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Today's Featured Biography
Stephen Laney
FIFTY YEARS! You have got to be kidding. . .it just seems impossible that 50 years have slipped away since we graduated from high school. Wasn’t it just yesterday that Coach Lavell Edwards hollered at us to do some laps around the gym, then got a phone call and forgot we were still running 20 minutes later. That is, some of us were still running.
Well, OK, maybe it is not quite like yesterday, but surely not 50 years ago. As I think back to the 50's and 60's, all I wanted in the whole wide world was to be a jet fighter pilot. I, know, most of you thought that kid will be an artist for sure–and I did love art as well. Granite High School hosted the State Art Show the year we graduated and fortune smiled upon me and I won a full tuition scholarship to any university in Utah. After visiting all three of the universities and spending several days at each, I settled on BYU. But what most of you would not have guessed is that I enrolled in the Air Force ROTC Program and got straight “A’s” for the next several semesters, right up until flight training. Then, in a physical exam in which I indicated it was thought I had asthma at five years of age, BAM. Dropped from the program.
1962 found me in Southern Texas in the LDS Spanish American Mission. No, I did not take Spanish in high school, so for several months, the look on my face (stupid) said it all. However, throughout my mission , most of my companions were from Mexico or South America, so when I cam home, I could barely speak English.
Back at the “Y,” (1964-65)I met Elizabeth, my sweetheart and wife of 45 years, and we began an incredible, wonderful whirlwind ride like I could never have imagined:
First, Uncle Sam came calling and soon I was in the ARMY ARADCOM Missile Defense Command. After an honorable discharge, (Friday the 13th ) while living in San Fernando Valley, CA, I found work as an illustrator for Pacific-Tel Corporation in downtown Hollywood, becoming one of three Finish Artists supervising one third of the 56 artists.
After working with the youth at church, finding close to half of them on LSD or other drugs, living dramatically different dual lives at school and at home/church, Elizabeth and I decided we did not want to raise our family there and we moved back to Provo, UT, to BYU, so I could become an art teacher.
TEACHER! No way. Any of you that still remember me from art classes know that I was adamant in my opinion that, “Only those who couldn’t really do art would become teachers.” Well, I ate the whole crow.
Let me just say how totally wrong I was to make such a foolish statement as I look back now on 35 years of teaching. First, as a teacher, I was able to help thousands of youth, at an age when they were so vulnerable to the whims of the world, so uncertain about who they were, or how they would fit into the future. As an ART teacher I was able to work with each one, one on one, every day. One of the most important things about art was that our focus , after the basics, was on “thinking outside of the box.” Helping them to think for themselves and to come up with new, innovative solutions to their own problems, opened the way for them to apply the same to their own lives. After helping over 400 of them pass the AP Art Test, I have scores of letters from students years after their graduation attesting to the value of creative thinking. Those relationships have given me a truly rich and abundant life, and wonderful memories.
Family: Elizabeth and I were blessed with six wonderful children. We have at least 10,000 pictures of camping together, trips back East and to California, Yellowstone, Boy Scout Camp, Little League Baseball, dance recitals, graduation, Eagle Scout Banquets, all of it. Wouldn’t trade it for anything. Now, as empty nesters, we live in our marvelous 100 year old Victorian home with beautiful turn of the century tiger striped golden oak woodwork and stain glass windows throughout. Perfect for a couple of artists. We enjoy frequent visits from all 17 grandchildren and their parents, have our own reunions and live on an 80 acre farm (Granitian Farmers,hah!)with a seven acre pond and 6 horses (two ponies and a cart) 11 goats, 10 hens a laying, two dogs and who knows how may cats. All of our children live in Utah. How truly blessed we are.
1969 Graduated from BYU with a BA in Art Education and an MA in Art Education from ASU, Arizona, in 1971. Began my career as an art teacher at Westwood High School, Mesa, AZ. Taught Photography, Advanced drawing, Figure Drawing, Painting, Portfolio Preparation, Sculpture, Graphic Design, and Portraiture for the Mesa Public School District, Mesa, AZ for 15 years and served as department chair for six art teachers in a school of 3200 (huge). Also, taught Advanced Photography, Figure Drawing, Fashion Design and Water Color, for Mesa Community College, Maricopa Technical College and Rio Salado Community College for 13 years.
1983 Received a Sabbatical Leave to work on a Master of Fine Arts Degree at BYU. Taught six sections of Still Life and Figure Drawing at BYU while working on MFA.
1985 Moved back to Utah and began teaching for the Alpine School District, Mountain View High School, Orem, UT. While there, I taught everything above with the addition of Honors Art and AP Art, and served as department chair from 1995-2005.
1992 Received The Artist of the Year and Art Educator of the Year Award, (representing a five state area), from Utah State University, and was honored as Teacher of the Year at Mountain View High School in 1996.
Retiring a couple of years early in order to take care of my frail 94 year old mother, living next door, (dad passed away 6 years earlier), really stretched me to my limits--that and running the farm. Now as I stand in my art studio, I catch myself reminiscing and find myself truly missing encouraging all those bright eyed students so full of dreams for the future.
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