In 2005 I agreed to paint a fiberglass bear in memory of Kristin Beers and her daughter, Angelina Lopez, who were tragically killed in a car accident two years earlier. Angelina attended Growing Dreams Childcare, part of the YMCA, with my son, Joel. I remembered seeing Angelina daily as I picked up my son. She was such a sweet little girl. I wanted to do something to help ease her families pain. The family had several requests in planning the painting. They wanted the bears to be at the entrance of Growing Dreams, so the YMCA logo had to be included in the painting. They also wanted dragon flies hidden throughout and a sand dollar or other beach items hidden in the painting. These were symbols of things that Kristin and Angelina enjoyed. Portraits of Kristin and Angelina were to be included, too. The project was completed in March 2006. Amanda Drewicz, a senior high school student of mine helped by painting the baby bear and Amanda Hoffman, Angelina's cousin, helped by painting one of the large dragon flies that Angelina is holding in the painting.
