NEWH - Summer 2016 - 4

News

NEWH Debuts Inaugural Art
Mélange Event

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4

Nearly 250 people attended the first NEWH Art Mélange International
Art and Design event on March 20th at the Pavilion at the
International Polo Club Palm Beach in Wellington, Florida.
The event showcased artists from across the country where 68
original pieces by celebrities, architects, musicians, and designers
were auctioned to benefit NEWH scholarship and education
programs, according to NEWH executive director Shelia Lohmiller.
"Art Mélange is a one-of-a-kind networking event," says
Jennifer Wellman, director of architecture and design solutions for
Lexmark Carpet, a sponsor of the event. "The polo match sparked
great conversation; the food went on for days; and the after party
[headlined by Latin Grammy winner Lena Burke] had plenty of
people dancing." ❙❘❚

Referring Chapter
Referring Chapter

1. From CPD, John Kling, Steve Lewis, Melissa Kling; and Julianne Koritz, David and Kim Delgrosso, from Koroseal
2. Farid and Mervet Ayad, IDDI; Jeannine Rohtla and Susan Barton, Peacock & Lewis; Cindy Guthrie, Guthrie &
Associates; and Leslie Temples, Vaughan Benz
3. Denis and Jude Mulhern, Bilkey Llinas; and Desiree Morales and Elliot James
4. Joanna and Jon Kerr, and Rebecca Moccia, Bilkey Llinas
5. Susan Barton and Jeannine Rohtla, Peacock & Lewis
6. Ani Ruiz Chang and Jose Chang, Sem Fim, event sponsors
7. Bill Palmer, Monica Bernal, and Pat Goggin from Tai Ping, event sponsors

Introducing the Dorrit St. John Scholarship
Dorrit St. John was instrumental in the creation
of NEWH in 1984. Dorrit, then president of
Purchase Services Limited (PSL), collaborated
with Susan Spalding of S. Harris and Shelia
Lohmiller of Lohmiller Associates to make
changes in an industry where women were not
yet fully accepted. The three women developed
the idea that those with established careers in
hospitality could lend their support and share
their experiences with women entering the
workforce, forming the basis for NEWH.
St. John was born in Vienna in 1924. She grew up in the midst of
the Holocaust, and she wrote about her experiences in 48 Hours of
Kristallnacht: Night of Destruction/Dawn of the Holocaust.

www.newh.org

Throughout her storied career, St. John worked as a retail buyer,
a manufacturer of architectural special effects, and was a licensed
contractor before joining PSL in 1975. In 1979, she was named president/
partner of PSL and oversaw offices in Los Angeles, Hong Kong,
Singapore, and London.
St. John was awarded the first NEWH Woman of the Year award in 1990.
She retired in 1994 but was still active in her community, volunteering at the
local police department and USC Shoah Foundation. Dorrit passed away on
March 9, 2016, and is interred at Mt. Sinai Cemetery in Los Angeles.
The NEWH Los Angeles founding chapter is proud to have a
scholarship honoring St. John, one of NEWH's original leaders. ❙❘❚

http://www.newh.org

NEWH - Summer 2016

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