Ethel Kessler was the art director and designer of the stamp, one of only six stamp designers used by the Postal Service. Her work was recently featured at the Gudelsky Gallery on the campus of the School of Art and Design at Montgomery College, Silver Spring, Md. The exhibit was titled “Getting to the Essence: A Life’s Journey in Design: Ethel Kessler.”

The exhibit was a look at her 30-year design career, which also includes poster and public health educational materials. She did not direct a stamp design until 1998?EUR??,,????'??+a breast cancer research stamp that was priced a few pennies above the postage rate?EUR??,,????'??+those few pennies per stamp going toward breast cancer research.

Among Kessler?EUR??,,????'???s stamp design are ?EUR??,,????'??Love,?EUR??,,????'?? ?EUR??,,????'??Our Wedding,?EUR??,,????'?? ?EUR??,,????'??Pacific Coral Reef,?EUR??,,????'?? and stamps honoring Irving Berlin and Hattie McDaniel, actress, singer and performer.

While the Postal Service reviews tens of thousands of ideas for stamps each year, there are a number of exclusions in place:

• No living person can be honored.
• Historical events are only considered on anniversaries (in multiples of 50 years).
• Cities, towns, counties, schools, hospitals, libraries and like institutions are similarly prohibited