October 2019 – Sculpting Life, Sculpting Humanity – Jane Dedecker

Featuring Jane DeDecker, 
DeDecker Studios

Jane DeDecker has been sculpting the human figure for over thirty-five years. She seeks to capture moments that reveal truths about the human condition, that, when stripped down to their essence, are understood intrinsically. As a figurative sculptor, she communicates emotional experience through lyrical compositions that move the viewer. Jane’s sculptures stop life in mid-sentence, somewhere between inhaling and exhaling. She tells a story through the simple moments that imprint our lives and define us. 

Jane was born in Marengo, Iowa in 1961. She grew up with nine sisters and brothers on a family farm, and her art work reflects a connection to nature, both the environment and human nature. 

As Jane works with clay, concepts emerge from memories and observations of life. Impressions of something felt, seen, or heard take three-dimensional form. A family rising with the dawn becomes a spiritual awakening. A woman worn thin by her burdens opens the possibility of a lightness of being. A man managing a wheelbarrow reminds us of the steadfast patience to balance life’s abundance. 

Jane manipulates clay with painterly brush marks, with careful attention to her intent. Under her hands, there is a fluidity in clay that echoes the human form. Her work is not static, nor is it a finished thought, but rather tied to a moment in time and place that reflects the unfinished story that is our humanity. The permanence of her sculptures cast in bronze drives her to respect the message she leaves behind – positive affirmations about life. 

Jane DeDecker became a member of the National Sculpture Society in New York City in 1998 and a Fellow in 2007. She has placed over 175 life and monumental sized public sculptures in over thirty-three states. Some of the highlights of her installations include “Harriet Tubman” at the Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas; “Albert Gallatin” at the National Park Service in Friendship Hill, Pennsylvania; “Emily Dickinson” at Converse College, in Spartanburg, South Carolina; “Can Can” at the Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina; “In the Wings” at the Robinson Performing Arts Center in Little Rock, Arkansas; “Amelia Earhart” at the Earhart Elementary School in Oakland, California; “Sharing Discoveries” at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota; and “Who’s Watching Who” at the Meijer Sculpture Garden in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Jane feels honored to be sculpting in a time when communities are investing in art to value what defines their unique history. 

Jane’s works have transcended not only art but arenas of justice.  One of the major projects that she is working currently engaged in is a sculpture entitled “Every Word We Utter” that pays homage to the history of the women’s suffrage movement, recognizing many of the movement’s significant leaders.  Every Word We Utter has developed into an initiative to become a monument in Washington, DC that commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Women’s Right to Vote.  

The enduring themes and images of Jane DeDecker’s sculptures not only capture the human condition but recognizes the progression of humanity for good and for justice. 

September 2019 – Striking Out Slavery and Sharing Blessings – Deidre Pujols

Featuring Deidre Pujols
Founder, Open Gate International

Deidre Pujols was just 21 years old when she gave birth to her first child, Isabella, who was born with Down Syndrome. As a single mother from Kansas City, Missouri, Deidre knew her life would change, but she didn’t realize how dramatically in the years to come. 

A few weeks after Isabella’s birth, Deidre met Albert Pujols – who was from the Dominican Republic and grew up in Kansas City. He shared with her on their first date that he was only 18, and she shared with him that she was a single mother of a child with Down syndrome. She gave Albert information about Down syndrome in Spanish since he didn’t speak much English. To her amazement, after he reviewed this information, he didn’t leave, but embraced both her and her child. The couple was married on January 1, 2000 and went on to have four more children together. 

But their story involved more than family. Albert was an exceptional athlete. Soon after their wedding, Albert was called up to the St. Louis Cardinals baseball farm team in Peoria, Illinois, and in 2001, he was called up to the Cardinals major league team. After 11 seasons with the Cardinals, he now plays for the Los Angeles Angels. He has become one of the wealthiest baseball players in the MLB. 

Deidre’s focus has been God and family and one of her favorite verses was Luke 12:48 — “But to whom much is given, much is required.” She believes that we are put on this Earth for a purpose and that the blessings we have are for a reason. This belief has been the driving force behind the Pujols Family Foundation which Deidre and Albert founded in May 5, 2005. 

Through the Foundation, Deidre has pursued many projects, including a launch of a website devoted to Dominican cooking and the disadvantaged women of her husband’s native country. As part of that project, Deidre launched a cookbook/calendar. 

In April of 2016, Deidre Pujols travelled to different parts of the world to learn about human trafficking and other exploitations that were beyond what she knew existed. Deidre connected with NGO’s, ministries, and government officials that are part of an enormous war, fighting battles against exploitation at every level.

After gathering information from her travels, toward the fall of 2016, Deidre started to ask what she could do to help combat this global crisis. She began to wonder if she could provide access to a new way of life for those escaping human trafficking or any of the exploitation she was witnessing. That led her to establishing Open Gate International.

Open Gate International is dedicated to identifying vocational opportunities throughout the world that will provide students in need with the opportunity to gain independent economic success. Once vocational needs have been identified, Open Gate develops the program with top-tier professionals, integrate life skills mentoring and job placement assistance while providing all of it at no cost to the students to set them on a course of sustainable life success.

In 2017, as an extension of her efforts to address human trafficking, Albert and Deidre created Strike Out Slavery. They started this initiative after learning that modern-day slavery is the fastest-growing criminal industry in the world, generating $150 billion USD annually. The Pujols knew that if Major League Baseball teams, players and fans joined them, Strike Out Slavery could spread awareness about modern-day slavery and help a global network of nonprofit organizations rally against it. The inaugural Strike Out Slavery event was held at Angel Stadium in September 2017, where more than 40,000 attendees learned about the issue. Two years later, Strike Out Slavery continues to expand among players and baseball fans across the nation, even the world.

On March 1, 2019, the United Nations Women for Peace Association’s (UNWFPA) Annual Awards Luncheon, in celebration of International Women’s Day, honored Albert and Deidre Pujols with the Humanitarian Award for their efforts to combat human trafficking through their organization Strike Out Slavery.

Deidre is a tireless wife, mother, and advocate who is not only helping to strike out slavery, but passing along God’s blessings to those in need.