Maureen Sullivan

: Maureen Sullivan grew up in the industrial, blue-collar town of Chicopee, Massachusetts in a large Irish family with five sisters and one brother. Her mother, Alice, worked as a nurse’s aid and her father, Paul, a gifted artist, retired after forty years as a pastry chef.

As the only one of the seven children to become an artist, Maureen’s father was her biggest teacher and fan. With the support and encouragement of both parents, she found it easy to follow her dreams and to take the path of the artist, spending many of her younger years painting and attending art classes.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in painting from the University of Massachusetts, Maureen moved to Boston and began a career in graphic arts and as a fine artist. These years spent in Boston were very creative and influential—developing life-long friendships and establishing her notorious night-owl work ethic. During this time she displayed her artwork in many exhibitions in Boston and the New England area. Mary Ryan Gallery (www.maryryangallery.com) in New York City then began representing her artwork, which included two solo, sold-out exhibits. Then, in furtherance of fulfilling another dream, Maureen moved to New York City to experience life as an artist in the Big Apple.

Living in this extraordinary city opened Maureen up to the world with its diversity of cultures and people and stimulated her innate desire to travel. Enjoying the diversity of foreigners wherever she went, she began sensing a need to connect with humanity as a whole—the unconscious beginning of her future life in service. Conversely, as she also became more immersed in the art-world, her disillusionment with it grew—and so began her questioning of what her life was really about. It was at this time that spirituality became a central focus, and coupled with a need to get back to the green countryside, Maureen returned to live with her parents in Massachusetts.

A time of inner exploration followed with a six-week drive across the United States—the start of a major life transition. Shortly afterwards, she met her first husband, immediately followed by the death of her ailing father and then her mother’s passing two years later.