Oct. 17, 2012
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – First Lady Joanne Jaeger Tomblin will unveil the 2012 limited-edition West Virginia Governor’s Mansion holiday ornament during a public reception at 10 a.m. today, Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012, at the Culture Center, Capitol Complex.
This year’s ornament, which was hand-painted by Logan native and Alum Creek resident Shelley Goodman, features the official state animal, the black bear, and the state insect, the honey bee, on a clear glass bulb. Each piece was painted freehand, so no two ornaments are exactly the same.
The ornament is the third in a series of four ornaments created by Goodman, an award-winning, self-taught decorative painter who works in finely detailed enamels. Her 2010 ornament featured the state bird, the cardinal; her 2011 ornament, the state flower, the rhododendron.
Only 750 ornaments were made this year. A limited number of last year’s ornaments will be available for sale as well on Oct. 17.
“Whether you keep this ornament for yourself or share it as a gift, we hope it will hold special memories of the 2012 holiday season,” the first lady said.
The ornaments, which sell for $24 apiece, are available at the West Virginia State Museum Gift Shop in Charleston (304-205-7911) and TAMARACK: The Best of West Virginia in Beckley (1-88 TAMARACK) as well as online at the Tamarack website, www.tamarackwv.com. A portion of the proceeds will go toward the Governor’s Mansion preservation fund.
Goodman and the first lady will sign informational cards that accompany the ornaments during and after today’s event.
For more information contact Caryn Gresham, deputy commissioner, Division of Culture and History, at (304) 558-0220 or Tina Amburgey, Office of the First Lady, at (304) 558-3588.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The Division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the Division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
- 30 -
