Susan Doward Blettel

At the age of eight I left my home in Welwyn Garden City in England and traveled with my family to a new home in Bulawayo, Rhodesia.

For the next few years the southern African nation became the setting for many adventures sailing, camping, horseback-riding, and exploring. Snakes, elephants, hippos, bush-babies, and chongololos (massive millipedes) provided eye-popping new experiences.

When I was fourteen, we drove across South Africa (with all our possessions in a 1965 VW Kombi) to Capetown, then traveled west by ship across the Atlantic via England to Montreal, Canada. We drove across the country on the Trans-Canada Highway until we reached the Pacific Ocean, and settled briefly in Vancouver, B.C., before moving to Portland, Oregon, where I went to high school.

After five years and the creation of many children’s wall murals, illustrated lessons, calligraphy for schools, and other art endeavors, I decided to continue with college in the field I loved — art and design — at Portland Community College, and then earned a B.A. from Marylhurst University in Lake Oswego, Ore.

For many years I was a freelance designer in Portland. As my clientele grew to be largely educational institutions, I was offered a full-time position with Willamette University in Salem, Ore.  I’ve been in university publications for well over twenty years now, with experience at Marylhurst University, the Oregon University System, Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore., and currently, the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee.

Email: susan(at)whitebird-design(dot)com

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