On Art and Healing the World

[NB FROM BARB: A friend sent me this and asked me to post it. I don't personallyhave any experience with this group but it sounds great to me.]


Subject: Artists on Call: A Diaspora of Hope

Greetings. At the risk of clogging your email, I wanted to ask for your
help in reaching artists, educators, social workers and even medical
personnel with an exciting project that is developing at BuildaBridge.

I am writing you because of your support for BuildaBridge's mission of
bringing hope and healing to the most vulnerable of our world's children in
the tough places of the world--through the arts.

I am asking you to forward the attached flyer to artists, and others who
understand the power of arts for transformation.

Most of you know that BuildaBridge has worked in many parts of the world
since 1997. We have learned much over the years and provided excellent
opportunities for arts-integrated service. Last month we returned from
Guatemala working with 200 children in a slum of Guatemala
(http://www.buildabridge.org/weblog/1279.html). Our Arts for Peace camp was
a continuation of our partnership in the country that began last
Thanksgiving. During this time we refined our arts camp for kids based on a
theme, with a very defined class structure and ritual focused on dealing
with trauma, peace-making, and hope. It was excellent.

Over the past months we have received requests for similar arts camps for
kids from different parts of the world. So we thought: What could happen if
there was a diaspora of artists from all over the world bringing artistic
hope and healing in the tough places of the world.

Artists on Call: A Diaspora of Hope is such a project. In November, this
fall, we plan to lead teams of artists to Guatemala, Haiti and Kenya,
engaging as many as 50 artists in teams to these countries. Each country
has its own unique challenges, each country has many children who suffer
from trauma, a lack of education and adequate health care, and a lack of
hope.

While we are beginning with a call to send 50 artists this Thanksgiving, our
ultimate goal is to register 1000 artists world-wide who would give at least
a week of their lives to bring hope and healing through artistic creativity.
We have an excellent start with 150 artists already registered and 30
artists who have inquired within the past several days for Diaspora 2008.

Thank you for sharing this with artists and educators, social workers,
creative arts therapists, and medical personnel who you may know who
understand the effectiveness of arts-based service.

Nathan


Dr. J. Nathan Corbitt, President
BuildaBridge
205 West Tulpehocken Street
Philadelphia, PA 19144
610-656-3499 (cell)
www.buildabridge.org