Getting There: Debra West

In our blog series, “Getting There,” we ask professionals and experts what it takes to be successful and what kinds of advice they can offer. And, as we believe the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communications are vital to contributing to the success of any endeavor, we are also interested in knowing which they have utilized most often and how.

Debra West  
Barberville, Florida

Debra West is Executive Director of The Barberville Pioneer Settlement. They are restoring the historic Underhill House located on their property.  

Why did you feel it was important to take on the restoration of the Underhill House?

The Underhill House is not only the oldest brick residence in Volusia County – its architectural design is unlike any other in the area. The Settlement and Volusia County ECHO (tax payer dollars) had already made investments for the purchase of the house and property before the recession, it would have been a shame to let it deteriorate and eventually fall. We got to save it just in time.

Why was it important to you personally? Was it more than just a part of the job? 

I have always dreamed of restoring an old house so I’m in some ways able to live that dream through this project so yes it is more than just part of the job. Now that we can see progress it is even more exciting.

Being involved with a historic preservation project in rural Florida, were there any special challenges?

The first round of bids were over budget partially due to costs associated with housing if work crews were based out of the area. Therefore, the contractor that could bid competitively would need to be local, with historic preservation experience and have specific insurances in place. These qualification really narrowed the field of options.

Do you use the concepts of creativity, curiosity  and communications in your work on this project? 

Not having photographs of the original house we had to be curious and creative; working around the unknowns that presented themselves along the way. For example, discovering things that were not original to the house like newer siding that was found on the second floor that gave us clues that the porch windows were most likely not there originally and changing plans to use lattice in place of the windows. Communication was key with many individuals to make the necessary changes and to get the job done.

Getting There: Adriana Uhlman

In our blog series, “Getting There,” we ask professionals and experts what it takes to be successful and what kinds of advice they can offer. And, as we believe the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communications are vital to contributing to the success of any endeavor, we are also interested in knowing which they have utilized most often and how.

Adriana Uhlman
Winter Garden, Florida

We are featuring another artist in our "Getting There" series. Adriana Uhlman is a multi-discipline artist and educator and explains the importance of art in our daily lives.

What got you interested in art and photography ?

My interest in photography began when I was about 12 years old. I asked my parents for a camera for Christmas and fell in love with photography.  I found myself always wanting to take photographs and my body of work evolved from that point forward.  As I got older, I began to explore alternative processes in the studio and darkroom. 

Why did you decide to start teaching in the visual arts?

Working with children always seemed very natural and came organically to me. Merging that concept with teaching art seemed like a natural progression. Children seem to be busier and preoccupied these days and might not take the time to create something with their hands.  The opportunity that I have to reach them and help them to accomplish making something themselves is an important part of my life and, hopefully, their lives.

How do you use the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communication?

When I see an image or object that interests me, I might photograph it and research the process. The concept of curiosity keeps it in my mind and if it is something that I keep thinking about, then I might take it a step further. The concept of creativity comes from many different places for me. I try to be creative in my artwork and in my daily life. When I get an idea I like to be able to work on it and come back to it at another time. This process helps my creativity because I can be inspired by my events during a "regular" day and that will reflect in my work. The concept of communication is a focal point of my artwork.  I am often trying to communicate something in my artwork and at times it can be clearer in some artwork than others. 

What advice can you give to someone who might be interested in art professionally?

The advice that I would give to someone who might be interested in art professionally would be to practice at it every day.  If someone wants to be good at something, they need to work on it every day.  They should know their craft and the facets of it.  Specializing in a medium is fine but the artist needs to be well rounded and know something about most mediums.  This will help them to be prepared if a situation arises and they need to step out of their comfort zone.

Getting There: Joseph Cioffi

In our blog series, “Getting There,” we ask professionals and experts what it takes to be successful and what kinds of advice they can offer. And, as we believe the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communications are vital to contributing to the success of any endeavor, we are also interested in knowing which they have utilized most often and how.

Joseph Cioffi

Winter Garden, Florida

Joseph Cioffi is a multimedia, visual arts and branding /marketing instructor at Foundation Christian Academy.

What got you interested in multimedia, photography and visual arts? 

