BuildaBridge Community Programs

202 - The number of refugees, immigrants and aslyees who participated in BuildaBridge programming during 2014.   112 - Adults 90 - Children 19 - Artists engaged Over 75% of participants were new to BuildaBridge programming this year and came from over ten countries.  The art-making experiences in a community context allow participants to build bridges between their culture and those of others; communicate their stories; share experiences and challenges and most importantly, find the resiliency and hope for for a new beginning here in the U.S. Check out highlights from 2014: Bhutanese Elders Story Mural Videos of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo Refugee Employment and Advancement Program Friendships form at Hopeful City exhibit Burmese Chin and Karen children find unity The Talking Turtle Bridging the Cultural Divide through Art

On a chilly November evening more than 30 people gathered at the mural exhibit opening celebration on the fourth floor of the Nationalities Service Center in Philadelphia. As you walked through the lobby, a beautiful and colorful mural on the wall catches your eye. “We want to tell our story. We want our grandchildren to know our story. We want that to be preserved.” This quote echoes the wish Bhutanese refugee elders have for their children and for the Philadelphia community - sharing their history and culture through this mural.  A few elders also expressed that they hope their mural will be an inspiration to other refugee communities in Philadelphia to do the same through art - communicate their history, cultural, journey and hope for the future Kerenza Reid, Project Coordinator from Nationalities Services Center for the Philadelphia Partnership Resilience (PPR) opened the event with background information about the project and a few words of appreciation with pauses in between ...

Join us in celebrating the journey of Bhutanese refugee elders! Friday November 14th, 5:30 pm-7:30 pm Nationalities Service Center 1216 Arch Street, 4th Floor, Philadelphia "We want to tell our story. We want our grandchildren to know our story. We want that to be preserved." Join the  Philadelphia Partnership for Resilience  in celebrating a mural created by Bhutanese refugee elders residing in South Philadelphia!  BuildaBridge Artists-on-Call led the group of 15 Bhutanese refugee elders over the past 3 months in creating the mural with vibrant colors and fabrics reminiscent of their culture. The mural depicts the elders' lifestyle in Bhutan, their flight into Nepal where many spent almost 20 years in refugee camps and their journey to Philadelphia. We invite you to join us in honoring the elders' artwork and their goals for the mural in an exhibit opening celebration on Friday November 14th from 5:...

"We want to tell our story.  We want our grandchildren to know our story. We want that to be preserved." The quote above from the Bhutanese elders living in South Philadelphia is the foundation of an art group that assists elders in creating a mural that tells their story.  As part of the Philadelphia Partnership for Resilience Collaborative, BuildaBridge artists Stevie French and Julie Rosen lead a group of elders in processing their histories through art.  Julie Shaw, of the Philadelphia Daily News recently highlighted the group. Read her article here .  View photos of the group here .

Participants in BuildaBridge's Saturday art groups, originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, wrote "I AM" poems their first day of group.  On the last day of group, three participants recited their poems before a camera. The "I AM" poem provided prompts for participants to reflect on their individual qualities, characteristics, beliefs, hopes and dreams.  The accompanying art-making experience on that first day involved the creation of an individual mandala which then became part of a group mandala.  Self-exploration through various visual art mediums was the focus for the remaining five groups, assisting participants in developing their identity in a new culture and in community with one another.  Groups were held at Souderton Mennonite Church from July to September. See the other two videos here.

Every artist is familiar with the paralysis brought on by the challenge of a blank canvas; the smooth, white, pristine expanse daring you to put down your first mark.  Today, our group of Bhutanese Elders may have experienced this for the first time. They faced it, fought with it and conquered it. Week after week, I am struck and inspired by the smiles and spiritual calm of our group members who have endured and thrived through so much hardship in their lives. While sharing their stories through drawn symbols and words, they have given us hints as to what underlies their ability to live in gratitude and grace. This strength and character, however, did not make them immune to the fear of the seemingly small challenge before them. When we announced that this was the day they would start their mural, actually putting colored marks onto the large canvas (mind you traced ones over our penciled sketch), they unanimously declined.  There was a long pause and then a rash of heated Nep...

BuildaBridge completed Year 3 activities of the Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative on June 30th, 2014.  Funding continued from the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual DisAbility Services, the Sheila Fortune Foundation and Union Benevolent Association.  Seventy-six refugees from three different populations were served during the past year. Read the full Year 3 Report. BuildaBridge would like to honor and thank the following artists who have contributed to the success of the Refugee Project for at least two or more years: Celeste Wade Natalie Hoffmann Julia Crawford Christine Byma Jessica LaBarca Robert Kelleher Stevie French Danielle Owen Liz Green For full biography and current position information, see the Personnel page .