Mat Bevel Company sponsor Mary Artibee, a Technical Support Engineer & Manager with her husband Milt Mallory.

Mary Artibee is a Technical Support Engineer/Manager who lives and works in the San Francisco Bay area. Her fascination with math and computers was piqued in high school when one of her friend’s parents gave a few lessons in computer science to a handful of students who stayed after school to learn things like Boolean algebra and NAND, NOR and OR gates. She says, “I found it fascinating. Our country was abuzz with the space program and computers were the tools that were behind it all. I was intrigued that mere ones and zeros could lead to putting men on the moon.” 

Mary attended Stanford University where she earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics. After graduation, the San Francisco Bay Area offered many opportunities to a newly minted mathematics graduate. Over the years, she worked for a number of terrific companies in the Silicon Valley including Sun Microsystems.

Mary Artibee lives in the San Francisco Bay area.

As part of the “Escape Velocity” campaign, Mary contributed during the matching gift challenge from Sonora Investment Management. Mary says, “I donated to put the “Escape Velocity” campaign into overdrive and support a wonderful opportunity to help kick-start a great STEAM curriculum.”

In her spare time, Mary enjoys sudoku/kenken/kakuro math and logic puzzles as well as crossword puzzles. She enjoys gardening, particularly the destruction part, i.e., pulling weeds, and reading science fiction and mysteries in her quiet time. Mary likes the “art house” cinemas,  and she likes to take long walks with her husband Milt, who also worked in computer technology and has a vibrant creative side that he expresses in art and music.

Mary’s personal mission is to leave the world a better place. As she says, “Pay it forward. First, do no harm.” She sees her support of Mat Bevel Company as another way to create opportunities that will make the world a better place.

Mary believes that making the world a better place includes the ability to see our own humanity in each other, as well as allowing space for each individual to be themselves, no matter their religion, sex, ethnicity, abilities.

In her own life, Mary encourages the next generation to work hard, play hard, help the next person coming along.

In supporting Mat Bevel Company and other organizations involved in art and youth education, Mary says, “I hope that at least one person will grow or find a new opportunity that they would not have had otherwise.”

Thank you for your support, Mary!

Mat Bevel Company sponsor the Adolescent Wellness Network team at Mariposa Community Health Center in Nogales, Arizona.

The Adolescent Wellness Network (AWN) at Mariposa Community Health Center supports the health, education, and community resources that Santa Cruz County adolescents need for optimal mental, physical, and social wellness. The network brings together diverse organizations to create an integrated system that caters to the unique needs of youth in an efficient way. Trainings and capacity building ensure that those who work with youth are prepared to give them the best service possible.

Cassalyn David, AWN Director explains, “We have certified trainers in Youth Mental Health First Aid, the National Alliance on Mental Illness Ending the Silence Curriculum, Text Talk Act, as well as access to interactive online trainings for youth mental health, and more. Our network connects Santa Cruz County to state and national resources, for example hosting workshops on adolescent brain development for parents or professionals.”

The Positive Youth Leadership Team (PYLoTs) pause for a tennis break during a Digital Storytelling Workshop led by Border Youth Tennis Exchange Nogales, Arizona.

Authentic youth engagement is key to all of AWN’s programming. The Positive Youth Leadership Team, which formed in 2014, is a group of 8 local high school students who are critical to informing AWN’s work. They also have opportunities to create their own programs for AWN.

One of the most impactful outcomes of AWN’s programs is when the students say that they are more confident in their ability to address issues that affect their community. AWN supported Mat Bevel Company (MBC) as a sponsor this year because The Universe Within worldbuilding course helps youth become more confident in their ability to address issues that affect their community.

Cassalyn says, “The youth we work with are sending us this message loud and clear: there is no health without mental health, and we must reduce stigma and promote emotional wellness in every way we can in order for them to thrive. It’s difficult for one organization or program to meet youth needs holistically. The Universe Within aligns in many ways with what our teens tell us, that emotional wellbeing, health, art and expression, education, leadership, and problem-solving are all connected, and they want to wrestle with all those things in engaging ways.”

PYLoTs attend local schools and conferences to deliver interactive workshops to their peers.

What AWN and MBC share in common is promoting emotional wellbeing and giving youth the tools and support they need to navigate adolescence. The fact that MBC’s educational programming connects creativity to social problem-solving fits well with AWN’s goals of empowering youth and fostering leadership.

Cassalyn is quick to point out that none of this work to support adolescents would be possible without her organization’s partners. She says, “The school districts and County Superintendent of Schools invite us to present prevention programs to their students. Behavioral Health Agencies ensure our work is connected to their member services. Southeastern Arizona Area Health Education Center (SEAHEC) is our lead for trainings, and local nonprofits like Border Youth Tennis Exchange, 0s3 Movement, and the Boys & Girls Club participate in everything we do and translate our work into direct services to youth.”

