It takes courage to negotiate our way through life. More often than not, it is adversity, not ease, that shapes who we become. The willingness to keep moving forward, to build something meaningful out of difficult circumstances, is what ultimately strengthens communities, fosters generosity, and creates opportunity.
For Joan Edwards, that understanding came early.
As a young single mother with two children and an uncertain future, she was already navigating the kind of challenges that test resilience. Then tragedy struck. Her four-month-old daughter died suddenly of SIDS, leaving Joan to carry that loss while continuing to care for her two-year-old son, Jaymz, and work to support them.
The grief was overwhelming. But in time, Joan began to recognize how deeply those experiences would shape the way she lived her life.
“I wouldn’t wish my young motherhood experiences on anyone,” she says. “But I know that I am not alone in my loss. I see it every day, and I feel a particular obligation to help women and children, especially mothers who suffer from financial challenges or stressful or even dangerous home lives. I know how hard it is when you are on your own like that.”
Determined to move forward, Joan put herself through business school and gradually worked her way out of financial difficulty. But she never left behind the perspective those years gave her. Instead, it became a guiding force.
She believes that having lived through those struggles carries with it a responsibility to help others facing similar circumstances.
In recent years, Joan has worked with organizations that support women and families in crisis, including efforts with the Women’s Christian Association to help fund their crisis center. Through Create Gallery, which she owns and operates with her husband Leo Bretanos, she has also hosted events designed to bring the community together in support of those in need.
One of those efforts, her Christmas benefit “Gallery of Gifts,” reflects a tradition that has long been important to her.
“I have always taught my son Jaymz to be compassionate toward others and give back to his community,” she says. “At Christmas time we have traditionally done volunteer work for various charities. In my heart, helping other children has always felt like a tribute to my baby daughter.”
Her commitment to giving extends well beyond a single season. Joan remains actively involved with local arts organizations and initiatives like Women Innovators in Boise, which encourages young women to pursue higher education and explore future career paths. She has also volunteered with SheTech, a program focused on guiding young women toward expanded opportunities in both career and life.
What draws her most are efforts that create lasting change.
“It is not enough to just give money,” she says. “The programs that I like best teach freedom and emotional intelligence, the kind that produces good choices and opportunities. This deeper knowledge allows people to help themselves in a way that builds self-esteem and long-lasting life skills.”
That perspective is reflected in her latest project.
This June, Joan is helping bring together artists and participants for Sight Unseen, a week-long arts program built around a multi-sensory approach to creative expression. The event brings blind and sighted individuals together through movement, workshops, installations, and shared experiences that challenge traditional ways of engaging with art.
The program will culminate in a performance and community gathering, but for Joan, the purpose goes beyond the event itself. It is about connection, understanding, and creating space for people to experience something new together.
“Life itself is the truest art form,” she says. “Art isn’t just something to hang on your wall. It’s a philosophy about how to live a beautiful and authentic life, and that would be incomplete without encouraging others to do the same. Art is a verb, and it’s in the giving that life becomes a work of art.”
For Joan, that idea continues to guide everything she does—finding ways, both large and small, to turn experience into something that can be shared with others.