Hi! My name is Sonda Cheesebrough and I served as an art teacher in Monongalia County for over 30 years. Most of that time, I taught alongside Larry Buchman. And when I moved into my house on Louise Avenue, I had the pleasure of being neighbors with Larry and Carolyn. It wasn’t unusual for them to be walking by the house and stop to talk, for any length of time. I don’t think Larry ever knew a stranger. In his personal life, he was a wonderful friend, and in his career, he inspired and impacted thousands of students. This spot on Go Fund Me is a place that I’m to tell my story about Larry, but those of you coming to this site, and interested in donating, all have stories of your own. Knowing Larry, they will all be stories of kindness, dedication, and humor.

Larry was always a lover of flowers. I still remember the beautiful peonies in his and Carolyn‘s yard up on Monongalia Avenue. And as an artist, Larry also loved to arrange flowers as well as painting them. If you’re lucky, you have a piece of his artwork in your home, maybe on a card you received from a friend that was made by him.

We are collecting funds to create a memorial to Larry, in the Botanic Gardens of Morgantown.

The Go Fund Me will run through the spring. At that time, specific plans for the memorial will be discussed and agreed upon with Larry’s wife Carolyn, a committee of artists, and the Botanic Garden’s board of directors. Some suggestions from the BG have been: a memorial bench ($3000), an inscription on a donation/memorial wall, or a sculpture.