Grace E. Hester, just-turned-30, corporate-working mom of 2 young daughters who sold out her creative soul when she moved from Singapore to Cleveland, Ohio when she finally found a man who was worthy. Join her on her journey from concrete jungle to mid-west surburbia of Westerville, Ohio, from college grad to mother of two, from mtv to numbers-crunching . . . all while trying to balance the pretty with practical in her life.
As Naia's teacher and I are working through the details of our Blick Art Art Room Aid project, I figured it's never too early to start promoting it!
About this project
Our 4th - 8th grade students will paint ceramic bowls from Blick Art Materials to auction off for the organization Empty Bowls, which will raise money for a food pantry in Central Ohio a local charity organization focused on feeding the hungry in our community.
Empty Bowls is an international
grassroots effort to fight hunger and was created by The Imagine Render Group.
The basic premise is simple: Potters and other craftspeople, educators and
others work with the community to create handcrafted bowls. Guests are invited to a simple meal of soup and bread. In exchange for a
cash donation, guests are asked to keep a bowl as a reminder of all the empty
bowls in the world. The money raised is donated to an organization working to
end hunger and food insecurity.
Our Parent-Teacher Organization is putting up the funding
for the food so it is up to us to find funding for the bowls and the paint/glaze/brushes
that will be used. We found some materials
at Blick Art Materials that will work perfectly to create bowls (clay, paper
mache) and we are currently working on a project plan leading up to the event
in March. This is truly a team effort
and we would love some donations/support from everyone by way of sponsoring
some of the materials or by spreading the word via your respective social media
channels. Our Art Room Aid page is
up here so we would appreciate either donations to the effort or by spreading the word!
I am looking forward to the partnership between Tales of the Multi-Tasking Mom and Blick Art as well as both my daughter’s art teachers to promote the Blick Art Art Room Aid initiative. As most of you would have heard through the news or through personal experience at your kids’ schools, a lot of schools or arts programs catering to education program are struggling to keep their art programs alive. This is where Blick Art’s Art Room Aid can help! It is a program that seeks to, and is helping teachers across the country enlist the aid of parents, families, friends, and other art advocates to fund their art projects and keep creative learning going.
Want to learn more? A group of bloggers and I are participating in a Twitter Party to share the word on how you can
Support art education
Make sure art continues to play a role in your children’s lives, and
Spread the word about Art Room Aid in your community
We'll be discussing projects you can do with your own kids, and sharing sources of inspiration. I am also looking forward to sharing the two very different, but very relevant projects that both my daughter’s teachers have so graciously agreed to work on that in turn, takes the program to the next level by giving back to the community.
When: Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2 p.m. ET
Where: We’ll be on Twitter – follow the #BlickARA hashtag to track the conversation. See this Twtvite for more info and to RSVP: http://twtvite.com/BlickARA
Hashtag: #BlickARA
Prizes: We will give away five total prizes - two $25 Blick gift coupons, two $50 Blick gift coupons, and one $75 Blick gift coupon.
Thanks to The Bully Project for sponsoring my writing. Visit their website to join the movement and learn more.
This weekend, I observed a sweet moment between a group of teenage girls and my 4-year-old. Basically we were waiting for Gianna's class to start and she saw three older teenage girls casually nudging a basketball soccer-style to one another in a circle and was intrigued. Being the social bird that she is, she just walked over and inserted herself into the circle and wanted to play along. Instead of stopping the game or looking awkwardly over at me, the girls simply opened up their circle and gave my little one a chance to play along despite the fact that she was not even close to being as skilled as they were. The pace was all off, the ball rolled out of the circle each time it was Gianna's turn. But these girls never lost patience and in fact set-up chances for her to participate.
I felt such a surge of gratitude to these girls and when it was time to break away, Gianna was just so elated at having had the chance of playing with "the older kids" and was beaming from ear-to-ear.
However, this moment of kindness and goodwill that warmed my heart felt in such stark contrast to how I felt while reading and previewing Bully the Movie. In fact, in the opening of the trailer for Bully the Movie, I freeze at this statement that comes on in white text against a black backdrop,
Over 13 million American kids will be bullied
And think, “what are the odds that my sweet young girls will become one of those 13 million bullied?” And worst yet, what are the odds that they will be one of those who bully one of the 13 million kids? Already, my 7-year-old is coming home with stories on how friends are not playing with a specific boy/girl because they are deemed annoying. Or how a classmate used a mean name on another friend. As a non-American mother to two multi-racial girls, living in a predominantly-Caucasian part of the US, I try to instill pride and teach my girls to celebrate everyone's beauty - externally and internally. And although we have been blessed not to have had a major life-changing event to cause either of them to question this, I live with this caution and hope that they never have to experience such an event.
