Marilyn Johansen is an artist and author. She teaches acrylic and watercolor painting in Fort Lauderdale. She brings her life experiences to her art, having lived from Belgium to Okinawa and places in between. Marilyn achieved a BA in Education and was a classroom teacher for 10 years. She is active in the art community at the local, state, national and international levels. She has paintings featured in art books, local newspapers and collections in the U.S., Canada and Europe. Her Soldier Stories Series of paintings has been on a continuous traveling exhibition in South Florida since 2016, honoring our U.S. military. This series of paintings was used by the Navy League of Fort Lauderdale, FL on July 30, 2022, Commissioning of the ‘new’ Navy Ship, The USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28). It was a popular Exhibition at the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport twice. Her memoir, My Father's Secrets is popular on Amazon and rated as one of the top biographies on the Cold War.