P.E.O.s have a special bond that connects them in an often mystical and inexplicable way. Dana Johnson and members of Chapter AM, Knoxville, Illinois, were reminded of this when they met in Dana’s new home.
Prominently displayed in the Johnson’s dining room is an antique oil painting, done in the 1870s by Ione Ambler. P.E.O. records show that both Ione Ambler and 
Cassie Allen claimed to have been the eighth member, the first to have been initiated after the seven Founders, though no one else could remember for sure. Each was initiated before April 16, 1870, when the first recorded minutes are available. Ione’s painting is right at home in Dana’s house which boasts its own P.E.O. history. Many Chapter AM meetings have been held there through the years as the house was owned at different times by chapter members.
How Dana and her husband Randy acquired the painting is an interesting story.
When the Johnsons moved into their home, Dana knew she would need more wall art to complement the new decor and accessorize the additional square footage of the house. And she had a deadline—with a P.E.O. meeting (including an Official Visit) looming on the horizon.
In the fall of 2009, Dana and Randy were on a road trip on their Harley Davidson motorcycle. Tucked away in a corner at St. Petersburg Mercantile, an antique shop in Hannibal, Missouri, Dana spied a wonderful oil painting in a massive old frame. Her excitement soared when she found the note on the back, attributing it to artist Ione Ambler. The handwritten note read, “Painting by first initiate into P.E.O. Ione Ambler, great aunt of Frances Trench.” Dana suspects that Frances Trench probably owned the painting at one time. Despite her excitement, Dana felt she had to pass on the painting, as it carried a price tag way beyond her budget. In addition, the piece was impractical and impossible to transport back to llinois via their motorcycle. So they left the shop and continued on their journey as planned. But Dana couldn’t get the painting out of her mind. She really wanted that painting—she had fallen in love with it.
BIL Randy offered to reroute their return trip and go back through Hannibal, so they could buy the painting. Once back at the antique store, Dana negotiated a lower price and bought the painting. The owner of the antique store did not recall how he came to acquire Ione’s painting, but said it likely came from Marion County, in central Iowa.
After returning home to Knoxville on their motorcycle, Randy made the three-hour trip back to Hannibal in his car to pick up the painting. The painting came home to Dana’s dining room and was hung on the wall in time for her P.E.O. meeting.
The spirit of P.E.O. continues to work through Dana and Chapter AM members who find their P.E.O. connections strengthened by tangible mementos like Ione Ambler’s painting.
