It’s one of those gloomy, wet winter days when we walk into the heritage building that’s now home to PoMo Arts, a community-based arts organization. With a warm smile and a welcoming hug, Deanna, Director of PoMo Arts, infuses some much-needed brightness into the day. She leads us to her office, stopping to point out new art pieces for their next exhibition and tells us the building used to be the Old City Hall. And that there’s a resident ghost (apparently friendly).

Even when she’s talking about a ghost, Deanna has a way of making you feel at ease. Maybe it’s because she’s the mother of two young girls (their drawings are proudly displayed next to Deanna’s desk). Or because she’s interested in our lives, even though we’re there to talk to her. You can tell she loves to listen and learn.

Deanna believes, “Life is about being interested in others, their lives, and their wellbeing.” It’s a teaching passed down to her by a dear family friend who has clearly made a deep impression on Deanna. This friend left her with lessons she carries with her every day, like the power of empathy and the importance of using her heart just as much as her rational mind when making decisions. She also encouraged Deanna to take every opportunity to make a difference and to use her voice to speak up— advice Deanna tries to follow in all aspects of her life, including her work as an artist and at PoMo Arts.

Having experienced harder times herself, Deanna knows that adversity can change the trajectory of someone’s life and how healing art can be. It’s likely why she feels compelled to help others who have also faced challenges tell their stories with art. Whether it’s leading clay workshops for women in the Downtown Eastside or helping to create meaningful experiences around reconciliation, Deanna believes art is a great avenue to express ourselves and a way to bridge divides.

“Art can provide the emotional distance to have really difficult conversations or introduce ourselves to pieces of experience that are hard to look at and complex. In understanding a bit more of the diversity of experience, we understand how to move forward and include each other.”

And that is really what Deanna hopes to pass on—to live with more compassion and curiosity for other’s experiences.