I think it's so commendable that a group of people have taken this on and brought attention to this struggle and challenge that kids face today. And my heart goes out to the families profiled in the film who have lost their kids or continue to fear the potential loss of their kids due to this crisis. I have not paid as much attention to the public outcry on the intial R-rating on the film but am glad it has been lowered as of a few days ago. I have to believe that the world is filled with people like the three teenage girls this weekend but I still have to put on my "Mama Bear" hat and prepare my girls and my husband and myself for those in the world who are not like them. Do consider taking the time out to see and support this movie with me!
More About Bully the Movie:
Bully is a film directed by Sundance- and Emmy-award winning filmmaker, Lee Hirsch. It is a beautifully cinematic, character-driven documentary—at its heart are those with the most at stake and whose stories each represent a different facet of this bullying crisis. Following five kids and families over the course of a school year, the film confronts bullying’s most tragic outcomes, including the stories of two families who’ve lost children to suicide and a mother who waits to learn the fate of her 14 –year-old daughter, incarcerated after bringing a gun on her school bus. With rare access to the Sioux City Community School District, the film also gives an intimate glimpse into school busses, classrooms, cafeterias and even principles offices, offering insight into the often-cruel world of children, as teachers, administrators and parents struggle to find answers.
Bully will be shown in select theaters beginning Friday, March 30. Website: www.thebullyproject.com
I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. Find showings in your area for The Bully Project and buy tickets here
I was so touched by everyone who either purchased or offered to donate some money to the Save The Children fund. I never did post about what ultimately happened so here's an update.
Thanks to the sales of the Japanese Thank You cards and Peace, Love, and Joy prints (both reduced to $5 each), as well as donations from a few people online and at the day job, I was able to raise close to $100 for the relief fund. I added my own small donation to make it $150 and donated to the organization.
Thanks to everyone for your kind support of this effort! I wish I had more of an influence to have raised more money for this but I am just so thankful for all of those who did and for the amount we did raise. But now I have been bitten by the aid bug and am wondering what else I can do to help!
When I was challenged by The Clever Girls Collective to write a blog post on “A Woman Who Helped Me”, it took me awhile to figure out which of the many women I have had the pleasure of knowing should be featured in this post. Needless to say, my mom would win this award hands down if ever there was an award show for this in my life. But throughout my life, as a young female professional, I have had the blessing of meeting so many women who have contributed to my belief in basic human kindness and in the goodwill of the general population. So who I will highlight is actually a group of women who were so instrumental in my early professional years in building my confidence and for helping me see that my then-unique identity as a young Singaporean woman international business, was more of a strength and advantage than a weakness. The organization is the Organization of Women in International Trade and they have chapters all across the world where women who are in or desire to be in international business can network and support one another. Through this organization, I had the opportunity to do hands-on marketing as an intern, and over the years, worked up the ranks to become President of the Northeast Ohio chapter. The leadership experience and camaraderie was priceless and I will forever treasure the time I spent in the organization.
One of the causes that OWIT believes in is helping women globally and when I was last active in the organization, they had just started looking into micro-lending to help communities of women globally to earn or supplement a living for their families. Well here’s another way you can help communities in need - from now till May 8th, you can shop at Macy’s for the Heart of Haiti and Rwanda Path to Peace products and enjoy 15% off with the use of this code: CLEVERGIRLS. Check out the range (offering and price points!) they have and consider getting mom or that woman in your life who helped you, as a thank you gift for them, and in turn, lend a helping hand to these communities in need.
Here are some of my picks,
How gorgeous is this Fair Winds harvest basket! Each basket is hand-wovened in Rwanda and made from naturally dyed sisal coil-sewn over bundled sweetgrass. They also come with a numbered Certificate of Authenticity.
The Heart of Haiti necklaces are handcrafted in Haiti and signed by the artisan. Each necklace includes a numbered Certificate of Authenticity.
These paper weights are totally up my alley – made from soapstone and in classic icons like the heart and an owl. Also handcrafted in Haiti.
I was selected for this very special “CleverHaiti” opportunity by Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity. All opinions are my own.
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