THE CATAMOUNT ARTS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Irene Blanchard

Irene Blanchard retired from the Psychology Department at Lyndon State College after 20 years. She is  native Vermonter, but spent many years away before returning in  1976. She has lived in Pennsylvania, New York City and Cambridge, Mass. An appreciator of the arts all her adult life, especially music and dance, she was one of the original members of Catamount Arts and has been on the board for four terms.

Traveling is one of her passions and she takes off as often as the budget allows. She has been to all of western Europe, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Egypt, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, Peru, Mexico and has spent extended periods of time in India, Nepal, England and Crete She takes great pictures wherever she goes.

She holds degrees from Pratt Institute, Boston University and Syracuse University.An avid reader, especially of women's history, memoirs and biographies, she is a political junkie, and is profoundly disturbed about the state of our government at this time.
She has taught at two colleges, courses in food and nutrition, sociology, psychology, counseling and human services.

Having  discovered in her thirties that what she was, was called a feminist, rather than simply neurotic, the focus of most of her work thereafter  has been the building of self esteem, both her own and that of others, especially women. For about four years her workshops and talks about it were attended by hundreds of women throughout Vermont.

All of her small family now lives in the NEK. Her three great nieces are friends and sources of joy, and she adores the two little great great nephews who bring curiosity and mischief into her life.She lives in  West Burke, in a blue house with a red door where there is  stream in the backyard.  And her favorite place in all the world is sitting on the deck,looking at her flower beds and that stream.

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