Partner, FullCup.Co
As the only child of two artists (Paul & LisaJo Pappalardo) I was fortunate to have been exposed to the arts scene from a young age. I grew up with Monroe County Arts Council and the co-op gallery ARTSPACE 534. Some of my earliest memories are of gallery openings, strolling musicians, COTA Jazz Festival, and visiting studio spaces of the area’s many talented artists. A favorite stop was McMahon Art & Design. I would sit at Barb’s drafting board and drool over the technical pens, pencils, tapes, and rulers. I still remember the smell of the staircase leading up to her studio.
Fast forward to the early 90s, and my parents managed Starling Art, an art supply store, frame shop, and studio space on 6th Street in Stroudsburg where Turrell Art Studios – Custom Framing & Art Services is now located. During that same time, my father had a studio above artists Jonathan Hertzel and Linda Guenste’s home/studio in Pen Argyl.
After my father’s passing in 1994, I was fortunate to study at A Family of Artists and learn from amazing visual and performing artists who are still shaking up the arts scene today: Jamie Downs, John McLaughlin, Patricia Griffin, Eleanor Clarkson, Charlie Tweedie, Peter Taney, Janet Bregman-Taney, Joy Taney, Maxwell Donkor, Janet Lawson, Steve Linden, and countless others. To say that my childhood was formed by the artists and musicians of the Poconos is an understatement.
Before meeting Matt, my partner in business and life, I worked at both Designer Crafts and DRs Custom Framing on Main Street in Stroudsburg. It was there that I met even more local and national artists and craftspeople, and my desire to promote the fine art and handcraft movement solidified. Thanks for your love and tutelage Dottie, Hilton, Vicki, and Kim!
My real involvement with the Pocono Arts Council started a few years ago with the redesign of the website. My family and I had just returned to the Shawnee area in 2014 after a number of years in other Pennsylvania towns. Joining and volunteering at the Arts Council was a priority for us.
Matt and I own FullCup.Co: a full-service branding and design studio with a focus on small businesses and non-profits. We create logos, print collateral, websites – the works. Putting our experience to work was the best way for us to support the Pocono Arts Council since it can be done from our home studio. Getting out to events and physically participating is tricky with two curious kiddos in tow!
We continue to volunteer our time to the Arts Council’s website: performing regular updates, adding forms and pages, monitoring security scans, and helping to create a more streamlined experience for on-boarding donors and members. Websites are, by nature, works-in-progress…so it’s a position that will always exist in some form.
Apart from the Arts Council, I volunteered at Camp Brainerd in Snydersville for a number of years. Familial ties to the property and the camp itself made my time and effort even more rewarding. I updated their print collateral, helped with marketing campaigns, and redesigned their website. Eventually, they merged with Camp Kirkwood and my role was absorbed by other volunteers.
Currently, we offer our talents to the Monroe County Democratic Committee, helping produce their Resource Guide & Calendar. Most importantly, I volunteer as Treasurer of the PTO at our daughter’s school. Working alongside our kiddo with her teachers and other parents for the benefit of her school community is just about the best volunteer position I could imagine.
I’d love to see the Arts Council’s presence grow throughout the region. Events and exhibitions at venues beyond the Stroudsburg area is one way that might be accomplished. A few members have done just that, which is exciting! I think it’s important that the stories and points of view of Pocono Arts Council members are experienced by new audiences.
We’ve truly enjoyed being members of the Arts Council. I think our biggest reward has been the sense of belonging. Even though we’re local, staying connected and putting down roots takes work. Knowing our efforts are benefiting the community – our community – is a great feeling.
It might surprise folks to learn that I used to be a clown (bump a nose!) and puppeteer. Third generation, actually. My maternal grandparents were both clowns, as was my mother. Meeting and falling in love with my father interrupted her plans to go to Barnum & Bailey Clown College. No joke! Maybe that’s why our life resembles a circus at times…
