Art has a way of showing up when it’s needed. Tuckerton pet portraitist Kate Dean Gross’ journey with art is one of those second-time-around tales, which began with a BFA from Moore College of Art and Design in Philly.

Then “art fell by the wayside for years,” she said. She changed direction and went into nursing – got her BSN at Rutgers University and worked as a pediatric nurse for seven years.

In November 2020, her course was changed again – this time by a breast cancer diagnosis.