Gold Star – Gerry

Today, we are meeting one of our growing group of male members. You will find Gerry participating in many of our workshops and posting in the forum.

Tell us a bit about you

My name is Gerry, pronounced with a hard “G.” My mother wanted a non-traditional name for her little boy - something different. For better or worse, different is what she got.

Born in 1959, I grew up in Pleasant Grove, Alabama, a few miles outside Birmingham. Starting at age nine, life was filled with piano lessons and practicing for competitions, which I routinely won. In college, my major was piano performance, which I later changed to a degree in Music Business.

After teaching piano for about ten years, I worked as a telemarketing consultant marketing performing arts organizations, including The Cleveland Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, and Boston Ballet. It was well before the age of cell phones, caller I.D., and social media. Selling the experience of an evening of the world’s most incredible music came naturally.

Tired of bouncing around the country, I landed in Miami, working for a regional theater. Later I joined the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs to market a program that introduces students to the arts by providing affordable tickets. The positive feedback from students, parents and teachers was both exciting and rewarding.

How did you get to work with PSP?

In the mid-90s, I created a website for the theater where I worked. Although the Internet was still primarily text-based at that time, I wanted to include pictures to help increase interest and, of course, sell more tickets.

I needed something to resize or crop photos. Working for a non-profit, there wasn’t a budget for much of anything beyond turning on the lights and paying meager salaries. Any software would come out of my pocket. I discovered Jasc Paintshop Pro, which was budget-friendly and did what I needed.

I never explored the features and capabilities beyond my basic needs. Even so, I always faithfully upgraded and registered it, promising myself that someday I would learn how to use it.

How did you get to join the Campus?

An email from Corel promoting a free webinar on digital scrapbooking hosted by Cassel looked interesting. By the time it was over, I wanted to learn more. So, after a few webinars and tutorials, I became a DIAMOND member of Scrapbook Campus.

In the different PSP Facebook groups, members post questions on doing something or needing help with a dilemma. I chuckle because, inevitably, Carole has a tutorial on it. The rare instance she doesn’t, sparks an idea for a blog post or a masterclass. Because of that, the Campus is not a static repository. Instead, it is an organic place where there are always new things to learn.

In addition, the forums on the Campus are places filled with encouragement and support. There may be an initial moment of being overwhelmed by the excellent work from others, but it passes as they cheer you on with positive feedback.

The challenges I have enjoyed most are the ones with journaling. I may freeze at the sight of a blank page, but rarely at an empty space that needs a story. Southerners are known for their storytelling, and, in the tradition of my forebears, I do enjoy telling a good story.

A few years ago, I returned to Alabama to help my mom. Within the past year, I became her full-time caregiver – a challenging but rewarding experience. In what little spare time I can find, part of it is always spent learning new things on the Campus and putting them to the test in a scrapbook challenge.

How about some projects?

Here are some graphic projects that Gerry has created since being part of the Campus.

Here is the fourth project from the Bootcamp.

The Love Story challenge (now called the Masks Workshop):

This page was part of the Basic Scrap Course:

And more projects:

Hard to imagine Gerry is not a scrapbooker. Maybe we converted him?

If you want to join the DIAMOND membership, like Gerry did, to access all kinds of tutorials to create your own layouts, check out what it includes. Check this page.