Jessica aka “The Creator”
If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.
-John F. Kennedy
Hello, my name is Jessica. I’d like to introduce myself. Although I have blogged on occasion, I don’t believe that we have met. I am a 4th and final-term member on the last leg of my last term ever! Looking at the past four years of my life, I can’t believe it! I have been involved in community service for years. In high school, I was a member of the Key Club, a community based volunteering club. I was also crowned Miss Compassionate Crown, a local pageant system that recognizes individuals for their compassion towards those in their community. I decided that once again, I wanted to be involved in community service and was accepted to be an AmeriCorps member at the Children’s Home in 2009. I have a strong artistic background and I am able to utilize this in my service. Some highlights from past terms include entering clients’ artwork to the HOI and Illinois State Fair (where these contests earned ribbons). It was especially exciting to go with the clients to experience the fair, the food, and to see their work in a gallery. It gave these children the chance to experience the simple, yet wholesome, Americana event that is a local fair.
Voices for Children has selected Children’s Home to have a contest in which they wanted clients to create and design a non-denominational Christmas card that would be printed, sold, and created into an E card. A student I mentored and gave art lessons to was the one chosen to have her card published. I know that was a huge accomplishment for her. To recognize all of the contestants, Voices threw a huge pizza party with three enormous cakes- the clients loved them! I was very happy to work with them for two years to encourage them to go after their dreams and help instill a little confidence in their abilities.
During another term I had the opportunity to work with the individuals at EP!C, a local agency that serves people with developmental delays and/or physical limitations. My timing was perfect as the agency was working on building up their art program ( a project now known as EPICasso). Though I’ve studied to be a teacher, text books can never fully prepare you for what it is like to work with individual people. I learned about special brushes and tools that would allow people with different abilities to be able to create art. I watched a blind man paint something truly amazing. A client who is 94 years young always steals the show with her energy and artistic gifts. One of my favorite events to date was the art gallery showing client artwork. I got to see all the lessons and hard work that I contributed to, framed and displayed in a real gallery where clients and their families could attend. The show was beautifully named, “Kaleidoscope,” as the pieces of artwork were created by so many diverse individuals. I continue to help co-teach these art lessons as well as attend field trips to Camp Big Sky with clients (read the previous post for more about that).
In my past four years, my eyes and heart have been opened to so many people. I have been affiliated with EP!C, the Center For Prevention of Abuse, Peoria Friends of People with AIDS, the Special Olympics, the Sun Foundation, Youth Farm, East Bluff Build It Up, the Dirty Laundry Project, the Washington Tornado Relief Center, and Keepsacks for Kids. Outside of AmeriCorps, I volunteered in Kauai, Hawaii in Koke’e State Park and Waimea canyon where I worked in the rain forest to remove invasive plants and help repair hiking trails.
During my spare time, I enjoy reading, writing, photography, drawing and painting, and traveling. I have been working on a book about quirky things in Illinois and so I enjoy visiting different cities and getting the scoop for my side project. I am a full time mother to a wonderful seven year old boy. Although I am still figuring out my career path, I enjoy helping others reach their full human potential and include art in some fashion. I am currently studying to be an art teacher at Eureka College.