With support from the California Arts Council, Drawing Together will be able to continue to provide high quality arts programming to the community. Over the last three years, our organization has seen rapid growth, with a budget increase of over one thousand percent. This expansion has resulted in more complex expenses and management needs. These funds will help us upgrade our systems that we use to invoice, track grant funds and donors, and give us a cash reserve while waiting for income from services or grants.
Our organization serves early childhood ages, school age, teens, youth in group homes, and adults in two counties (Los Angeles and San Bernardino) through a variety of formats that includes culturally responsive, contemporary arts education; workshops through different curriculum such as our mindfulness and authenticity as a trauma-informed tools; community projects that address specific health indicators as determined by health organizations; workbook publication that is utilized in our workshops and help to contextualize our community projects; and outreach and advocacy services that connect art making to social outcomes.
Some of our ongoing programs include:
Summer Art & Nature Camp program in Wrightwood – offered for the last 4 years that serves residents of both counties, as this rural community is made up of both Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.
Art Exploration classes – offered weekly for ages 2 years through teens in Wrightwood and Pasadena throughout the year.
Workshops – offered in Mindfulness, Art & Authenticity, and Art as a Positive Coping Mechanism, based on client request of grant funds