The Sawnee Artists Association recently presented member Jim DeSana with a proclamation declaring Aug. 25 as the official James A. and Jeanne B. DeSana Day.
The association also donated $1,235 to the DeSana Educational Fund.
For more than a decade, the couple worked to fund the scholarship program which has given $5,000 awards to 28 Forsyth County high school students. Much of the project’s funding came from the DeSanas’ post-retirement work.
Jeanne DeSana died in July after a long illness. She was a pioneering chromosome researcher, university instructor, the state’s first geneticist, noted lecturer and speaker.
Jim DeSana, 83, is a retired General Motors engineer. He is also an accomplished artist and musician, known for “playing gigs” across the county and north Georgia.
The DeSanas were charter members of the Sawnee Association of the Arts and served as officers since its inception in 1980.
The couple was also instrumental in helping the organization become one of the largest nonprofit art associations in the county.
Now known as the Sawnee Artists Association, the group was formed for the purpose of bringing artists and advocates together and to promote the appreciation of visual arts in the region.
The Sawnee Artists Gallery displays juried artwork by members and is open daily to the public. The gallery is inside the Humpus Bumpus Book Store, 703 Atlanta Road in Cumming.
Additional artwork by members is also collected in an annual group showing called “Bellezza.”
For more information about the association, go online at www.sawneeart.org.
The association also donated $1,235 to the DeSana Educational Fund.
For more than a decade, the couple worked to fund the scholarship program which has given $5,000 awards to 28 Forsyth County high school students. Much of the project’s funding came from the DeSanas’ post-retirement work.
Jeanne DeSana died in July after a long illness. She was a pioneering chromosome researcher, university instructor, the state’s first geneticist, noted lecturer and speaker.
Jim DeSana, 83, is a retired General Motors engineer. He is also an accomplished artist and musician, known for “playing gigs” across the county and north Georgia.
The DeSanas were charter members of the Sawnee Association of the Arts and served as officers since its inception in 1980.
The couple was also instrumental in helping the organization become one of the largest nonprofit art associations in the county.
Now known as the Sawnee Artists Association, the group was formed for the purpose of bringing artists and advocates together and to promote the appreciation of visual arts in the region.
The Sawnee Artists Gallery displays juried artwork by members and is open daily to the public. The gallery is inside the Humpus Bumpus Book Store, 703 Atlanta Road in Cumming.
Additional artwork by members is also collected in an annual group showing called “Bellezza.”
For more information about the association, go online at www.sawneeart.org.