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In Memoriam: Jeff Harder

Earlier today I came across word that Jeff Harder passed away on Saturday, August 7th.

Jeff was a designer and creative director at Foerstel for more than 15 years before stepping out into the freelance world in 2017. Prior to Foerstel, he was an art director at Creative Source International / Aspen Marketing, and earlier a graphic designer at Typographics in Hailey.

An excerpt from his obituary, recently published online:

Jeffery James Harder
May 24, 1967 – August 7, 2021

Boise, Idaho – Jeffery James Harder: sweetheart husband, number one son, funniest brother, caring uncle, loyal friend, gifted artist, home fixer-upper, snappy dresser, lover of things with wheels, passed away at home Saturday, August 7th surrounded by family and love.

He was an artist in every sense of the word. There were early signs of this watching how he put his Legos together to what ended up on paper when he could first hold a pencil. In fact, his first-grade teacher called Jeff’s mom asking if the drawing of a truck he submitted as an assignment was really done by a first grader. Throughout his life, his talent came through in everything he did.

Jeff was born to Jim and Barbara Harder in Sacramento, California on May 24, 1967. After a move to Los Angeles, the family relocated to Boise, Idaho in 1972. His childhood was filled with bike rides to Delsa’s Ice Cream, road trips in his dad’s orange Chevy K5 Blazer, skiing at Bogus Basin and Baldy, running around with friends, goat farms, lettuce sandwiches, and lots of doodling. But nothing was as impactful as when he walked into English class at Meridian High School in 1982 in his grey Member’s Only jacket and caught the eye of a beautiful blonde who would become the love of his life, Pam Heiken. They dated throughout high school and stayed in touch while Pam attended Boise State University and Jeff went to Illinois to attend Columbia College Chicago, where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design. Jeff and Pam married at Trail Creek Cabin in Sun Valley in March of 1993. They stayed and lived in Ketchum, Jeff working at a design agency in Hailey while Pam worked at Sun Valley Company. Those years in Sun Valley would cement a bond with the area that started for Jeff in his childhood and would continue for the couple throughout their lives. They moved back to Boise in 1996, eventually settling in the Boise Foothills in a home they loved and were in the middle of remodeling. The couple made friends wherever they went, their infectious laughter when they were together was not only contagious but central to family dinners and holidays. They traveled, often with friends and family from Montana to Mexico to New York, creating the memories of their 28-year love story.

Condolences go out to Jeff’s family, friends, and all who knew him.

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Job opening: Digital Designer

Another recent job opening, this time from our friends at Mitchell + Palmer:

We’re adding a Digital Designer to our creative team! If you are a doer, builder, and maker of all things digital with a portfolio to prove it, let’s talk. Here is a little more detail on exactly who we are looking for:

You’re a renaissance artist. A Swiss army knife. The mortar holding every creative team together. You can design, build, execute, output, wireframe, and maybe even tweak an occasional line of code. You understand the big idea and build to strategy in realizing the vision of the brand or campaign. You can take a single piece of creative, a look, an idea and build it out into a dozen new pieces, sizes, shapes and formats. You collaborate well with other creatives and take direction and input from other designers. You understand the basic tenets of digital, UI/UX, choosing the right dev platform, and can develop and drive a wireframe through to handoff of finished dev assets. You’re incredibly skilled and fearless in Adobe CS and constantly learning newer, better, smarter ways to work. You are fearless with digital thinking and you stay on top of what’s in, what’s out, what’s possible. You make mistakes and just own it. You appreciate process, but aren’t obsessed with it. If there’s a fire that needs putting out, you don’t add more fuel. You’re not into game playing (unless it’s pool, foosball, shuffleboard, darts, or an occasional evening of poker). You’re very good at what you do, but above all you’re a great human.

RESPONSIBLITIES:

  • Design and create digital assets for various brand & campaign deliverables, including display advertising, social content, web/mobile/app development, and related creative components.
  • Demonstrate a proficient graphic design acumen with a studied eye for composition, layout, color, typography and use of imagery.
  • Aid in all facets of digital front-end development, including wireframe, layout, asset creation, and template/platform integration.
  • Work closely with Art Directors and Creative Director to build out projects and campaign elements.
  • Ability to multitask and balance project workloads.
  • Ability to crossover into traditional/print work is a plus.

SKILLS + EXPERIENCE:

  • A Minimum of an associates (2 year) degree in advertising / communication design, or related discipline.
  • 3+ years creative experience in a professional environment, preferably in an creative or marketing agency.
  • Well versed in the Adobe suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) and Web design applications such as WordPress, Dreamweaver, Muse, html language, etc. is a plus.
  • Able to produce quality work while under tight deadlines and external pressures.
  • Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.
  • Positive, effective team player; with confidence to inspire, persuade, and collaborate. Possesses a “whatever it takes” mentality

Full details about the position and how to apply can be found in the job posting on LinkedIn.

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Job opening: Digital Art Director

From our friends at Rizen Creative:

Who are you?

You are a driven Digital Designer or Art Director that loves the digital marketing landscape and more importantly a web design challenge. Maybe you call yourself a designer, a creative, or just a really talented human. You know the clear difference between kerning and leading, UI versus UX and CX. You see things differently than most… that’s more than okay in our book, and frankly it’s a cherished character trait. You play well with others and love the art of critique as much a good debate on the “why” of design.

The Must-Haves:
  • 2+ Years of Related Experience in Responsive Website Design
  • Creating Pattern Libraries, Style Guides, and Brand Elements
  • User Experience and Interface Design Methodologies
  • Basic Understanding of How HTML/CSS/JS work together (but you don’t need to be a developer)
  • Building Personas & Journey Mapping
  • Sketch, Adobe XD, and/or Figma
  • Information Architecture
  • Wireframing and prototyping with tools like InVision and/or Marvel
  • Adobe Creative Suite™

And… you pride yourself on your communication skills. You’ll be collaborating closely every week with programmers and project managers!

Extremely Helpful:
  • Webflow
  • Zeplin
  • Atomic Design Methodology
  • Lottie Animations
A Plus:
  • You’ve worked at a creative agency in the past
  • You have highly developed opinions on design, but are open to new outlooks
  • You prefer small teams to huge corporations

Full details about the position, including how to apply, are available on Rizen’s site.

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Job opening: Communications and Grant Manager, Life’s Kitchen

Because helping spread the word about jobs — even those that aren’t agency-related, is just one of the many services I offer…and thanks for the heads-up, Mike.

Life’s Kitchen is looking for a Communications and Grant Manager. From the job description:

This position is responsible for assisting in the creation and implementation of marketing and fundraising strategies to grow the base of philanthropic support and increase public awareness of Life’s Kitchen. The Communications & Grant Manager, who will report to the Executive Director, will assist in setting the organization’s strategic fundraising agenda to achieve and exceed its revenue goals through the solicitation of individual, corporate and foundation support and grants. Additionally, this person will manage the brand and marketing communications to raise awareness of the organization and its programs throughout the Treasure Valley.

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