“Thank you for making me feel like a human.”
“Sandy” first discovered Heard when she won a nonfiction award as part of our writing contest with the local detention center. Now she was thanking me at Friends of Guest House, where she was taking our poetry and improvisation classes.
Why would someone feel like a human because she had a chance to write and act?
Because Heard believes that Sandy’s story, her imagination, her history, and who she was, deserves to be heard.
This is what we do. Heard’s mission statement says that we “foster creativity, confidence, self-worth and life skills to adults who are underserved, unknown, and unheard by offering them artistic expression through experiential instruction and participation.”
Hello and welcome to our first Heard newsletter! I thought you would enjoy learning about the important work that we do, and why. We hear “you changed my life” from our clients because we believe they – and all of us – deserve to be heard.
Each newsletter will include original work from our clients, and a little more about us.
There is so much more I want to tell you! You can expect to hear from me again in a few weeks, and between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Yes, there will be some fundraising requests. One of our core beliefs is that artists need to be compensated for their time and talent, and your gift will allow us to support them. Artists need to be heard too!
Before I close, please email me at [email protected] and tell me if there’s anything more that you want to learn about us.
And please, each of you, be safe during the holidays. Your health is important to me.
Happy holidays,
Jane