As a boy I showed some natural talent and skill in drawing. From what I can remember, a blank sheet of paper was the very first time in my life where I felt like I could do whatever I wanted, and that thought brought me a lot of excitement. I saw anything blank as a possibility. Because it came easy to me, I practiced and would naturally gravitate to it when I had free time, hence I developed the talent.

How do you use the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communication ?

I am a very curious person. I always questioned just about everything and had to know how things work. Curiosity for me most times seems to lead to discovery. Somewhere, between curiosity and discovery, it seems to spark independent thought and creativity. Curiosity causes me to ask questions and the answers I come up with helps me understand. That leads to some type of personal interpretation and wanting to share what I think with others. This leads to wanting to communicate, and that requires creativity. Creativity in thought, creativity in action and creativity in communication. For the simple reason to substantiate my interpretation of something, it requires me to make a compelling argument that may either convince or spark curiosity to those I am sharing. 

Why did you decide to start teaching in the visual arts?

I have a coaching background and I have found that through teaching there are so many intrinsic rewards for both parties involved, the teacher and the student. For the most part, in teaching, I seem to gain a better understanding of both what I have been taught and what I have learned. In addition, it provides me with an opportunity to gain direct and personal insight from a diverse group of people from a different generation and perspective, that with in itself is so thought provoking. In addition, I come from a family of teachers, always wanted to try my hand at it. Also, in pursuing a profession, I always thought it wise to change direction every 5-7 years so I can learn and grow in a new direction. Lastly, I am not sure there is anything more rewarding than watching another human being grow.

What advice can you give to someone who might be interested in multimedia production or other visual arts disciplines?

Advice is difficult to give sometimes, because what works for one person may not work for another. Having said that, beyond the shadow of any doubt, reading is the most important investment of time. My entire world opened when I began to read. Reading requires the reader to use there imagination, to depict in ones mind and heart what the author is trying to convey. At the end of the day the impact that has on your mind, opposed to someone telling you or watching it on TV is so profound, that it may be impossible to articulate. By reading you discover so may other interests that it sparks more curiosity, which in turn leads to more discovery and creativity. 

Barbecue, the Preacher and the Power of Curiosity

The upside-down figure on the ground glass was carefully composed and focused. I withdrew from under the dark focusing cloth of the 4 x 5 large format camera and put in a film holder, set the shutter and waited. I asked the subject to hold very still and waited longer. Finally, the smoke from a nearby barbecue smoker cleared and I made two quick exposures before again being engulfed. I was taking photographs, but I was making a human connection.

My daily driving routine for the past three months takes me past a small country church. On most days there is no activity. But, on Thursdays, when I drive back home around 10 a.m., a man wearing an apron and baseball cap tends two large smokers sitting in front of the church under huge live oak trees.

Smoke billows out from the smokers and handmade signs near the road beckon drivers to stop for barbecue pork, chicken and ribs. Around 11, the dirt parking lot starts filling up with cars.

I am too early on most Thursdays to stop in for lunch. But, curiosity got the best of me recently so I decided to stop for a chat. Meeting strangers is never easy. Asking if they mind if I make a photograph or two is even harder. But, that’s what curiosity does. It gets me uncomfortable. But, the desire to understand people and find out what they have to say is a bit of an adventure and far outweighs the risks of being too timid to discover and share stories. And, everyone has a story.

Pastor Scotty Clark of the New Hope Missionary Baptist Church greeted me with a hearty handshake and told me about barbecue and the church.

“The barbecue has supported this church for over 30 years,” Pastor Scotty said. “My mother is the one who came up with the idea as we needed money. So, instead of asking people for donations, they decided to get out and provide a service to the community as a means to raise funds. Barbecue was the answer.”

Pastor Scotty and The New Hope Missionary Baptist Church seem to know a thing or two about marketing.

“Most people that live in the area, they know we're out here, and a lot of them will come out and buy barbecue because they know it’s to support the church. You've got a lot of good people here. They know that the church has a vital role in the community.”

When I drove by, hand-painted signs for PORK, RIBS, and CHICKEN got my attention. I didn’t have to cut through industry jargon on a website to learn about the barbecue. Authenticity is a trending industry buzzword and they have plenty of it.

