Friday, March 4, will live on for Janice Mallman as one of life’s peak moments. After 29 years of working for Vashon Allied Arts — 16 years as gallery curator — Mallman presided over her final art opening in the Blue Heron before moving into the new Vashon Center for the Arts (VCA)gallery with an inaugural exhibit in May.

It was while hanging the March show — Terry Donnelly’s photographs of Cuba and David Traylor’s ceramics  — that Mallman recognized the evening as a rite of passage.

“I did the math,” she said. “It’s been 193 gallery openings. I felt so emotional remembering the ritual of each opening — gathering the food, the band, the gallery, making sales, cleaning up and going home around 10:30 p.m. — and this would be the last (in the Blue Heron). I needed to honor that. I don’t usually talk in public, but I felt I needed to make a speech.”

Mallman followed her instinct, addressing those present in the gallery halfway through the evening with memories and reflections that she said came straight from the heart.

“I feel like a part of me is in the walls as I’ve spent so much of my adult life here,” she said. “My daughter grew up here, surrounded by the arts, with a mom in the arts. She was in countless plays and modern dance and started her own art collection at age 10.”

As her daughter matured, so did the artwork of many Vashon artists, something Mallman deeply appreciates.

“It’s been an incredible opportunity to work with the artists, to watch them grow and develop,” she said.

In her speech, Mallman gave voice to that fact that the building became home to much more than art.

“If these walls could talk, they would tell stories of wonderful friendships, growth of the arts on Vashon, connections between people of our community,” she said. “I’ve gone through births, deaths, marriages, and now I am a grandmother in this building. My spirit is in the walls, and I am so grateful.”

Still, Mallman, who began working with VAA when it was housed in what is now the Heritage Museum, is looking forward to what’s next. With applause from the crowd along with a few tears, Mallman closed her speech by saying that as much as she has fond memories of the Blue Heron, she is excited about the move to the new gallery.

“It will be twice as big and really inviting. We are leaving this building, but I’d like to invite everyone to create new memories together as we see great art and watch amazing performances in VCA. We are blessed to live on such an amazing island that really supports the arts.”