Thank you for your support, Adolescent Wellness Network!

Mat Bevel Company sponsor Mary Estes loves to travel, and infuses cultural influences from around the world into her architecture design solutions. She travelled to Japan in 2017.

Mary Estes is a Principal at Norris Design in Phoenix, Arizona. With a background in both landscape architecture and architecture, she works on all types of projects, from large planning efforts to single-family residential design, and everything in between. 

“I didn’t know anything about the profession before I went to college,” says Mary. “While at Texas A&M University, my studies were in ‘Environmental Design,’ which despite how broad the name sounds, was actually more focused on architecture.” 

Mary launched her career in New York City, in small architectural practices, but soon transitioned to a landscape architectural firm. She has never looked back.  

What Mary appreciates about landscape architecture is the diversity of work.  She explains, “You can specialize in one area or you can develop a broad knowledge base. I feel like landscape architecture is where horticulture, design, ecological science, and engineering all come together.”

Mary’s passions and interests outside of work include travel, hiking and trail running (and exercise in general…), yoga, reading, and spending time with her friends and family.  She played competitive soccer for over thirty years, so lately she’s been enjoying watching the Women’s World Cup games. Through international travel, Mary infuses cultural influences from around the world into her design solutions.

Mary supported Mat Bevel Company during the “Escape Velocity” campaign to make the educational content from The Universe Within world-building course accessible to more students.  She just completed her first semester teaching as a Faculty Associate at Arizona State University, so the exposure to formal teaching has provided the motivation to help others learn. 

She says, “Mat Bevel Company allows students to explore their creativity and combine that with art and engineering, so it feels totally aligned with my professional career.  I share my knowledge with my colleagues at work, to help them grow to be competent landscape architects, and I learn something new every day.  I guess you could say I am driven by learning and knowledge.”

Thank you, Mary, for your continued support!

MBC sponsor Doug Rogers with wife Mary at the Grand Canyon.

During last year’s annual fundraiser, Doug Rogers helped Mat Bevel Company (MBC) reach its financial goal with a matching gift challenge during the last 15 days of the campaign. His support of MBC over the last several years stems from his fascination with innovation. He says, “A lot of innovation comes from people who develop the ability to think in active and creative ways. Ned Schaper’s world of Beveldom encourages people to think outside the box.”

Doug Rogers is a Certified Public Accountant who co-founded Sonora Investment Management, LLC in August 1986 with business partner Brad Toland. Prior to this, he worked for a national CPA firm in Los Angeles, California, and in industry in the financial accounting realm. A native Arizonan, Doug received his Bachelors in accounting and finance and an M.B.A. from the University of Arizona.

As a former auditor and verifier of companies’ financial statements, he’s learned that financial statements reveal some things about a company, but certainly not the whole picture. Doug’s passion and experience researching businesses help him see common-sense success patterns and predict the odds of their long-term viability for client investment portfolios.

Doug Rogers with his dog Zoey.

“Sometimes people have negative perceptions of business, but I think that’s misplaced because successful companies are solving problems. They’re creating a service or product that people choose because it’s better than someone else’s, it’s cheaper than others, or it’s one-of-a-kind.

And that’s where his interest in Mat Bevel Company comes in. Doug believes if you solve a problem that no one has solved, often that’s the ingredient of a very good business. “Most innovation requires someone to think in a creative and different way, or to make a connection that other people don’t see. Ned Schaper is compelled to take risks and think in new ways, and that’s where the world’s progress comes from.”

As a financial advisor, Doug maintains financial success follows from solving problems or simply materially improving on what already exists. He believes that the world of Beveldom transports us from the mundane to the fantastical realm, to a place where imaginative solutions can address some of today’s critical problems. He’s banking that innovative programs like The Universe Within world-building educational course and Bevel Café arts entertainment for the whole family will inspire people to re-connect with the physical world, become more aware of available resources to solve problems and strive to think creatively to help reach our greatest potential as individuals. He says, “I think Mat Bevel Company is extraordinary as a way of making that creative and mind-expanding thought happen.”

Thank you, Doug, for supporting Mat Bevel Company’s work during the 2018-2019 season!

Mat Bevel Company (MBC) Sponsor Jack Zittere is a field ecologist, whose vocation and passion is nature and how it interfaces with science and art. For him, the Surrealistic Pop Science Theater and The Universe Within world-building course represent the confluence of art, nature and science, and even more. Jack is inspired by MBC President Ned Schaper’s work which he describes as “the most original and broadly integrative bodies of work of an individual artist I’ve ever seen. The way his theater blends kinetic sculpture, poetry, science and music is wondrous and spell-binding.”

