Nancy McGraw, owner of Just for Pearls from Dumas, is excited to be back at Art on the Border after the Classic Charitable Foundation took a hiatus for the pandemic.

McGraw said artists only need to know a little about the show and sale to want to participate.

"Fort Smith is a fantastic town," she said. "It loves its community. And their purpose, you don't want to not be a part of that, because it's such a great community event. It serves everyone, so that was number one for me."

McGraw said she feels honored to be represented among other prestigious artists in the area.

Art on the Border:Over 70 artists travel to Fort Smith to display and sell their work for Art on the Border

As a graduate of the University of Central Arkansas, McGraw had the opportunity to perform perform with the Fujian Symphony Orchestra in Fuzhou and Shanghai, China.

The university's orchestra rehearsed and performed a concert tour in the Fujian Province.

While staying in a hotel in Fuzhou, McGraw met the North Korean Symphony orchestra and their conductor. 

The symphony wanted to listen to their rehearsal, and invited the orchestra to their concert.

This is where her love for pearls began. 

China is the largest global producer of cultured pearls.

McGraw said she now has a "crazy amount of pearls" and drifts toward the non-traditional or "funky" shaped pearls.

"That's what I love about pearls, they're not all round and white," she said.

Now, McGraw visits China three times a year to hand select authentic pearls.

"It's the people you know, that open these doors and make these connections for you," McGraw said. "Yes, I can play violin, but it's the people I've met along the way that have allowed me to travel and to have the opportunity to play an orchestra in China and to gather the pearls."

McGraw noted that "all routes" in her life have led back to her playing the violin.

She even has a quartet that she's able to travel the state with for weddings and events.

With her many trips overseas, McGraw decided to take classes in the Mandarin language at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in 2008.

In Tianjin, China McGraw met a harpist who invited her to give her faith testimony at an underground church.

McGraw said it was "very moving and kind of scary."

She brought magnets from Hobby Lobby with scripture engraved on the surface. A translator relayed the message to the congregation. 

"They asked me questions and the one that I remember most is 'How do you pray?'" McGraw said. "Growing up as a Christian, we don't think like that, we know how to pray. We understand how that works. They don't know that; it's an urgent thing for them. It's a very serious thing for them."

She explained that in the Chinese desire to have a full understanding of prayer even though they are baptized or introduced to Christianity at age three or four.

McGraw reassured the people she met in the church that they can pray at any time, in any way. 

Through her violinist talents, McGraw had the opportunity to play at the Shanghai Community Fellowship Church.

She said people from Nigeria, New Zealand, Mexico, Europe, the Cayman Islands and other countries travel and visit the church while they're in Shanghai. 

"It's very moving and you don't know everyone and you're not from the same country but you do speak English and all of a sudden you have this bond with these people because you're also 7,000 miles away from home," McGraw said.

McGraw's friendships in China have brought her the inventory she needs to run Just for Pearls.

She's able to ship five pounds of pearls overseas at a time per her yearly visits.

McGraw said her "pearl ladies" are aware of the quality she wants to have for her jewelry.

"It's really hands on and some of them wait for me and they say 'look, here's what we've harvested this year,'" she said. "I really get fresh crop each year and so they'll save amazing pearls for me."

McGraw said it's taken years to form these relationships, but the reward is well worth it.