Weatherford College art instructor to be honored after working ‘dream job’ of 51 years
In the movie “City Slickers,” Curly (played by Oscar winner Jack Palance) tells Mitch (Billy Crystal) to find the “one thing” meant for you in life and do it as best as you can.
He might as well have been describing Myrlan Coleman, who spent more than five decades as a Weatherford College art instructor.
“I have been most richly blessed to have served under great administrators, to serve with some of the greatest faculty and staff who have become among my best friends in the world, and blessed with amazing students who have added richly to my life,” said Coleman, who retired after 51 years at the school. “I have learned so much from my students about the changing world and different ideas that I feel I have received more than I have given.”
Weatherford College will honor Coleman on Friday at the Alkek Fine Arts Center. The event will be preceded by the Spring Student Art Exhibition and Reception in Texas Hall from 5 to 7 p.m.
The presentation honoring Coleman will begin at 6:15 p.m. on the Alkek stage. A concert, “It’s All About the Music,” will follow at 7:30 p.m. All events are free, and face masks are required inside the arts center.
“Myrlan’s passion for teaching was only exceeded by her love of her students,” said Rhonda Torres, WC dean of education and instructional support.
COVID-19 prevented the college from giving Coleman a proper sendoff in the spring of 2020, so officials saw the previously scheduled student art exhibition and concert as a perfect pairing for her official retirement event.
Then President J.C. Nichols hired Coleman in 1969 after seeing her art in a Fort Worth gallery. She retired in 2020 after some 100 student art exhibitions, a Faculty Member of the Year Award, a Presidential Award from WC President Tod Allen Farmer and thousands of impacted students, faculty and staff.
“Myrlan has been a positive, creative and caring example for all her students and the people she has worked with,” WC Dean of Fine Arts Duane Durrett said. “Her passion for the arts, and how she was able to teach and instill this passion, are just a few of the many reasons she deserves this honor and recognition.”
Coleman said the major reason she stayed at WC so long was a simple one. She felt at home with family.
“These beautiful people have been with me through times of personal distress, loss, or tragedy to lift me up and give me strength. They have also seemed to unselfishly take joy in the accomplishments of others and expressed joy and support in any personal achievements I might have received,” she said. “Faculty and staff, both past and present, made my job seem like less of a workplace and more of a happy place.”
One special student carries a special memory for Coleman.
“DeVonna Peacock, who suffered from Cystic Fibrosi, knew her own lifetime was severely limited and, yet, always encouraged her fellow classmates with praise and encouragement, as well as generously loaning supplies to those who were in need,” Coleman remembered with a somber smile.
On her passing, her fellow classmates set up the DeVonna Peacock Award, given for the past 30 years to a student who embodies “the wonderful attributes of DeVonna’s memory.”
She taught through hairstyles that ranged from mutton chops to mullets for men, and from the Dorothy Hamill bob to frizz for women. Clothing styles ranged from men’s leisure suits and bell bottom pants for men to gogo boots, hot pants and crop tops for women.
There have also been many social changes, something Coleman has always looked at as a way to be kind to and help each other.
“I have had so many wonderful students from so many countries and social backgrounds, and they have taught me so much about life,” she said.
While she is entering a new chapter in life, Coleman is far from finished, as she said she plans to spend her retirement “taking one day at a time and enjoying family.”
”I had a dream job at a place I love and I worked with the best friends in the world,” she said.
