Greenbelt resident Barbara Simon remembers her parents driving her to Washington, D.C., every Saturday to take art classes. Now, more than five decades later, Simon has been instrumental in bringing art to Greenbelt in her own way.

Simon, 66, has been the volunteer artist in residence for Greenbelt Elementary School kindergartners every Tuesday for 25 years. This year, she has included volunteer students from Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt to offer painting classes.

"She ... really provides good [artistic] opportunities for kids at the school," said Greenbelt Elementary Principal Kimberly Seidel. "It's absolutely beneficial, and everyone enjoys it."

Simon, who graduated in 1965 from Pratt Institute in New York City with a degree in art, moved back to Greenbelt in the early 1980s to increase arts education and art classes in the community.

"I wanted to give back to the community by volunteering and advocating for the arts," Simon said. Simon does not teach many classes anymore, which she said allows her for more time to focus on her own artwork.

Since her return, she has founded many groups, including the Friends of the New Deal Café, Greenbelt Association for the Visual Arts, the Friends of the Prince George's Libraries and the Greenbelt Community Foundation.

Throughout the year, Simon brainstormed with John Ceschini, executive director of the Arts Education in Maryland Schools Alliance, about how to bring more arts programs into Greenbelt schools.

"She really advocates for arts education with every breath in her body," Ceschini said. "She's the reason we were able to get so many instructors from Greenbelt Elementary School to attend the [Maryland Artist/Teaching Institute], and I know that now Greenbelt Elementary School is really doing a lot with the arts."

Simon plans to advocate for a community development and economic group that focuses on breathing new life into the Roosevelt Center, the main meeting place in Old Greenbelt, which includes a movie theater, the New Deal Café and other businesses. Some of her ideas are to hold flea markets at the center and have a "Taste of Greenbelt" event that would allow customers to purchase tickets and sample food from Greenbelt restaurants.

"Art begins in your community," Simon said. "That's why artists love living in Greenbelt. We have a strong artist community because the community supports the arts and because artists feel that they can create a home for themselves here."

E-mail Jordan Attebury at jattebury@gazette.net.