FORT WALTON BEACH— The entertainment editor at the Daily News will help encourage arts appreciation on a whole new level beginning in March.
Brenda Shoffner was appointed Friday by Sen. Don Gaetz to serve on the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, which was established to support and promote artistic and cultural programs in the state.
“This came as a complete surprise,” Shoffner said. “I’m really grateful to Senator Gaetz for giving me this opportunity to take my service to the arts community to the next level.”
Gaetz said he was allowed to select four people to join the 15-person council as the president of the Senate and knew immediately he would ask Shoffner to be one of them.
Read the letter about her appointment »
“She’s the first person I thought of,” he said. “There are a lot of people who are advocates for one particular (arts) organization … the advantage that Brenda Shoffner brings to the arts council is that she is an advocate for the arts in the broadest sense.”
The Niceville resident said he’s always enjoyed reading Shoffner’s columns in Showcase, a weekly arts and entertainment magazine in the Daily News. Shoffner has overseen the publication since the early 1990s, and Gaetz said he knew skills she honed on the job would be invaluable in the new role.
“The purpose of the arts council is to make decisions about which organization gets arts funding, and as a journalist Brenda is able to look at all of the facts and all of the contingencies … and make a more unbiased recommendation for funding,” he said.
Shoffner, who has held a variety of positions at the newspaper, said she’s always had a passion for the arts and looks forward to helping advance it statewide.
“It enriches everyone’s life from the performer to the observers,” she said. “It provides depth to our experience.”
Throughout her childhood she dabbled in a variety of artistic ventures, she said.
In sixth grade she co-wrote and acted in a play, and in seventh grade she did a little more acting before giving that up to focus more on playwriting and poetry.
While those are her personal strong suits, Shoffner said she welcomes opportunities to explore and experience all art forms.
“I like everything — I like painting. I like plays. I like music,” she said, and added with a laugh, “I’m an easy audience; I always say that about myself.”
Shoffner will hold her position on the council for two years and will attend her first meeting on March 21 in Tallahassee.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Katie Tammen at 850-315-4440 or ktammen@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @KatieTnwfdn.
