Mary Jane retired from NMSU after giving 20 years of service. She returned to NMSU as a retiree in 2009 to study Metalsmithing in the Art Department. Thus her journey of creativity began. She has established a business, “Encore-Eco-Art Expressions” and created a website to sell on-line pieces. She works in her own home studio and is now up-cycling and re-cycling vintage jewelry, belt buckles, pins and buttons, revitalizing old things into new jewelry pieces and creating canvas wall art collages using bike parts and found objects. She loves to work with copper, silver, brass and aluminum and fire up the torch for making free-form pieces.