It’s also a sensory overload; the smell of the smoke, the sound the fire, the taste the ribs, the sight of people licking their fingers — all leading to referral and repeat business. Using multiple sensory sources drew me in as it does quite a few other people.

And, it all starts with curiosity.

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Eric Dusenbery (B.A. Cinema & Photography, Southern Illinois University) is founder, executive director and photographer for Cinderic Documentaries Inc., a nonprofit organization based in DeLand, FL. He utilizes the power of the still photograph for documentary work and frequently uses the traditions of the large format film camera for storytelling. His documentary photography has been widely exhibited and his work has appeared in numerous national publications. He is also a speaker and award-winning journalist.

Getting There: Pastor Scotty Clark

In our blog series, “Getting There,” we ask professionals and experts what it takes to be successful and what kinds of advice they can offer. And, as we believe the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communications are vital to contributing to the success of any endeavor, we are also interested in knowing which they have utilized most often and how.

Pastor Scotty Clark

Sorrento, Florida

Scotty Clark is pastor at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Sorrento, Florida

Tell me about Hew Hope Missionary Baptist Church and BBQ ?

The BBQ has supported this church for over 30 years. The church was actually built across the road. It started in 1956. But they decided in 1979 to build a new church. A member donated the church property but when they walked it off, as they did back in those days, they walked it off the wrong way. So the church was built on the wrong lot. When they wanted to expand, they found that out. And there was dispute because one of the members of the church actually owned the adjacent property. So the person left the church and got upset because they wanted the property. So the church decided that they were going to purchase the property here. So they started selling barbecue

It actually started up at my mothers house. My mother is actually the one who came up with the idea. She came up with the idea to start fundraising as we needed money. We needed funds. So instead of asking people for donations, they decided to get out and provide service to the community to get some means to raise funds.

Who does the cooking?

My father was the original cook. It was him, the deacons and two or three others that got the cooking started. They built a pit right over there. That lasted for almost 20 years. We had a pit right in the middle. So we've been doing barbecue for a long time right here in beautiful Sorrento Florida. I love Sorrento.

These are smokers. This one was donated by a member. This one was donated by a member of the community. He came up and ate with us and asked if we needed anything. “You have quite a business coming through. I've got a cooker. If you like it, you can have it for the church.”

How do you use curiosity, creativity or communications?

We do a minimal amount of advertising. We put a couple signs out front by the road and that brings some people in. We tried to do a little bit of advertising but most people that live in Sorrento, they know we're out here, and a lot of them will come out and buy barbecue because they know it is to support the church. You've got a lot of good people here. They want to help the church. They know that the church is a vital role in the community.

Helping people to become better people. I'm the pastor here so I'm involved. I'm one of the cooks. I'm out here on Thursdays. My father is still cooking and he comes out on Fridays and Saturdays. So he and I you generally do all the cooking.

Getting There: Charles Smith

In our new blog series, “Getting There,” we ask professionals and experts what it takes to be successful and what kinds of advice they can offer. And, as we believe the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communications are vital to contributing to the success of any endeavor, we are also interested in knowing which they have utilized most often and how.

Charles Smith 
Daytona Beach, Florida

Charles Smith is owner and candymaker of Angell and Phelps Chocolate Factory.  

How did you get your start?

My dad was raised in Holly Hill, Florida and never had a lot of money. He would have been voted least likely to succeed in high school. But, he was determined and decided to make a name for himself and eventually, went to medical school. He became a doctor and as a way to prove to others and himself, became a regular customer of the Angell and Phelps Chocolate Factory, the store where he was not able to afford to buy their chocolates growing up. He became one of their best customers. He got to know the owner and said to him that if he ever wanted to sell the business, to let him know, because he knew a kid who could run it — me. And, that’s what happened. I started in 1983.

Tell me about Angell and Phelps.

We maintain a reputation that was started by the two women who founded the company in 1925 by using the highest quality ingredients in all our products. We still use some of their recipes in making our chocolate.  We also strive for excellent customer service. We have free samples and offer a tour where visitors can watch our chocolate being made. We have a wide variety of chocolate products for discerning customers.

What kind of advice do you have for those considering a career in retail chocolate?

