Hi, my name is Ella Holiday. I am the granddaughter of Valerie, and I will be reading the Origin Project of Valerie Marie McDonough on behalf of my aunt Kelly.

My sister and I are sharing the story of our mother, Valerie Marie McDonough, a visual artist based in Cincinnati, Ohio, who died at age 52 in 1994 after a four yearlong battle with breast cancer. Her artwork is a living legacy to be shared with the art community in celebration of her spirit and passion for the arts, women's rights, and underserved communities.

Born on February 14th, 1942, in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. Valerie was raised in a traditional American Italian family with limited notions of a woman's role in society. In 1960, when Valerie graduated from an all -girls Catholic high school in Hamilton, Ohio, her career options were teacher, nurse, or none.

The oldest of four children and the only girl with three younger brothers, her parents passed on sending her to college, but rather enrolled her in secretarial school with intent she would eventually meet someone, get married, and start a family. Valerie's first job was working at GE, General Electric, as a secretary, but she quickly advanced to graphic illustrator when her talents were discovered. At GE she met her engineer husband, Jim McDonough, and soon after had her first baby girl and became a stay -at -home mom. However, there was always a voice inside an unfulfilled creative calling that she did not push away but rather quietly pursued. Maybe she would have not felt so encouraged to keep up her art skills, had Valerie not been awarded first prize in a high school art contest. The small recognition of her talent was monumental in building belief in herself as an artist. Also notable, was marrying a man that saw her as an equal partner. Instead of only relegating her personhood as wife and mother, Jim encouraged Valerie's interest and outside the home outlets as a way to take a break from the caretaking of young children. With this opening, Valerie studied at Central Art Academy in Cincinnati, and also took woodworking classes to further her furniture design and carpentry skills. During early motherhood, Valerie also volunteered at Head Start, an early childhood literacy development program. Volunteerism became a hallmark of her lifelong commitment to serving her community, whether designing and building sets for her daughter's high school musical productions, or raising funds in support of the American Cancer Society. During the rise of 1970s feminism, Valerie became passionate about the women's rights movement, joining NOW, National Organization for Women, and becoming a supporter of the ERA, Equal Rights Amendment and Roe v. Wade. It was not uncommon to find her at a woman's march in downtown Cincinnati, field canvassing for political campaigns or amassing a stack of Ms. magazines by her bedside. Valerie was a voracious reader and believed high higher education was the path to financial freedom and ultimately women's liberation from patriarchal society.

Although Valerie was a feminist at heart, she took great joy in cooking as an art form and homage to her Italian heritage. Another talent of Valerie's was her athletic ability, as she became an accomplished adult tennis player, winning numerous club championships. Denied the opportunity to play sports as a young girl, she welcomed the opportunity to learn tennis at age 30 and within five years became one of the top women tennis players in Cincinnati. Later when her daughters left home for college, Valerie kept a studio in the Pendleton Art Center in Cincinnati's downtown neighborhood, where she created modern figurative abstractions in such art forms as acrylic, watercolor, pencil, and monotype print. She displayed her art in shows and galleries throughout the Midwest. During her final years while she battled breast cancer, Valerie became a prolific artist with a tireless creative energy. According to her doctors, she extended her cancer health prognosis by two years, which could be directly attributed to her passion for creating art.