I recently checked out the Waterville Creates Community Art project located in the Schupf Center in downtown Waterville. It is a fascinating art exhibit created by people whose voices we don’t generally get a chance to hear. The exhibit is up for the rest of April and I hope that many people take the time to experience it.

The theme of the year-long project was “Together: Hearing, Holding, Healing”. Peter Bruun did an amazing job of capturing the many types of community you might not know there are in Waterville — students at the Alt School, visitors to the the Lighthouse soup kitchen, parents of Educare students, teens at the South End Teen Center, High Hopes Clubhouse members, the Comprehensive Treatment Center, among others.

One thing visitors will learn from reading the participants’ words and seeing their art, is that the communities to which they belong are making a difference in the direction of their lives. And, one thing they could all use is a little less judgement from the outside world and a few more smiles from those of us who are a bit more financially secure. They did not choose to be homeless, hungry, lost, or addicted.

I know that Waterville has always been a caring community — the Mid Maine Homeless Shelter, the Lighthouse, the food pantries in the schools, Operation HOPE, the Poverty Action Coalition are just a few examples of how community members have come together over the years to make a difference. I’m hoping that the community will once again step up to support the organizations that are working to improve the lives of those who need some support.

If you need a bit of insight and inspiration, you can find it in the words and art at the Schupf Center. Check it out.

 

Karen Heck

Waterville

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