Your future, our focus
Students in the Northwest College Photo Theme Seminar invite the community to view and bid on pieces of fine art photography to help finance costs associated with upcoming medical procedures for Rhonda Vanek of Powell.
After struggling to find the cause of her double vision for nearly one year, Vanek was recently diagnosed with chordoma, a rare and cancerous brain tumor. Vanek underwent surgery in Salt Lake City in December where a portion of a small growth located near the base of her skull was successfully removed. A second and final surgery to eliminate the remaining piece of the tumor is scheduled for Feb. 1, at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
Following the last surgery, Vanek’s treatment will continue at Mayo Clinic with a series of targeted radiation treatments spanning nearly eight weeks.
While doctors predict a good prognosis and a speedy recovery, she and her husband Jim will continue to incur many travel and lodging expenses not covered by their insurance provider.
To help defray those costs, students in the NWC Photo Theme Seminar class have mounted an exhibit of their own fine art photography to be sold in a silent auction.
More than one dozen 11-by-14-inch framed images will be displayed along with bid sheets between Wednesday, Jan. 25, and Wednesday, Feb. 1, in the lower level of the Hinckley Library on the NWC campus. Images may be viewed from 7:45 a.m.-11 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 7:45 a.m.-5 p.m. on Fridays; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturdays and 2-10 p.m. Sundays. Starting bids are set to begin at $30 apiece.
Advised by Anthony Polvere, an associate professor of photography at NWC, students in the Photo Theme Seminar further their photographic skills by building relationships through a variety of community service projects ranging from gallery openings to photographic outings.
Photo Theme Seminar students under Polvere’s tenure have raised more than $10,000 for various local causes over the past 16 years.
