Golden Apple Artist Residency

My name is Rick Beerhorst and I live in Grand Rapids Michigan. For the past 24 years, I have been balancing being a homeschooling parent with my wife Brenda and six children (four still at home), and working as full time painter. Living in both of these spheres has made my life very rich and it has sometimes been exasperating! I've always wondered what it would be like to go off for an artist residency. My chance has now come, as I have recently been selected to participate in the Golden Apple Artist Residency, in Downeast, Maine. This residency, lasting two weeks in August, will give me the rare opportunity to focus on making art without interuption - in a beautiful environment, in the company of other working artists.
An artist residency takes an artist out of their familar surroundings  - giving them both privacy to do their work as well as opportunity to connect with other art professionals. It is this unique context that an artist often makes new discoveries and break-throughs in their work. 
When I first recieved the letter informing me that I had been selected for the Golden Apple Artist Residency - I began to add up what the actual cost would be -- it just seemed totally beyond my means.
$1,900.00                    cost of the residency
$400.00                        air fare
$500.00                        art materials

$2,800.00                     total cost

As I continued to think about it, I realized I really wanted to go, and I needed to find a way to make it work. This is when I turned to gofundme. I am inviting you to partner with me by making a donation, so that this dream of going to my first artist residency may become a reality.