I read a story, shortly after my bad day, about a girl who decided to perform 26 random acts of kindness on her 26^th birthday. I thought this was a fantastic idea, and vowed to do this on my own birthday. But my birthday was months away, and I wanted to do something now, and something BIG. Then I remembered the corporate days of service I participated in, back in the days when I worked at for-profit companies. Such days involved large groups of employees volunteering at a local non-profit for a day. A radical idea began to form:

Why couldn’t a non-profit do something similar?

We could go out into the community and perform random acts of kindness/service to the greater community! As you may already know, L’Arche will be celebrating their 38^th birthday in April. So to celebrate 38 wonderful years, we will be performing 38 (or more) acts of kindness and/or service in the days leading up to our birthday.

Gandhi said: “be the change you want to see in the world.” I can’t think of many other organizations that exemplify this better than L’Arche.  L’Arche is truly a model in deeds of kindness. For example, our Neighbours Helping Neighbours program provides services such as simple maintenance, lawn care, snow removal and other tasks to seniors and individuals with disabilities in our community – free of charge.  Our Emmaus Day program also bakes cookies and hands them out to individuals in line at the food bank. There are countless kind deeds going on every day within the L’Arche community – now we are going to take it on the road and document it!

Over the next couple of months we will be posting blog updates featuring stories and photos of our acts of kindness (don’t forget to check back regularly for the updates). Please join us at the L’Arche 38^th Anniversary Coffee House celebration on April 28^th where we will celebrate our birthday and share photos and stories from our kind deeds. The celebration will be held at 6:30pm at the South Burnaby United Church Hall.

Submitted by Caitlin Toews, L’Arche Greater Vancouver

Please click here to be directed to the L’Arche website where you can download the application form.

The first week of January, American retailer Target included a little boy with Down Syndrome in a weekly ad. If you aren’t paying attention, this ad looks like any other ad for children’s clothing – 5 children playing in their Target brand clothing – except that one of those kids happens to have Down Syndrome. Although the ad was subtle, its connotations did not go unnoticed, and were quickly picked up by media outlets and bloggers alike.

One of those bloggers was Noah’s Dad. Noah is a baby born with Down Syndrome whose dad has created a blog to tell his story. Noah’s dad was compelled to create this blog after experiencing some “un-positive” reactions to the birth of his son. He wanted to spread the message that having a child with Down Syndrome is as joyful as having any child.

The message that having a developmental disability is okay is gaining momentum. In addition to the nearly 11,000 “likes” on Facebook that Noah’s Dad currently has, there are photo montages dedicated to this topic (like this one) and networks/sibling advocacy groups operated on social media sites are quickly gaining internet fame in their own right.

What can YOU do to help foster inclusion and spread the message that developmental disabilities are okay?

There are unique challenges that accompany special needs, but I think Dana Dillon from Catholic Moral Theology says it best “we can make those challenges easier or harder on the persons, families and communities who bear them most directly by our messages of inclusion and exclusion, of what counts as normal or not, of what counts as a life worth living, of what counts as a child worth celebrating.”

- Submitted by Caitlin Toews, L’Arche Greater Vancouver

Our World at the Beginning of 2012

“The world is going through difficult times, but it has also seen beautiful demonstrations of peace. Wonderful people–to the right, to the left, above and underneath, of all different religions or without any religion– are looking for ways of showing peace, love and welcome to people who are different. They give their smiles, and these smiles sometimes spring from chaos. The announcement of peace is there in our hearts.”

An excerpt from Jean Vanier’s New Year’s Letter, 2012

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Appearing for the third year is Alan Wylie, AWS DF, SFCA, NWWS, CIPA, CWA. Alan was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1938. He graduated from the Glasgow School of Art in 1960 with a degree in Mural Design and Mosaics. He immigrated to Nova Scotia in 1967 and began a career as a full-time artist and teacher. Alan has won many awards for his paintings, including the top prize at the Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolours in the United States, and the Federation of Canadian Artists’ Grand Prize in 2003. He has participated in innumerable solo and group exhibitions, and has created large murals in and on the exteriors of public buildings. He moved to British Columbia in 1973 and married his wife, artist Janice Robertson, in the early 1990s.

Joining us for the second year is Janice Robertson. Born on Vancouver Island in 1952, into a family with a long history of women artists. She lives in the historic village of Fort Langley, BC with her artist husband, Alan Wylie.  Janice launched her career as a professional artist in 1989. She has received many awards including the Foreign Award in the Houston Watercolor Society’s Exhibition in Texas in 2004, the William and Margaret Foley Award in the Adirondacks National Exhibition of Watercolors in 2008, and she has won the Bronze Medal three times in the Federation of Canadian Artists Annual Signature Members exhibition.  Janice is a signature member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, Landscape Artists International and the Northwest Watercolor Society. She was elected as an Artist in Residence at the annual Painters at Painters event in Campbell River BC in 2004. Janice served as President of the Federation of Canadian Artists from 1999 to 2001. She is listed in Who’s Who in Canada and her paintings are in collections through the world. She is also a popular and well-respected workshop instructor.  Janice’s work is largely a reflection of her abiding love for the beauty of the west coast forests and beaches that she has known all her life. Her attachment to her home and garden are represented in her still-life paintings. She works in acrylic, watercolor and oil.

New to our jury this year is  Richard McDiarmid. Richard is a signature member of both the Federation of Canadian Artists (SFCA) and the Northwest Watercolour Society (NWWS) and is a lifetime member of Painters at Painters, a prestigious B.C. artist’s peer group. His many award winning paintings have been exhibited in solo shows, group shows and international shows including, The Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours, the Federation of Canadian Artists, and the Northwest Watercolour Society (NWWS). Examples of his paintings and articles have appeared in a number of publications including International Artists Magazine.

Richard’s paintings can be found in commercial galleries and corporate and private collections in Canada, the USA, Britain, Europe, Japan and China.

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So, to have your work viewed by these prestigious judges make sure submit your original community-themed artwork to L’Arche by our new deadline – Friday, Jan 20, 2012.   Finalists will receive $250 with additional prizes for the Judge’s Choice and the People’s Choice. Click here to for the guidelines.  Finalists will be announced the week of February 13. 2012.

Alan and Janice at the 2011 Art of Being Together - ready to announce "The Judge's Choice"

This call is open to emerging and established artists/art instructors residing in the lower mainland.

Please click here for more information and to access the entire request for proposal.
For specific questions, please contact:

Sig Stark
604-435-9544 ex 35
e-mail: sstark@larchevancouver.org

Dear All,

A few nights ago was our “night of prayer in the Grotto” – every year during Advent a group of friends spend the night in prayer at the Church of the Nativity. It’s a time when I try to bring friends, family, L’Arche, and somehow the whole world into that little grotto…so still and dark, yet radiating a hope, love and joy that can change the world.  I just wanted you to know that you were there with us as we prayed in the candlelit silence.

Advent blessings and love from Bethelehem,

Kathy

The Art of Being Together is a juried exhibition of art inspired by the theme of community, sharing life, friendship and inclusiveness. The event celebrates community and inclusivity where everyone – regardless of ability, education, gender, race and religion – is valued for their gifts.

Proceeds from the event will benefit L’Arche Greater Vancouver, a charitable organization that provides residential care and day programs for adults with developmental disabilities. L’Arche seeks to help people with a disability through a life that guarantees them a stable home, companionship, on-going learning and satisfying work.

Click Here for the submission form and more information.