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Artist Tony Roko, a product of
Plymouth-Canton Community Schools,
is proud to call Plymouthhis home.
“I love it,” said Roko, 48. “It has
been the perfect community to raise
children in, and they're very much a
part of this community.” His two sons
are 16 and 14.
His family immigrated from
Montenegro (the former Yugoslavia)
and Albanian is his first language.
Roko, who worked 28 years for Ford
Motor Co., attended Field Elementary,
East Middle School and graduated
from Salem High School in Plymouth-
Canton.
“They were refugees,” he said of his
parents, who traveled to a refugee
camp in Rome, Italy, and then to
Detroit.
“My parents are still alive. We're
doing good. It takes a generation or two
sometimes,” Roko said from his airy
studio in the Plymouth Arts and
Recreation Complex (PARC) in down-
townPlymouth.
“I guess I'm a lifer,” the downtown
Plymouth resident addedwitha smile.
His mural work at Ford factories
where he originally hired in at 18 to
work on the assembly line, has been
part of a plant beautificationproject.
“They brought me on; they picked
up on my artistic abilities. The Fords
are a very progressive organization.
They were green before it was cool. I
think Bill Ford (Jr.) was at the forefront
of that movement. It was an initiative
to boost employeemorale.”
He didn't understand that concept
at first, but now agrees that it worked.
While nothing has been finalized or is
definite, he said that some more mural
projects are being entertained.
His Plymouth studio, he said, is a
destination for those seriously interest-
ed in his artwork, which is now in the
homes of collectors across the country.
“Most of the people that come in are
interested in purchasing the work,” he
said.
Some walk-ins also find their way,
with varied portraits and more, some
on easels, around the spacious studio
Tony Roko
Julie Brown
Staff Writer
See
Roko,
page 6
I think I was pleasantly
relieved to see
how well I was received
in my own home town.
”
Giving back
Renown artist uses foundation to inspire, teach children
