"Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness."
-Martin Luther King Jr.
Some of our past events include...
We've organized after school arts programs for underprivileged youth, raised money and ran 5ks and half marathons, organized food drives, donated clothing and home goods to shelters, hosted camp nights, planted trees and much more! Here's what some of our members have said about the good times we've shared!
AIM members volunteered our time at the JDRF Walk 2014 to benefit children diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Out friend and colleague, Mark Chinapen, has a son, Zachary Chinapen, diagnosed at age 2. Volunteers played with the kids all day, while of course doing the "adult thing" and managing all the fun bounce houses and activities. It was so exciting to see the vast numbers of children and adults take place in this HUGE walk around the Pasadena Rosebowl while representing kids with TD1.
Food drive for
L.A. REGIONAL FOOD BANK
Just by posting up at several locations throughout the L.A. area, we were able to collect over 500 pounds of non-perishable food for the annual holiday L.A. Regional Food Drive. They feed 1 million people in L.A. County each year and provide food to hundreds of feeding programs in the county.
The Weingart Center knows how to throw a party for their clients! And we were lucky enough to get in on the fun by dressing up for their Halloween party and dishing out the food. We then were able to mix and mingle, dance and even partake in their costume party. The Weingart Center is a human services organization, located in downtown Los Angeles, and is focused on breaking the cycle of homelessness.
It was so wonderful to meet and train with our fellow artists in an activity that was brand new to many of us. But we raised over $4,000 for the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation, woke up very early to drive down to Orange County and run like maniacs for miles. All for a good cause and a good bunch of laughs!
Since 2011 we have hosted the first night of camp known as "Teambuilding Night," for the Annual Camp Hollywood Heart. This is a week-long arts camp for youth affected and infected by AIDS/HIV. We have so much fun welcoming the campers and breaking ice to get them ready for a week of exploration, play, making new friends and creating up a storm!
After school arts program at
A PLACE CALLED HOME
A Place Called Home provides educational programs, counseling and mentorship to youth ages 8-21 in South Central L.A. We were able to take part in the many activities that are offered after school from ballet to tutoring to painting to music composition, video editing and soccer. This is really a place where kids can go to feel safe, be with friends, be themselves and have a sense of community. It was our privilege to join the kids and not only teach what we knew about the activities, but to also learn from them.
Comedy Show for
COUNSELING 4 KIDS
AIM was front and center in the production of "2 Milk Minimum," a special comedy show held at Flapper's Comedy Club in Burbank whose main audience were the children going through the foster program at Counseling 4 Kids. C4K offers mental health services to children in the foster care system. We served the kids food, painted faces, danced,took their photos on our special red carpet, watched the comedy show and handed out goodies to the kids. A fun time was had by all.....lots of smiles and laughs!
Some good friends of ours run A Beautiful Day Foundation that focuses on raising awareness for breast cancer. We walked with their team for the well-known, annual EIF Revlon Run/Walk for Women. We also shared their message by passing out literature regarding the disease and where to go for support.
Hathaway Sycamores offers after school aid to children of low income families. We have participated in their after school tutoring program as well as hosted our own after school arts program. We teamed up with other artists who are professionals in their fields and lead groups of kids through a drum circle, taught them hip hop choreography, and made arts and crafts projects with paint and other household items.
A Place Called Home always feel like home every time we step through their doors! And they are home to hundreds of South Central's underserved youth with their after school programs and special events. This year their annual holiday party gifted hundreds of children with toys, treats, a real snowy wonderland and a visit from Santa. We had an amazing time ringing in the holidays and watching the kids and their entire families light up!
© 2021 by ARTISTS IN MOTION
