Marie Shiraki recently retired from her initial vocation as full-time homemaker and mother of eight. During that 36-year tenure, she served in community, educational, and religious organizations associated with her family responsibilities. Most notably, in 2013, she was a founding member of the Buena Vista Arts Council (BVAC) that encourages and supports art enrichment programing in a small Virginia town. In answer to a need for increased understanding of non-profit/arts management, she returned to school to obtain an Arts Management Certificate and an Associate Degree in Business Management with a specialization in Administrative Support.