Jeffrey Dombek, AS ’86, spends each week with 400 first- through fifth-graders in Fulton (Md.) Elementary School, teaching them how to express themselves. But, Dombek would like to teach 4 million youngsters.
This dedicated art teacher is not a candidate for overachiever of the year; he’s an enthusiastic artist who, among other things, uses his talents to write and illustrate children’s books with a message.
"I’ve always liked the art of nature and drawing or painting things in nature, but in 1993, I became interested in doing my own book," he says.
So, Dombek wrote and illustrated How The Oysters Saved the Bay. "It’s a fun story that teaches about habitat, about the ecosystem of the Chesapeake Bay," he says.
When he began submitting his manuscript to publishers, one of them, Tidewater Publishers, liked his illustrations, especially one of a Chesapeake Bay rockfish. Tidewater had been working with author Kristina Henry who had written a book entitled Sam: The Tale of a Chesapeake Bay Rockfish, and they wanted Dombek to illustrate it. He created a mixed-media collage in which he used sponge marks, watercolors and acrylics to produce different textured pieces of paper, which are then assembled much like a puzzle.
Sam: The Tale of a Chesapeake Bay Rockfish was published last January. "I worked evenings and weekends for eight months, but it was worth it, since the book has been received pretty well," Dombek says.
When he entered the UD as a freshman in 1982, Dombek didn’t expect to make art or teaching his vocation. He had been interested in nature all of his life and began his tenure at the University as a geology major, with art as his minor. That lasted approximately two hours, Dombek says.
After graduation, he took a job with The Becker Group in Baltimore as an illustrator. Dombek would sketch a display for sales presentations, and the company produced and installed the display for malls and retail stores. Two years later, he entered Towson State University to get a certificate to teach art in kindergarten through 12th grade.
After he began teaching, Dombek started writing for children and became determined to get his books published. Along with the oysters who saved the bay, he has written and illustrated four other children’s books, all based on the theme of looking for something–Looking for Pennies, Where’s My Hat, Cloud Watcher and My Quilt Looks Like a Bear’s Claw.
"Trying to get a book published is a lot like fishing. You just keep throwing your hook out there and hope it will catch the big fish," Dombek says.
He says he’d like to be writing "a couple of books a year."
In the meantime, Dombek spends his hours after school doing illustrations or paintings on commission. He says he’s done everything from portraits to abstract pieces, from album covers to art for a local newspaper, as well as company logos. He also exhibits his work in group shows.
–Barbara Garrison