Longmont Journey: Channeling the past into creative inspiration for others

Elaine Waterman believes that everything in her life has prepared her for her latest position as the Executive Director at the Firehouse Art Center in Longmont. 

In 1974, Waterman was born in Manhattan, New York into an immigrant family. 

Waterman’s parents, both doctors, immigrated to the United States during the 1960s when there was a shortage of doctors in the country. They brought Waterman’s paternal grandmother along on the journey and, at first, the three of them lived in a one bedroom apartment in New York. 

Following the birth of the Filipino couple’s first child, the small family relocated from New York to Virginia, burned out by the city’s uncleanliness and dangerous conditions. There, Waterman’s younger sister came into the picture. 

Throughout her life, Waterman reported struggling with feelings of not knowing where she belongs; a sentiment that began during her childhood. 

“When I was born, my family was trying to find their place in America,” Waterman said. “My sister and I were encouraged to fit into American life but at home we were encouraged to live like Filipino children.”

Waterman’s parents spoke Tagalog – a central Philippine language – at home, but didn’t teach their daughters to speak the language. 

The disparity between the culture she experienced at home and the culture she experienced outside of the house made Waterman feel confused about her own identity growing up. “I never knew if I was doing things ‘the right way,’” she said. 

Following in their parents’ footsteps, Waterman’s older sister grew up to become a doctor herself and married another doctor. 

Waterman, in contrast to her family members, was less interested in medicine and more interested in pursuing career paths that had to do with art, writing and creating. As a child, she was constantly making arts and crafts and even making up her own elaborate stories, she said. 

Her internal dilemma growing up, she said, “caused me to be passionate about creating spaces where marginalized or misunderstood groups can be authentic.”

Waterman graduated from William and Mary with degrees in 3-D studio art, art history and English literature. 

After college, Waterman decided to move back to New York City to study fashion design. Her studies opened a variety of doors for her in the city at the time – the young artist was employed by Federated as a fashion designer for Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s and landed a freelance job at Marvel Comics to rework the design for Spider Girl’s costume. 

Although Waterman loved New York City and all the opportunities there for her, she was inspired to relocate to Vail, Colorado after five years of living in the city to be closer to her boyfriend at the time. 

“(The relationship) didn’t end up working out but I ended up falling in love with Colorado,” Waterman said. 

In her new hometown, Waterman’s first job was assistant teaching preschool classes. However, upon receiving her first paycheck, Waterman began to weep “because I was so shocked at how little teachers are paid,” she said. 

Waterman felt disheartened when she had to quit the position because she didn’t have the funds to go back to school to pursue a teaching degree. From there, her “exploration period” began. 

During this period, Waterman began teaching yoga classes and carried on being creative -- she made candles, painted, designed clothing and sold her creations at farmers markets to help make ends meet. In 2001, Waterman started her own business called Miss Elaneyous Arts, inspired by the miscellaneous products she was selling on the website and “because I could never figure out what I wanted to do,” she said.  

In 2003, Waterman moved from Vail to Boulder and began working in the design department at Fresh Produce, an American clothing brand, while she also continued teaching yoga and art classes. 

While working at Fresh Produce was a nostalgic experience for Waterman, she realized her real passion lay in teaching – a love that was further intensified by the birth of her first child. 

She decided to put Fresh Produce in her past and return to teaching kids in an after school program. From here arose Waterman’s inspiration to start her second business, Paint N’ Party to Go, or PNP2Go. 

PNP2Go was a mobile Paint and Sip company where people would hire Waterman to come teach step-by-step art classes at their home. If her clients didn’t want to host a class at their home, Waterman arranged for the class to be held at the Firehouse Art Center in Longmont. 

“So even though I have only been an employee at the Firehouse for one and a half years, I started teaching there 12 years ago,” Waterman said. 

After running PNP2Go for a few years, a job teaching Discovery Days at The Longmont Museum opened and Waterman jumped at the opportunity. 

“I don’t think I would have ever left that job,” Waterman said, but when her husband’s job demanded a move to California in 2017, Waterman and her family obliged. 

After a two-year period during which Waterman traded teaching at The Longmont Museum for teaching at The Riverside Art Museum in Riverside, California, Waterman’s family decided California was simply too hot a location for them and returned to Colorado. 

“The first thing I did when we returned was start volunteering at the Firehouse to reconnect to the creative community in Longmont,” Waterman said. “The Firehouse has always been my art home away from home and I had missed it when we were in California.” 

At the time, Waterman’s goal was to be employed by the Firehouse by the end of a four-year period. When the executive director position opened after a year, however, Waterman fulfilled both the job description and her goal earlier than expected. 

“I draw from my experiences as an individual artist, a teacher, a business owner, a community advocate and organizer daily at the Firehouse,” Waterman said. 

“I draw from them when I work on programs to help artists in our community, when I create classes and workshops, when I work through the budget and strategic plans, and when I think of how we can make access to art experiences more inclusive and life enhancing for all members of our community.”