With Art - We Persevere!
We
are continuing our Love My Neighbor curriculum program through a new
format with its central message and practice being directly applied to
communities in need in midst of national emergency. In essence, the
crisis is emphasizing everything the Love My Neighbor message and
project are all about.
We are combining the food distribution with outreach through children's art generated from our program, sharing the images and support messages from the children to lift the spirits of our older neighbors who are lonely in the social isolation.
This
program now is more essential than ever with kids out of school, out of
all organized after school programs, sports and clubs. This
program not just provides some in home activity – it gives kids the
sense of participation in something important, of social responsibility
and community engagement while being safe at home.
We tell kids that even in home isolation we are still a community. We ask them what image they think can lift the spirit of another person who is lonely, who is worried, who is in need of help. We tell them that art has a great visual power that can affect other people; that at the time of crisis people need each other even more than ever; that through art they can communicate their feeling toward other people, their neighbors.
We tell kids that even in home isolation we are still a community. We ask them what image they think can lift the spirit of another person who is lonely, who is worried, who is in need of help. We tell them that art has a great visual power that can affect other people; that at the time of crisis people need each other even more than ever; that through art they can communicate their feeling toward other people, their neighbors.
This is what we
believe the true purpose of art is and at the time like this it is needed more
than ever.
With Art - We
Persevere!
In Isolation - We Are Still A Community!
Thanks to the donations from FoodCycle LA and Trader Joe's, we were able to rapidly bring much needed food to one of the most difficult and notorious neighborhoods of LA County, the "Scottsdale" neighborhood of Carson, the site of our Love My Neighbor public art project.
The food situation was difficult for older people and limited ability folks over there even before the crisis. There is no food store in walking distance. Now we were able to fill the gap when needed most and quickly bring much needed food for the quarantined elderly folks of this long underserved community.
We are bringing food in at night and community activists and security takes them to houses in the morning. We also bring children’s art generated from our program with support messages from kids to lift the spirits of our older neighbors.
Even in home isolation we are still a community! By loving our neighbor we will prevail!
