Emmaus Arts Board Member Biographies

Bob Boehmer

PWS, Emmaus Artist, Teacher, and Dreamer finds inspiration to create his “Art Escapes “ original art and limited edition prints from the rural Pennsylvania countryside where he grew up, to the coast of Maine, and the Outer Banks of North Carolina. These are regions that he knows well and have special meaning to him. Bob creates quiet images through his watercolor and acrylic paintings that are as much about the sense of a place as they are about specific locations.

Bob’s background also combines his art education from Kutztown University, where he received both his B. S. and M. Ed. degrees, and his passion for aerospace science to stimulate and challenge all those who have the courage to imagine.

While working with NASA education and the space shuttle program for the last fifteen years Bob has received national recognition for the integration of science, math, art, and technology. His professional awards include The Presidential Award for Excellence in Science and Math Teaching, The U. S. Space Academy Wings Teaching Award, The NASA Teacher in Space Program Award, and the Christa McAuliffe Fellowship Award.

Bob’s images have also received numerous awards for artistic excellence and have been reproduced as limited edition prints. His work is well collected among individuals and corporations throughout the east coast of the United States and can be found at Bach & Company Art and Framing Gallery in Emmaus, Pennsylvania and the Dolphin Watch Gallery on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Denise Tempest

Employed as a gifted education specialist in the East Penn School District.  She received a B.S.degree in education from Kutztown University and an M.Ed degree from Lehigh University.  Denise is listed in "Who's Who Among America's Teachers" in both the 2003-04 and 2004-05 editions.  In 2004 she was a nominee for the Disney Hand Award for Creative Teaching.  Denise is a past vice-president and president of the Emmaus Jr. Women's Club, and a former member and volunteer with the Lehigh Valley Arts Council.  She also served as a consultant and group facilitator with the Center for Humanistic Change in Bath, PA. Denise's interest in jewelry design led her to current membership in the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen, Lehigh Valley Chapter.   A resident of Emmaus for most of her life, Denise has continued to be an avid supporter of the arts in the Lehigh Valley.

Jeff Shubzda

Jeff has 20 years of Graphic design experience. Jeff is a graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh with a BA degree in Visual Communication and a BS in Internet/Multimedia Technologies. Jeff was president of Option 3 studios of Emmaus, a multimedia studio whose clients included Bethlehem, Steel, Lehigh Cement, Andretti International, Showtime Networks and AT&T.

Jeff has received numerous awards in the graphics arts field from Graphic Design USA, American Corporate Identity, Philadelphia Art Directors Club and was nominated as one of the top 100 graphic designers from AIGA. Jeff is currently a Creative Director at Trifecta Technologies in Allentown and is an Adjunct Instructor at Lehigh Valley College teaching HTML, Flash, Graphic Design and Typography.

Jason George

Attended Kutztown University 1989-1996, where he received a BS degree in television production and a degree in English--Writing.  He is currently owner of the Emmaus establishment Vargtimmen King Koffee since 1997. He is an avid supporter of the arts.

Teri Sorg-McManamon

Teri is advertising director for The JG Press, Inc., publishers of environmental publications including BioCycle and Compost Science and Utilization. She has been a board member of many local organizations including the Girl’s Club of Allentown and the Executive Woman’s Council of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. Teri is currently a board member for the US Composting Council where she chairs International Compost Awareness Week, a cooperative program between the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and the European Compost Network. In her spare time Teri volunteers for a wide variety of local and national organizations and events and is a dedicated advocate of the arts, which brought her to the Emmaus Arts Commission. Celebrating 20 years in advertising and marketing, Teri combined the knowledge, passion and experience of her life’s work with something she loved, art of every kind. In 2007, Teri launched Pekoe Grove Art Marketing & Sales. A marketing company dedicated to promoting the works of independent jewelry and fiber artists. Teri and her husband Mike have lived in Emmaus for 16 years.

Leslie Heffron

Leslie Heffron is a graduate of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She specializes in large scale landscape paintings and colored pencil drawings. Ms. Heffron has shown her work at the White House, the Allentown Art Museum, DeSales University, Muhlenberg College, Musikfest, and Lehigh Valley Hospital among other venues. She maintains a studio in Emmaus and is currently showing paintings and drawings of her "Farm Fresh" series at Balasia World Cafe.