Meet the Board

President - Rebecca Kite, a percussionist and marimbist, is an international performing artist and educator who has appeared in concerts, clinics, and workshops across the United States and in South America, Europe and Japan. She has been on the faculty of the University of Maryland, Miami University, and the University of Minnesota. Locally, she teaches private percussion and marimba lessons in her own studio and has appeared in First Night Leesburg and Warrenton and performs her school assembly program, Marimba! in area elementary schools. In her volunteer activities, she served on the Board of Directors of the Percussive Arts Society (an international organization of more than 8,000 members) for four years the Lucketts Community Center Advisory Board (best known as the organization that presents the annual Lucketts Fair) where she was president from 2004 to 2006. Kite is also on the Virginia Commission for The Arts Touring Program roster as a concert marimbist.

Vice-President - Ken Shall is a Registered Financial Planner with First Financial Group in Reston VA. In addition to his Financial Knowledge, Ken has over 10 years experience in Project Management. His interest in the arts is primarily of helping the boards run more effectively, and promote awareness for the group. He has been a member of the Sterling Playmakers for the last 6 years. While he has primarily worked behind the scenes, he has appeared on stage in South Pacific as Commander Harbison, and the role of Pig Pen in You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown. In addition he produced Charlotte’s Web. While serving on the board of directors for the Sterling Playmakers he has served on the IT, Ways and Means, and Publicity committees. As a result, he convinced the BOD that they needed to join the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce, which has added some name awareness and increased attendance at shows. Ken has also been a resource for Open Circle Theatre in Silver Spring.

Treasurer - Cindy Lowther is a professional visual artist with a studio in the Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, VA. She is a founding member who has served as both Treasurer and Vice President of the Artist Association. She founded and served as Executive Director of Springwater Fiber Workshop, Inc. a non-profit educational organization from 1985-2000. Her teaching experience includes head of the Fiber Arts department of the Art League School, Alexandria, VA and professor of Fiber Design at Howard University, Washington, DC. From 1996-2000 she sat on the Grant Review Board, Arts Council of Fairfax County. Then in 2003 she helped found the Friends of Franklin Park Arts Center In Loudoun County, VA and was elected Treasurer and is the current President. In 2006, she was elected to the Loudoun Arts Council and currently serves as the Treasurer.

Secretary - Maggie Malick is employed as a senior engineering specialist with Mantech SRS, where she works in the space and intelligence division. Maggie is a 12-year resident of Loudoun County, where she and her husband own a vineyard. An enthusiastic amateur musician, she has performed in concert band, marching band, and orchestra for most of her life. She continues to remain active in music; she plays tuba with the Loudoun Symphonic Winds and sousaphone in the Washington Redskins Marching Band. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Loudoun Community Bands, Inc., and the Serapis Foundation, Inc., a non-profit dedicated to music performance and education. Maggie is also a member of the Loudoun Arts Council and the Association of Concert Bands; she has held positions as an officer in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (Arlington chapter) and the Loudoun Wine Growers Association, and served on several local government Advisory Boards.

Carla Deniz is the executive director and violist of Moonlit In The Sun. Carla received her music degree from George Mason University in 1993 where she won the George Mason University Concerto Competition. She has been performing throughout the D.C. Metropolitan area since 1990, including performances at the Barns of Wolf Trap and the Kennedy Center. Carla has studied under Richard Parnas (recent principal violist of the National Symphony Orchestra) and Doris Lederer, violist of the Audobon String Quartet. She is currently a section violist in the Loudoun Symphony and performs locally with the viola quartet, Bratschewurst. Carla is on the music faculty at the Wakefield School in the Plains, Va; and provides violin and viola lessons from her private studio in Leesburg VA. She has been a member of the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce and Business Networking Institute, and is currently a member of the eWomen Network.

Kathy Farmer has been a member of the Master Singers of Virginia since 1997 and was President of the organization from 2000-2005. She spearheaded efforts of the Master Singers to create an Annual Scholarship for high school seniors pursuing advanced studies in music. She is the current Choir Director at St. Theresa Parish in Ashburn. Kathy has a degree in Business Administration from Emmanuel College and a Masters in Business Administration from Bentley College in Massachusetts. She is employed at The Dominion Group, a marketing research company in Reston. Kathy lives in Broadlands. This is Kathy's 6th year as a member of the Board of Directors of the Loudoun Arts Council. Kathy served as president of the LAC in 2006-2007, 2007-2008.

Beth Goldsmith was an artist participating in our Designer Show house. Beth recently moved to Loudoun from Fairfax County where she was an accomplished special education teacher for 11 years. Beth has a wealth of experience in managing non-profit and for profit organizations and is a dynamic speaker. Beth currently runs her own fine and decorative painting business out of Purcellville, VA.

Linda Ifert is the Theatre Technical Director at the Reston Community Center where she has worked for 27 years. She is also a Lighting Designer, and her work has been seen, in addition to the Reston Community Center, at local dinner theatres as well as the Allenberry Playhouse in Pennsylvania, for the Fredericktowne Players at The Weinberg Center in Frederick, Maryland, and for the dance program at George Mason University. Linda lives in historic Leesburg.

Zofia Lategano is a working artist who paints mostly in oils and acrylics. Zofia has a BS in Computer Science and a MA in Painting and Life Drawing from Montclair State University, New Jersey. She previously owned and operated Zofia's Art Gallery in Avon, NC for almost 10 years and is currently running a website gallery online. Zofia had been an active member, volunteer, and co-chair for special events and event planning for the Dare County Arts Council in NC for eight years before joining the Loudoun Arts Council in 2007. Zofia currently assists in running the Arts in Offices program for the LAC.

Jeanne Niccolls recently retired after working in museums for nearly 30 years. Now she does some museum consulting, volunteers with the Virginia Association of Museums and serves on the Western Loudoun Artists Studio Tour planning committee and the Friends of Franklin Park Arts Center board. She lives outside Round Hill.

Susan K. Serafin is an interdisciplinary artist, working with multiple mediums of installation, printmaking, digital media, and performance offering her numerous venues of artistic expression. Her work revolves around themes of body image, gender issues, and social and cultural alteration in environments. Susan has exhibited at Center for The Healing Arts, Arlington Art Center, Provisions Library, Pyramid Atlantic, Gallery RFD as well as group exhibitions at The Kreger Museum and McLean Project for The Arts. She has also participated in film festivals at Robert Morris University, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania and worked with The Education Channel in Tampa, Florida. Her other works include co-curating, lecturing, and group performances. She currently resides in Loudoun County with her husband and three children.

Heather Valdez Stillings has performed on stages across the country. After earning both her BA and MAT at Austin College in Sherman, TX, she taught high school theatre for three years in a Dallas suburb, during which time she performed on several Dallas area stages, including Dallas Children's Theatre, Theatre Three, and Plano Repertory Theatre. After a national tour with DCT, she moved to Leesburg, Virginia, and continues to perform regionally on stage and in film. Also a director, teacher, and acting coach, Heather is active with the Franklin Park Arts Center, and has served on the Loudoun Arts Council since 2005.