhibition that opens the evening of February 26. There will also be an Artist Tribute for Preston on March 15.
About the Yes We Can! Program
Creative 360’s innovative Yes We Can! program is in its third year. Yes We Can! recognizes and honors those 80 and over in a way that respects their knowledge and taps into their legacy of creativity. This amazing, but often disregarded segment of the population offers a wealth of experience and knowledge that should be shared with people of all ages. Our multi-faceted series offers programs in which you can learn about community leaders, authors, musicians, artists, and scientists. It gives participants ongoing opportunities to engage with and learn from a compelling group of senior presenters and educators. Find more information about the Yes We Can! program on the Creative 360 website at http://www.becreative360.org/yes-can/.
The Yes We Can! program is sponsored by The Barstow Foundation, Beamer Chiropractic, Colonial Villa, Gavin & Associates, LLC, NADA at Northwood University, Senior Services, and Space Studios.
About Creative 360
Creative 360 is a not-for-profit community arts and wellness organization founded in 1994. Its mission is to create an environment for people of all ages and abilities to experience the creative process through ongoing classes, art exhibits, events, concerts, speakers and outreach programs, with its goal to enhance the development of physical, mental and spiritual wellness through the arts and humanities. In 2013, Creative 360 expanded its offering to include Express Yourself Artshop, a program focused on those with physical, mental and intellectual challenges. Activities at Creative 360 are supported in part by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, Midland Area Community Foundation and the Herbert H. and Grace A Dow Foundation.