Do your homework. Make sure you use only the highest quality ingredients and that you have the appropriate financing for start-up. We are debt-free at Angell and Phelps, but you need to make sure you have enough capital to start and run the business.  And, one of the key expenses in your budget should be for advertising and marketing.

How do you use curiosity, creativity or communications?

We use all three. We continually try to be creative with our products, especially with packaging and presentation. We offer everything from chocolate gators to white chocolate conch shells;  chocolate-covered bacon to milk chocolate covered gummi bears.
One of our current big sellers is chocolate-covered potato chips. We take Ruffles brand potato chips and cover them in milk or dark chocolate. They’re crunchy and salty sweet and people really have responded to them.

We were curious about things like that. Creativity in our product presentations: some will work, some, maybe not. But we have a huge selection of these creative products.

We used to be known only within the local community. People knew about us and our sales were primarily local. But, we decided to communicate more effectively to others beyond our local customers. We started using billboards along the Interstates and other media to promote our store. Who can resist a billboard offering free chocolate samples?

Now, we sell more to tourists than to locals.

We started running other special promotions and media communications. I believe we communicate pretty effectively through our website, too.

Getting There: Steve Crump

In our new blog series, “Getting There,” we ask professionals and experts what it takes to be successful and what kinds of advice they can offer. And, as we believe the concepts of curiosity, creativity and communications are vital to contributing to the success of any endeavor, we are also interested in knowing which they have utilized most often and how.

Steve Crump
DeLeon Springs, Florida

Steve Crump is president of Vo-LaSalle Farms, a diversified farm producing over 100 acres of citrus and other crops and livestock.

How did you get your start?

Our family is from Illinois. My mother’s side of the family came from Illinois in the 1880s. They came to Florida for the winter, but they never went back.

I was born into the family business in agriculture. But, I went to Florida Southern College and got a degree in Citrus Business.

Primarily, what we’ve done in the past has been in citrus. Now, we are adding things into it like U-pick vegetables, strawberries, hay, and other kinds of things.

Recently, I was fortunate to receive an award for innovative farming. The innovative part for us was that we put up high-tunnel greenhouses to grow vegetables through the winter. This is fairly new for Florida. It’s much more common for colder areas and Europe but it’s rather different and novel here.

What kind of advice do you have for those considering a career in farming or agriculture?

It’s difficult to own a farm if you didn’t inherit it. Actually, the best way to get into farming is to marry into it. If you can marry the farmer’s daughter or the farmer’s son, well, that’s an excellent plan if you can pull it off.

Another way is to go to college and study agriculture. Whatever you want to focus on, whether it’s a livestock or crop production, study agriculture and then get a job for a very big farm. You will be hired as a supervisor, a farm manager, and your job will be to manage people and grow crops or manage people and grow livestock. That’s an excellent way to do it if you’re younger person and you’re just starting your career because there’s lots of opportunities.

If you want to get involved with the farm-to-table movement, an excellent way to start is as a hobby farmer.  You keep your day job and maybe work three days a week at it. You start off by leasing some land or having a big back yard and a big garden. Anyone can start that way and see how it goes.

The farm-to-table is a good way to go if you’re going to start small because you can get the biggest return per acre or per square foot.  You’re going to sell it for more than what the wholesale commercial growers are going to sell it.

You will often see people in corporate farming who will keep their job but they will buy some adjacent land and they will farm that.  In addition, they might rent it back to the company they work for. There are all sorts of arrangements like that. You will see people accumulate some wealth and then invest in land. And when they buy the land, they will grow a crop of some type because they have the knowledge set and the know-how to do it.

A lot of people, though, may just say, “I’m very happy working for this employer. I love farming but I don’t want the added responsibility.”

How do you use curiosity or creativity?

I’m not very creative. That’s a known weakness I can accept. But I am curious. I ask questions of people who I think will know the answer. And, I read a lot on quite a few different subjects. I study a lot.

I’ve got to be a risk taker. I cannot rely on what worked in the past or what my grandfather did, so we try new things. A lot of them don’t work. You may lose money and time and sweat. But then you try something else. You look for that one thing. It won’t last a whole lifetime maybe, but I can get five or 10 years out of this before everyone else figures out how to do it and the price drops or the demand dries up. Then, it’s on to something new.