Robin Marsh, OKC Museum Of Art Team Up For Giving Tuesday

After Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, it’s now Giving Tuesday, a time for people to look into their communities and see where we can lend a hand.

The Oklahoma City Museum of Art is doing just that in partnership with News 9 This Morning anchor Robin Marsh.

“It’s something that really came as a surprise in my life,” Robin said.

After nearly 28 years of painting pictures with her words on News 9, Robin is now putting color to canvas.

“Really, it was because of the pandemic, because I just felt alone, my husband works, my son was away at college and I would come home from work and then couldn’t get out of my house,” she said.

The creative outlet during a time of collective separation was preparing Robin for something she never expected: the loneliness of a long goodbye.

“I think when you’re a care giver of someone you love desperately, it’s like when you become the parent almost to your parent,” Robin said. “I wasn’t ready to fill those shoes.”

“We lost our 91-year-old mom just a month ago. In the last year and a half of her life, she wasn’t the same and she was showing signs of dementia. And we knew that something wasn’t right going on with her brain,” Robin said. “My mom, she didn’t know my name for the last couple months of her life.”

Now on Giving Tuesday, the paintings that help Robin through her pain are a source of hope for others. The Alzheimer’s Association of Oklahoma is one of two charities benefiting from the sale of Robin’s select paintings currently on display at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.

“The money stays here in Oklahoma,” Robin said. “It’s Oklahoma families who need that support system. Caregiving is not for the faint of heart. A lot of times you feel alone and that’s what I love about the Alzheimer’s Association is that they help people not feel alone.”

The other half of the funds will go to Sunbeam Family Services and the Edwards Early Education Center, offering resources for children and families in Northeast Oklahoma City. 

“When I first saw Robin’s art, I knew instantly that I wanted to carry her pieces,” Richard Bruner, OKCMOA store manager, said. “The way she uses bright, fluid colors complements the overall look of the new Store location.” 

“It’s another way that God uses greatest medium, and its people and it’s just been a blessing,” Robin said.

The sale runs through the end of the year and once the charity pieces are sold, they'll be replaced with more pieces designated for charity.