Shana R. Goetsch's art frequently involves themes of social justice, empowerment, love, loss and bereavement; she began painting in 1989 after witnessing the murder of her mother. Often using words, cultural references or found objects, she injects personal voice, history and memory into her pieces. Originally from southeastern Wisconsin, Goetsch's work has appeared in numerous exhibitions nationally, and is held in private collections. She received her MFA and MA in Community Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), and her BFA in Painting, with a minor in Printmaking from the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design.

Goetsch is an artist and educator in the Baltimore, Maryland area. She is currently Adjunct Faculty at MICA, and Master Adjunct Faculty at Howard Community College, teaching traditional, online and hybrid arts and humanities courses. As a community arts facilitator, Shana has worked with neighborhoods, schools and art centers within Baltimore City, including: City Arts, Better Waverly's 901 Arts, Jubilee Arts, Baltimore City Public Schools, Access Art, Asylee Women Enterprise, Power Inside, BSO OrchKids, and Creative Alliance at the Patterson.

From 2013 - 2020, Goetsch served as the Founding Director of The Feminist Art Project chapter in Baltimore (TFAPB), a local non-profit organization. Additionally, she served as a confidential advocate of survivors and witnesses for two domestic violence centers; Sojourner Family Peace Center (in conjunction with the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office), and The House Of Ruth Maryland, where she completed a year-long, community artist residency through AmeriCorps. Shana received her Level-1 Certified Trauma-Care Practitioner (CTP) distinction through the National Institute for Trauma and Loss in Children in 2017, and continues to use art as a vehicle for awareness, healing and advocacy.

(pronounces name SHA-nuh GECH)

Hi Debbie (and other true crime rubberneckers),

Please reference the above image to learn more about the actual victim of the murder you so shallowly "reported on" recently. Please also try to be more empathetic next time, especially if there are living victims/survivors, whom also might need and look for some measure of humanity and grace in others. Maybe you could even contact said survivors BEFORE inserting their website links into your little stories. It might even be the ethical/moral thing to do!

You had a real opportunity here, to get beyond the surface of this crime and speak to issues such as family and domestic violence, trauma/C-PTSD and other mental/physical/emotional health challenges in survivors of abuse and violence, how Art can act as a change agent and source of healing...and other rich topics. But no, you couldn't even scratch the surface. I'm thoroughly disappointed in you, Debbie. Your multiple legal disclaimers don't actually cover for your lack of depth and lack of drive, unfortunately. But I do hope you enjoy the art I made for just these instances.

And I'll tell you now, what I told another hapless "reporter" a few years ago; one whom also tried to minimize my mother's personhood, and favored that of her sensational murder(er) instead: "But I assure you, she was sensational if she was anything... The relevance only lies in the loss, or absence of her. All of my work, all of me leads back to her, not him."

It's best to take the link to my website down now, Debra Buck, because who and what I am, has no relevance to what you've done either. I control the narrative here.

Regards--shana