Jack and Ned met nearly 30 years ago at high teas which took place with a small group of writers and thinkers. Jack remembers these get-togethers as “a multi-disciplinary gym where we would talk about ideas and do conceptual art and science. The juggling of art and science was incredibly fun and imaginative.”

Jack was first introduced to the theater when Ned’s sister Paula Schaper moved to Tucson in 1993 to help her brother co-produce a performance series at a small venue in ‘Lost Barrio.’ Jack says, “I had never seen this type of integration before in the performance art world.”

Jack recalls when Ned moved into the former Downtown Performance Center, a 5,000-square-foot performance venue that became well-known as the Mat Bevel Institute. Jack explains, “I loved the creative community that surrounded the theater and world of Beveldom at the Mat Bevel Institute. The museum and theater became a performance center for Zeitgeist Jazz at the Institute and other public events. The Day of the Dead procession would conclude at the Institute with a huge community celebration. When the building was demolished, we lost a huge community asset.”

Jack believes that in our modern consumerist society, there is a greater need than ever to have a creative community where people can dream their dreams and spur their imaginations. He supports MBC’s theater and educational curriculum because he believes it adds a visionary component to people’s lives and the Tucson community.

What excites Jack most about MBC’s new home at Launchpad Artspace is that it provides the resources to fully implement Bevelvision Productions. “In the translation of Ned’s theater and Available Resource Technology practices into film, the world will get a glimpse of the Bevel Universe. It’s so important that people experience Beveldom because this magical world not only feeds the soul with art, it educates the mind with surrealistic physics and mechanics in an artful way.”

A dumpster diver and collector of cultural relics, Ned’s work intersects with Jack’s through the shared value of resourcefulness. Jack says, “It’s cool to see someone upcycling. To turn throw-aways into art is a grand gesture. Since my parents lived through the depression, I’ve always been impressed with people who are resourceful.”

According to Jack, “MBC’s importance is already established. Ned is so far ahead of our cultural curve, his work’s relevance will only increase with time.”

The Hermosa Mine outside of Patagonia, Arizona is expected to contribute $676 million annually into Arizona’s economy as one of the world’s biggest producers of zinc. 

South32 is a globally diversified mining and metals company with operations in Australia, Southern Africa, South America and now North America, with the addition of Hermosa Mine near Patagonia, Arizona. Hermosa, one of the most exciting base metals project in the industry, is expected to become one of the world’s biggest producers of zinc. The mine also is expected to produce significant amounts of lead and silver, along with manganese, and a concentration of copper also has been found in some areas.

According to an economic-impact report released by Arizona State University, the Hermosa Project is expected to have an average of 451 employees over a project lifespan now expected to last until 2049, with a peak of 525 workers, and those jobs will support an average of 3,225 other private, nonfarm jobs. Over its projected 32-year life, the mine is expected to add more than $21 billion to the state gross domestic product, adding $676 million annually into Arizona’s economy.

Hermosa provides the opportunity to leverage the underground mining and processing methods South32 uses at its Cannington operation in Queensland, Australia. South32 works in collaboration with its host communities to deliver long-term environmental, social and economic benefit. The company’s sustainability approach and actions aim to create positive change by supporting local health and well-being, quality education, economic growth, industry innovation, climate action, responsible consumption and production and life on the land.

From left: Denise Bowden and Diana Marquez at South32’s Patagonia Office and Visitor Center.

South32 is a major sponsor of Mat Bevel Company’s educational world-building course called The Universe Within. Their support has been a critical component in helping a small team to develop 32 hours of curriculum that will benefit 26 third and fourth graders at Patagonia Public Schools. Lessons have been designed to increase student’s creative intelligence using the educational industry’s best practices as well as creative play from Mat Bevel Company President Ned Schaper magical world of Beveldom and his lifelong Available Resource Technology (A.R.T.) creative training practices. The course will be taught beginning in early March by science and math teacher David Clovesko-Wharton.

According to Greg Lucero, vice president of community and government affairs for South32, “We support Mat Bevel Company because we believe that this innovative curriculum will cultivate creativity and innovation in students who participate in the program. Our goal is to employ local talent and thereby offer the community economic opportunities. Having a workforce that can innovate and solve problems is critical to our success.” 

You can visit the South32 Visitor’s Center at 303 McKweon Avenue in Patagonia or their main office in Tucson located at 2210 E. Fort Lowell Road.  Learn more about South32 at their website: https://www.south32.net.