The California Arts Council, a state agency, announced that it will award Habitat for Humanity San Fernando/Santa Clarita Valleys with $9,400 in support of our My TIME (My Trauma-Informed Military Enrichment) Program, as part of its Veterans Initiative in the Arts program. Habitat for Humanity SF/SCV is one of only thirty-three grantees statewide for this program.
The Veterans Initiative in the Arts is rooted in the California Arts Council’s desire to address the needs and improve the lives of California’s veterans through the arts. This grant program provides project and partnership support for nonprofit arts organizations, local arts agencies, and veterans’ assistance agencies to reach veterans, active military personnel, and their families through local arts programming.
With this support from the California Arts Council, we will continue to conduct and expand our trauma-informed art workshops to help veterans and their families face, overcome, and manage the struggles that sometimes come with the military experience. Programs offered as part of My TIME® include a multi-session program based on the renowned book Tear Soup, dealing with grief and loss; UCLA’s partnership training in the “Beat the Odds” drumming program; Prayer Flags adapted by specialist Alessandra Colfi; Guided Autobiography in accordance with the Birren/Deutchman method; and many other modalities. Key to the success of this program is our trauma specialist Pamela Braly and My TIME® staff.
We accomplish this with long-standing community partners such as A Window Between Worlds (AWBW) which is a nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating and supporting a network of transformative arts programs that empower communities impacted by violence and trauma. AWBW is receiving a subcontract for additional training for Habitat staff through this important grant. Habitat for Humanity SF/SCV and AWBW have partnered and collaborated to develop existing proven art workshops with veteran-specific adaptations, combining AWBW’s expertise in delivering trauma-informed art workshops with Habitat SF/SCV’s experience in delivering enrichment services to veterans and their families. These veteran-specific workshops will be used in future trainings as AWBW expands its services to a broader audience, and as Habitat SF/SCV replicates its My TIME® Program throughout the state.
The news of our grant was featured as part of a larger announcement from the California Arts Council, which can be viewed online at http://arts.ca.gov/news/pressreleases.php.
Habitat for Humanity SF/SCV is honored to be recognized by the State as one of the top organizations providing arts programming to veterans. To learn more about the My TIME Program, please click here.