Operation Valor Arts provides Veterans with training and resources to enable them to design interpretive public art as a means to:
Process their experience of war
Engage and collaborate with fellow Veterans
Create art that invites understanding of the Military and Military family experience
Design Team Hard At Work
Southwestern Pennsylvania Is Known To Have One Of The Largest Concentrations Of United States Veterans
The group was inspired by the work of Charles Hogue, MD, Colonel, U.S. Army
(Ret.). From 2000 to 2009, at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Hogue directed the U.S. Military’s premiere research program on the mental health and neurological effects of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Hogue wrote, Once a Warrior, Always a Warrior, to help Veterans navigate the transition from combat to home. Here he established three basic needs:
The group recognized the necessity of providing Veterans a mission that would continue to engage them in a significant way. Unlike pre -existing “mission” focused Veteran organizations, they felt the returning Veteran community needed a permanent aspect to this new undertaking; one to which they could directly attach their names and bring their children and grandchildren to witness.
Operation Valor Arts co-founders, Randy Castriota and Allyson Holtz, both have strong family military ties. Holtz, an artist and great granddaughter of a Civil War Veteran, envisioned a Veteran- driven interpretative public art and civic engagement program could seamlessly dovetail with the needs Hogue outlined. She saw collaborative Veteran Design Teams using their personal experiences as inspiration for designs of large- scale outdoor sculpture and gardens. Their creative expression would function as a context in which to convey their stories and, process their experience of war while honoring the service men and women (and their families) who made the ultimate sacrifice.
RANDY CASTRIOTA - CO-FOUNDER AND BOARD CHAIR
Randy serves as President of Castriota Metals & Pittsburgh Roll-of-Services. Castriota Metals contributes shop space and materials used by OVArts Veterans in the design and construction of works of public art. In 2002, he served as President of the Institute of Scrap and Recycling Institute (ISRI), which promotes the recycling of metals, paper and tires. Castriota is a chartered member of Greentree Rotary and has served as the Chapter President. He is an active board member to a variety of civic and cultural organizations such as the Pittsburgh Community Storehouse and, Pittsburgh Renewal, Inc., which helps transitioning ex-offenders. Castriota assists by providing ex-offenders with temporary housing. His civic and charitable contributions have been recognized throughout the Pittsburgh community. Randy is inspired by the WWII service of both parents, Rose and Alphonse Castriota
DANIEL FISHER - VICE PRESIDENT
Retiring in 2009 with the rank of Colonel, Fisher served in the United States Army for over 25 years. Currently, he is the Assistant Chair for Administration and Operations, Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology (RST), University of Pittsburgh. Dan is responsible for planning, directing, coordinating and providing leadership for the day to day administrative operations for the Department. The Department is designed to provide leadership in research, education and clinical practice related to rehabilitation of individuals with disabilities as well as the elderly. Dan has over 30 years in healthcare administration and project management experience in a variety of business and healthcare delivery settings. He has a strong background in personnel management, project management, strategic and operational planning, problem solving, team building, customer service, training and decision-making. In addition, he has extensive experience working with local, state and federal agencies in emergency management planning. He holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from Rutgers University (New Jersey) and a Masters degree in Healthcare Administration from Baylor University (Texas).
ALLYSON HOLTZ - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Allyson Holtz is the Co-Founder of Operation Valor Arts. A sculptor and painter, her work has been exhibited in museums, galleries and other venues in Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania and throughout New England. Her monumental
Cor-ten steel sculpture, Star and Sea (25’ x 12 ’x 12’) is now in the permanent collection of the Lyman Allen Museum, CT. Creating community arts programs has been central to her creative practice. Holtz is the principal founder of the award winning Hygienic Art Inc. (New London, CT). The Hygienic began in 1979 as a yearly art event and now permanently resides in a renovated landmark building, housing artists’ studios and public galleries, with an outdoor sculpture garden and amphitheater. After moving to Pittsburg in 1996, she introduced the Hygienic model to the City’s Lawrenceville neighborhood. Today Art All Night marks its 19th year and provides a venue for over 2,500 artists. Among her awards is a 2004 New Works/Residency Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Allyson is the great-granddaughter of Civil War Veteran, Herman Holtz, who fought and was wounded in the Battle of Gettysburg.
