“Our agency is about togetherness, community and healing,” said Kim Lewis, Promise Resource Network’s (PRN) community outreach coordinator. “It’s about the power of being with others.” And the power of creativity – which is where ASC comes in. “Creativity is at the core of everything we do,” Lewis said.
“Life is not happening to you; it’s happening for you.” I’ve heard bestselling author (and former advice columnist for O Magazine) Martha Beck say that. A quick Google search shows that Tony Robbins has said it, too. Maybe all life coaches and motivational speakers say some version of it.
Ramona Moore Big Eagle developed her life’s purpose around the power of story. An oral historian and legend keeper with North Carolina’s Tuscarora Nation, Big Eagle cites a personal foundation built upon the traditions, culture and lessons found in the stories passed along to her by her parents and indigenous elders throughout her life.
Signs are everywhere – on interstates, on highways and byways, on restaurants and retail establishments. No trespassing. Wrong way. Masks required. We encounter so many signs in our daily lives that we can start to tune them out. Unless a sign stands out.
As the season of gratitude approaches, we want to highlight several local creative individuals and organizations who make Charlotte-Mecklenburg a more innovative creative ecosystem for all. We know we are grateful for them, but why and what are they grateful for this year?
She grew up in Augusta, Ga., in a home with a disco ball that on late nights would become a beacon for community and connection. This is where Williams first began to study dance and where she said she learned that “dance is a celebration of community, of life, and joy.”
Malu Tan is a fulltime, award-winning artist who’s probably best known for her abstract work. But her status as a professional doesn’t mean she’s stopped being a student occasionally. “We have to continue to grow and challenge ourselves,” said the Charlotte-based painter. “That’s the value of this grant. It helped me improve as an artist.”
For centuries, bread has been at the center of every culture’s food tradition. It sustains us. It unites us. And now, through the work of the Our Daily Bread Foundation, it provides purpose for disenfranchised young people in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.