The Artsy Girls met last night at the home of Cynthia Steckel, aka Cynthia Victor, author extraordinaire. In addition to the joy of being in each others’ company and hearing what great feats these creative women are up to (book contracts, new showrooms opening abroad, major acknowledgments from a toy company, etc.), we had a secret mission to honor Liz Ball.

Liz, the owner of Pierce Ball Gallery, has been hosting the first annual Artsy Girls Show–A Common Thread since early October. The show features a wide range of media from painting, photography to sculpture and quilts. There’ll be a special opening this Sunday, December 13 from 1 – 5pm. Liz announced last night that several mothers have called asking if it was appropriate to bring their daughters who were aspiring artists. The answer was a resounding, “YES!”

We Artsy Girls wanted to do something to thank Liz for her generosity of spirit, not to mention the time and talent that went into assembling, curating and hanging this exhibit. Liz’s company, TFI Envision, was serving as a drop center for the St. Luke’s LifeWorks 20th Annual Holiday Gift Collection. Unbeknownst to Liz, we decided to each bring a toy for a child, fill up a couple of vans and deliver the gifts to the cause.

After telling Liz our plan, we walked her outside to see what had been collected. There wasn’t a gift certificate in the world that would have meant as much as seeing all the presents being donated in Liz’s honor. Thank you, Liz, from all the Artsy Girls and all the boys and girls blessed by your caring spirit.