Alabama watercolorist here!

[Garth Herrick]

Dear Monique,

Yup, that was me in those plaid golf shorts, the first night. Golly we really did cross paths! That's really cool. (How did you know that guy was me?)

I hung out a lot with Stephen Pan at the conference. He would be pleased to know how much you liked his work in the finalist's display. I certainly understand if you had a difficult choice on picking your favorite of the thirteen; there were some pretty good paintings in there! I felt humbled.

I am glad you also had a wonderful time in D.C. Now, I hereby grant you the very best wishes on your artistic journey!

Garth