Okay so THIS has been on my heart since standing in Haiti at the school after helping to finish the 5th classroom and talking about the vast needs still to be met for these precious children…
As we stood looking across the rugged property of this school built on the side of the mountain, they mentioned that one day they hoped for an outdoor Art Room to be built on the rooftop overlooking the city of Cap Haitien below.
I smiled as I could so easily envision the students creating beautiful art and music in such an inspiring space… perhaps for just a small part of their day while at school, they could forget the difficult conditions that come with living in the slums at the base of the mountain.
I got to spend part of the day with the family of one of the students and help them cook a meal and clean their home… this is the mom in her kitchen (I vowed I would never again complain about anything in my own home!)
What really hit me is it takes so little to do so much for their lives in Haiti… and I'm not just talking money (although that helps too!). I will never forget the look on this little girl's face as I indicated that I wanted to pick her up… it was like she won the lottery that I chose her to hold in that moment…
Anyways, back to the Art Room… I informed Frantzo, one of the many who has dedicated his life to helping those in need in both Haiti and Dominican, that I would see if all my Canadian artist friends back in Canada would be willing to help make this dream a reality. BTW… Canadians are mostly the ones who have helped build the school from the start so they LOVE us!!!
Once home, I emailed Canadian Scrapbooker Magazine whom I have worked with for almost 10 years to see if they wanted to join forces and within minutes I received a resounding YES!!! So we are partnering with Live Different who hosts trips to Haiti (and other locations to do humanitarian work).
And we are now calling on all our readers and all artists from across Canada to participate in this project!!
There are 3 ways you can participate!
1. Hope for Haiti Flags: for donations $35+ if you would like, we will send you a blank canvas flag that you can decorate and send back to us. We will then join them all together to create a beautiful banner for the new Art Room in Haiti!
2. Hope for Haiti Events: Host an art day, hold a garage sale or dinner or come up with another creative way to raise funds! Be sure to take a picture at your event and send it to us so we can share it with others! Every dollar and every gesture is precious to us!
3. Hope for Haiti Donations: We have set up a link where you can donate directly to the building of the Art Room!
Thank you in advance for your support and we invite you to watch closely how artists from across Canada can come together to make a difference in the lives of these deserving children in Haiti… what a beautiful picture of artists in Canada helping to bring art and hope and support to so many in Haiti.
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