GAIL MANKER - PHOTOGRAPHER
Gail L. Manker is a Pittsburgh-based freelance photographer, current employee of the USPS, and member of the National Technical Honors Society. She was born in San Fernando, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. She attended high school at Point Fortin Junior Secondary School, Point Fortin, Trinidad and St. Croix Central High, St. Croix U.S. Virgin Islands. Gail served in the United States Army from 1980 to 1987. During her Army career, she was stationed at several bases: Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri (basic training); Lowery Air Force Base, Denver, Colorado (photography school); Camp Zama, Japan; Ft. McClellan, Alabama; and Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. Gail earned her BS in Photography from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Her travels have taken her to Japan, Hawaii, Ghana (West Africa), St. Thomas, and Korea. Gail's husband, Gordon Manker, is retired from the United States Army and Air National Guard.
CHRIS SARSON - TREASURER
Chris Sarson is a U.S. Army Veteran and a landscape architect specializing in master planning for public spaces and parks. Chris graduated from the ROTC program at The Ohio State University in 2003. She deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) II (2004-2005) and OIF 06-07 as an officer in the 9th Engineer Battalion (Combat), 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division formerly based in Schweinfurt, Germany. She graduated from Chatham University in 2014 with a Master of Landscape Architecture degree and is currently working at Herbert, Rowland, and Grubic, Inc., a full-service engineering firm.
Father Regis Ryan
Father Ryan was ordained on May 14, 1966, by Bishop John Wright at St. Paul Cathedral.
His first assignment was as parochial vicar at St. John Fisher in Churchill where he served from June 1966 to February 1970. He also taught at St. Thomas High School in Braddock. He served as parochial vicar at Annunciation on Pittsburgh’s North Side from February 1970 to May 1975. From May 1975 to February 2000 he served as chaplain at Ohio Valley Hospital in Kennedy Township. From February 2000 to April 2010, he was part-time parochial vicar at St. John of God in McKees Rocks. In May 1975, he became the director of Focus on Renewal Center in McKees Rocks where he served until April 2012, and director of the Sto-Rox Health Center where he served until 2018. Father Ryan has been actively involved in the Albert Schweitzer Advisory Board, Area Health Education Center Board, Children’s Cabinet Allegheny County, Community Care Behavioral Health Board, Consumer Health Coalition, Coordinated Care Network, Family Support Policy Board, Healthy Start Board of Directors, McKees Rocks Community Development Corp. Board, National Federation of Priests Councils Board, Operation Valor Arts Board, Association of Pittsburgh Priests Steering Committee, Sto- Rox Plaza and Rx Council.
MICHAEL JEHN - SECRETARY
Mike Jehn is a Volunteer Engagement Center Coordinator at the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, where he works with a small team guiding Food Bank volunteers through a broad range of product repack projects that positively impact thousands of households in the southwest Pennsylvania region. Mike previously worked as a Facilities Coordinator at the Software Engineering Institute, a Federally Funded Research & Development Center headquartered in Pittsburgh; he also served briefly as Operations Manager at a human robotics company specializing in prosthetic and exoskeletal devices. Mike graduated from Carnegie Mellon University, where he studied writing and architecture. He serves on the Wilkinsburg Parks & Recreation Advisory Board and as treasurer for the Wilkinsburg Pollinator Garden Group. Additionally, Mike works as an occasional freelance writer for the Wilkinsburg Community Development Corporation. He enjoys gardening, travel, the arts, and outdoor activities (especially hiking, camping, bike riding, and kayaking). He achieved the Eagle Scout rank of the Boy Scouts of America in 1999.
