HEALING THROUGH ART: Collage artist Carol Wintle (inset), who has worked for 30 years as a child and family psychotherapist specializing in child trauma and bullying prevention, saw a marked increase in fear, anxiety, and difficulty sleeping among her young clients following the twin explosions near the finish line of the Boston Marathon one year ago.
The Belmont resident expressed her own heartache over the violence by creating a mixed-media collage, titled “Villains and Heroes, Boston, MA, April 2013.” Measuring 30 by 40 inches, it tells the story of the bombing, its chaotic aftermath, support for the victims, and the transformation of grief into healing and strength.
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She began the collage during the “shelter in place’’ episode several days after the bombings, and finished it over several weeks, using images from newspapers, magazines, brochures, and other mailings. She exhibited the piece in a solo show at the Massachusetts Audubon Society’s Habitat Education Center and Wildlife Sanctuary in Belmont last fall.
Wintle credits messages in the Habitat gallery’s guest book for her decision to donate the $2,500 collage for permanent display at the Boston Public Library. On April 3, Jane Winton, the library’s curator of prints, and Susan Glover, keeper of special collections, accepted the piece. In addition, a digital image will be projected in Doric Hall at the State House as part of “Violence Transformed: The Artistic Voice,” a series of visual and performing arts events taking place across Greater Boston April 28 through May 9.
Wintle said she hopes her collage will serve as a memorial and a reminder.
“It honors those we’ve lost, those who helped, and the spirit of Boston strong,” she said.
For more details, visit www.collagebywintle.com.
BREAKING THE SILENCE: Arlington resident Anne DiNoto recalls the devastation amid her extended family when her 33-year-old maternal uncle Tony Hodges committed suicide in 1981, but also a reluctance to discuss the circumstances. Then tragedy struck a second time, in 2006, when Michael Hodges took his life on his 48th birthday, within 10 days of the 25-year anniversary of his brother Tony’s death.
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The response was different after Michael’s death, she said.
“Public reaction was more in the way of what can we do, as opposed to blaming the person,” said DiNoto, a member of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s advocacy network. “There is better awareness of mental health and decreased stigma, but we still have to figure out how to prevent this.”
To honor her uncles while providing a safe place for others to share their stories, DiNoto has organized the foundation’s International Survivors of Suicide Day observations since 2012 at Boston University, where she works as a collections specialist in the comptroller’s office. And in February, she took part in the foundation’s annual Advocacy Forum in Washington, D.C., where she shared research findings about suicide and its prevention with the staffs of Representative Katherine Clark and Senator Edward Markey.
In addition, DiNoto is the student adviser for Out of the Darkness at BU. On Saturday at 11 a.m., the student organization will host its third annual 3-mile walk on campus to raise awareness about depression and suicide, and funds for research and education efforts.
DiNoto, who is participating in this year’s walk, said she will continue sharing the painful story of her family’s suicide legacy as a message of healing for others struggling with feelings of disbelief, shame, guilt, anger, and fear after their own loss. “There is a lot of work to do,” she said, “but there is hope.”
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For more information, visit www.facebook.com/buoutofthedark.
40K BY 40: This is a year of milestones for Kim Rosen.
The Waltham resident will marry fiancé Doug DaSilva on May 24 — chosen for its significance as the four-year anniversary of her founding Photos for Cures, through which she accepts donations for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in lieu of payment for her amateur photography services.
In addition, on Tuesday she surpassed her goal of raising $40,000 for the hospital before her 40th birthday, next Sunday.
Rosen, who works full time as an executive assistant at Globoforce Ltd. in Southborough, shoots individual and family portraits, and posed and candid photos for virtually any occasion (except weddings) for a minimum hourly donation of $100. She then edits and uploads the images to her website (www.photosforcures.com), from which her clients can order prints.
Rosen (inset) has dedicated a section of her site to encouraging other photographers to follow her example.
She hopes the Good Housekeeping Seal awarded to the website this month brings more exposure to her crusade against pediatric cancer. “As long as I have my health and a camera,” she said, “I will continue doing what I’m doing.”
THOUGHTS FOR FOOD: Scientist Guy Crosby of Weston will deliver a Walden Forum presentation at 7:30 p.m. April 29 in Wayland Middle School’s auditorium, at 201 Main St.
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In his presentation, “America’s Food — from Farm to Fork — and the Reality of Sustainable Food Systems,” he will discuss advances in the science and technology of food production while detailing the American system, from large-scale agribusinesses to grass-roots, sustainable farms.
Crosby (inset), who has more than 40 years experience in the food business, is an adjunct associate professor in the Harvard School of Public Health, and co-author of “The Science of Good Cooking.” He is science editor for Cook’s Illustrated and its PBS television show, “America’s Test Kitchen.”
For more information about the series of free lectures, visit www.waldenforum.org.
Send items to Cindy Cantrell at cindycantrell20@gmail.com.