Last night, four Friendships came to the Friends for Youth offices to make their own kites! Friends for Youth provided some basic materials and a few designs, but the sky was the limit for these creatively curious kite makers.
Some chose to make simple designs that they then decorated with elaborate patterns or garish announcements (for example: "Go Giants!"), while others focused on crafting a strong kite from a more complicated design.
And, as indicated by the picture, a few of the kites doubled well as surprisingly stylish hats!
This winter's Friends for Youth Fashion Show will be held on Saturday, December 4th from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Nordstrom in Palo Alto. The show features a silent auction, a champagne brunch and, of course, the wonderful fashion show hosted by Norstrom's own Personal Touch Director.
Friends for Youth has hosted the fashion show now for four years. It has become an exceptional way to kick off the holiday giving season for the Peninsula's fashionably inclined. The silent auction features tasteful gifts that are already wrapped and ready for holiday giving, and the fashion show provides all kind of chic ideas for gifting shoppers.
My earliest mentor was an artist named Esme Bradberry who lived up the street from my family. She would open her tiny studio in her backyard to a few neighborhood kids and let us do whatever we wanted. Esme gave a few pointers and demonstrated some techniques, but for project ideas, she let us take the lead, offering only words of encouragement. My mom and dad still have some of my art from that time: painted plaster casts of toothpaste tubes inscribed with Silly String, glazed ceramic containers with no practical purpose, and many, many painted pet rocks. Later, in middle and high school, I was taught art by Karen DeMichael, an artist and art teacher, who continued to provide a guiding framework (sometimes quite literally) and let me be creative. Struggling with social relationships during that time, I found solace in the art room and with her open and accepting approach for everyone who want to make art. I also found comfort from her personal connection to me and support of my creativity.
Bay Area author and filmmaker Phil Cousineau, a keynote speaker at Friends for Youth's 2006 annual mentoring conference, describes mentors as "mind-makers," those who help others decide for themselves their path in life. This differentiates mentors from parents, teachers, relatives, and peers who each have important, specific roles and responsibilities of their own. One specific experience with Karen made it clear she was really a mentor and not just a teacher or even like a parent to me. For my senior year Advanced Placement Art portfolio, she let me pursue a project that, in hindsight, was pretty awful, lacking creativity and leaving the impression that I hadn't learned anything in that class. I did not receive AP credit for that class solely because of that project but she never told me I couldn't do it. She tried to work with me to add to it, change it, embellish it in some way to make it a better representation of my talents, but, in the end, let me do it my way. My parents, however, were concerned about my performance in all classes and I'm sure part of why I wanted to carry on was because of their response.
These experiences with Esme and Karen had many impacts on me, influencing my choice of career as an artist and art therapist, my belief in the power of creative expression, and my strong support of mentoring young people. I know that I must pass it on, helping another young person know that he or she can go from a ceramic cup (pictured above, circa 1979) to the Mentoring Journal with encouragement, education, practice, and support!
After months of tireless organizing, planning, gathering, boxing, and preparing, Friends for Youth hosted the 23rd Annual Peninsula Golf Challenge at Sharon Heights Golf Course on Monday, October 4th.
Over 100 golfers showed up to support Friends for Youth. More than 15 volunteers assisted in the day's festivities. And although the day started cold and cloudy, by early afternoon the sun had come out to stay.
As in years past, the charity tournament was hosted by Hooked on Golf's Mitch Juricich. Mitch oversaw favorite activities like the Deck of Cards Raffle, the Live Auction and individual pledges. Separately, four volunteer Friendships did their own bit of fund-raising for Friends for Youth, selling prize balloons to the golfing guests. This is a perennial favorite, since each customer must to pop his or her balloon to discover the prize inside!
After a steak dinner, silent and live auctions, speeches by Junior Friends and Executive Director Becky Cooper, and final golf tournament prizes, the daylong festivities came to a successful end. Now we all just have to wait for next year!
