BuildaBridge Community Programs

This is a video message from the Bhutanese refugee community in South Philadelphia who called Nepal home for over twenty years. They are concerned for their brothers and sisters who have been affected by the earthquakes. They are praying for the victims, survivors and families and for the rebuilding and restoration of Nepal. BuildaBridge assisted this community in creating artwork that illustrated their memories of Nepal, concerns for the earthquake victims and their hopes for the future of Nepal. Since many from this community are unable to travel to Nepal help, they created this video message as a gesture of their concern for and solidarity with those in Nepal. The BuildaBridge-led workshops, artwork and video were made possible with support from: The City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program:  Southeast by Southeast The Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative The Department of Behavioral Health and DisAbility Services Artists:  Jessica L...

During the course of three workshops, BuildaBridge assisted this group of Bhutanese refugee adults create a visual representation of their memories, concerns and hopes for Nepal. During the close of each workshop, the group sang the Nepal national anthem featured here as a gesture of their solidarity and concern for Nepal.  

“When I am dreaming, I dream about Nepal and I wish I could go to help them” said a Bhutanese refugee in response to the earthquake. Bhutanese refugees in South Philadelphia, many of whom spent twenty years in refugee camps in Nepal, are responding to the earthquakes through the healing power of art-making. The group's goal: To create prayer flags and paintings illustrating their fond memories of Nepal and hopes for Nepal's recovery and rebuilding. BuildaBridge International is assisting the group, many of whom contributed to the PPR mural, with creating artwork that reflects the group's responses to three prompts: Nepal as you remember it (stories and memories); Nepal today (concerned, imagined struggles Nepalis are currently facing); and Nepal in the future (hopes, and prayers for the rebuilding).  The art piece being created consists of four bamboo poles, seven feet high, that are linked together.  In each of the three sections are ca...

Last Thursday evening; on my way to assist with a BuildaBridge group for  Burmese children in South Philadelphia, I pulled up to the street address greeted by yellow caution tape, police and crowds of neighborhood on-lookers. My car window was down and I overheard the words spoken, “somebody was shot.” My heart sank into my stomach. I pulled across the street and parked my car. When I got out and started walking down the sidewalk, I saw Zing and her three children standing on the corner. It was a relief to see them and we waited together outside for a while, waiting for some communication with the teachers inside the classroom, which was directly behind the caution tape that we were not allowed through.  After some time passed and still no word, Zing asked if I wanted to go with them to a Burmese family’s home a few blocks away where apparently there was a birthday party happening.  When we got to the home, as we walked in the front door, a wave of warmth came over me. No...

Since the early 1990’s, over 100,000 ethnic Nepalese refugees from southern Bhutan have fled to Nepal as a result of racially-motivated forced eviction.   In 1989, the king of Bhutan announced that the country would adopt the ‘One Nation, One People’ policy (also known as Bhutanization) prohibiting the practice of Nepali language, Hindu culture and religion, and any dress other than the traditional Drukpa dress. Thousands of Lhotsampa of Nepali descent who had been living in southern Bhutan since the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were forced to leave the country.  Many were brutally tortured and others imprisoned; some spent nearly twenty years living in crowded refugee camps. For the Bhutanese community in South Philadelphia, images of this history are now illustrated in a mural hanging at the Bhutanese American Organization of Philadelphia (BAOP).  Facilitated by BuildaBridge artists Julie Rosen and Stevie French, as part of Nationalities Services C...

There used to be a tree outside of my childhood home that my sisters and I loved. We’d claim to be queen and play on it, imagining that the world was ours. Eventually, the roots from the tree dug their way underground towards the house. It was no longer safe to have it there. The tree had to be chopped, the stump uprooted. We had to leave the tree behind and although I loved that tree and it held a plethora of memories, with time comes change. When Frank and Beverly came to their second PPR session, they found the art prompt for the day to be particularly challenging for them to think about. Frank had drawn a tunnel and stated that he felt he is in darkness. They both became upset at the thought of their home, the way they had left it, and explained to the group that they had lost everything when they came here. The thought of this made them both very emotional, they thought deeply about their losses. Frank stated that he would like for his family to remember that he loves them.  Roo...

Whenever a new refugee joins a therapeutic art-making group as part of the Philadelphia Partnership for Resilience, he or she wonders:  How can art help me?  Will others be able to empathize with me about my experiences?  How do I share my ROOTS, culture and story with others who speak a different language?  How can this art group help others like me?  Their questions are answered after attending groups regularly.  The boundaries and structure of the groups created a safe environment for clients.  Clients came to rely on and participate in more fully the rituals and opening and closing activities that were conducted as part of each group.  The art-making processes allowed clients to channel emotions through their art.  The sharing of artwork prompted discussions about their feelings, experiences, hopes and dreams.   Roots to Routes [image courtesy of Kelly Finlaw] By the end of the last group of a 10-week term, clients are interacting wit...