Art by Faith

Constance Faith Koehler, known to her friends as Connie, has been blessed with a natural talent to create, whether using an artist’s brush, a pen, a pencil, or a camera. Connie has drawn and created things all through her life but it was not until adulthood that she has blossomed as an artist. No one realized or appreciated her talent at an early age, even after an ink and crayon piece she created in first grade called, "The Gumdrop Tree", was put on the front cover of the school journal.

She was born in Gadsden, Alabama where she attended first grade. After first grade Connie and her family moved to Florida where she has lived most of her life. She has lived in Vero Beach for over thirty years. In 1996 she painted a small painting and began to show it to others. The creativity and artistic expression in this small painting helped her family and friends realize she had a natural talent that deserved to be nurtured and developed. They encouraged her to take art and painting lessons, and those lessons have helped her to grow as an artist and to develop her own style and vision which shines in all of her art work. With a number of well-received paintings and drawings in her portfolio, she now sells and donates her art to worthy causes.

Though Connie has other talents, such as writing poetry and a fantasy short story, painting and drawing are her first loves as outlets for her talents. She gives thanks to a higher power, God, for these gifts because they are what have given her confidence in herself. Her artistic endeavors have allowed doors to become opened, her circle of friends to become ever-widening and her low self-esteem has been boosted into a higher self-esteem.

Because of these talents, and the encouragement of loved ones, Connie went back to school, received her GED Diploma, and now attends a two-year college where she will soon receive an A.S. degree in Graphic Design Technology. She also takes a class in Office Skills Technology and is often found in the College labs assisting others to use technology.

Connie's message to others:

Believe in yourself, find something you like to do, and then go for it.

Be thankful for what you have, and DON'T limit yourself in achieving what you don't have.

Remember that by giving you receive, by loving you are loved, and being loved is one of God’s greatest gifts.

Recently Connie has fought Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Large B Cell cancer. With God’s help and the support of her friends and family that battle has been won; the cancer is gone.