Post by title1parent on Jun 2, 2009 5:11:46 GMT -5
www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=297240&src=76
Umbrellas create world of peace at Aurora school
By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald 6/2/09
Eleven-year-old Austin Reigle's perfect world is drug-free, peaceful and full of stars and rainbows. And any time he wants to visit, all he has to do is open his umbrella.
Roughly 800 students at Aurora's Nancy Young Elementary School are participating in artist Matt Lamb's Umbrellas for Peace initiative by painting their personal views of peace, tolerance and love on their individual umbrellas.
"Working on this project, we've learned that our umbrella can cover us and be our own peaceful place if we don't like what's going on around us and that's cool," Reigle said of his umbrella.
The initiative began as a Congressional mandate to aid orphans of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. In May of 2002, 38 children of victims of the tragedy gathered with contemporary artist Matt Lamb in a three-day workshop to express feelings and dreams in colorful ways onto umbrellas.
A parade followed with displays on Capitol Hill and the children touring the White House. Since that time more than 500,000 children and adults in 16 countries have participated in the "Lamb Umbrellas for Peace" projects, according to Lamb's Web site.
Lamb will lead Young students in their own umbrella parade this morning at the school.
Young art teacher Linda Heller was able to bring Lamb to the Aurora school with the help of the Indian Prairie Educational Foundation's Artist-in-Residence Grant.
"It's amazing that we've been able to bring this global movement right here through Aurora," Heller said. "And the message is so safe and comforting. Your umbrella shelters you and keeps you safe so any time you need that feeling, you get under your own umbrella."
Fifth-grader Ashley Vanpelt decorated her umbrella with stars and hearts and rainbows to help her feel safe. But through the process of learning about the project and decorating her umbrella, she said she learned a valuable lesson.
"The world stands a much stronger chance of having peace if we solve our problems with spoken words instead of guns," she said.
Alyssa Wolfe, 11, said she and her siblings also have taken the project to heart.
"The whole point is that we should not be making others feel like they need to get under an umbrella," Wolfe said. "The umbrella should only be needed in emergencies so my family has been practicing that since we've been working on the project."
Lamb, 77, is a self-taught painter whose works are used to push his campaign for world peace. On his Web site, Lamb says he augments his art career with various projects that advance his personal mantra of "Peace, Tolerance, Understanding, Hope and Love," including the umbrella project.
Umbrellas create world of peace at Aurora school
By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald 6/2/09
Eleven-year-old Austin Reigle's perfect world is drug-free, peaceful and full of stars and rainbows. And any time he wants to visit, all he has to do is open his umbrella.
Roughly 800 students at Aurora's Nancy Young Elementary School are participating in artist Matt Lamb's Umbrellas for Peace initiative by painting their personal views of peace, tolerance and love on their individual umbrellas.
"Working on this project, we've learned that our umbrella can cover us and be our own peaceful place if we don't like what's going on around us and that's cool," Reigle said of his umbrella.
The initiative began as a Congressional mandate to aid orphans of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. In May of 2002, 38 children of victims of the tragedy gathered with contemporary artist Matt Lamb in a three-day workshop to express feelings and dreams in colorful ways onto umbrellas.
A parade followed with displays on Capitol Hill and the children touring the White House. Since that time more than 500,000 children and adults in 16 countries have participated in the "Lamb Umbrellas for Peace" projects, according to Lamb's Web site.
Lamb will lead Young students in their own umbrella parade this morning at the school.
Young art teacher Linda Heller was able to bring Lamb to the Aurora school with the help of the Indian Prairie Educational Foundation's Artist-in-Residence Grant.
"It's amazing that we've been able to bring this global movement right here through Aurora," Heller said. "And the message is so safe and comforting. Your umbrella shelters you and keeps you safe so any time you need that feeling, you get under your own umbrella."
Fifth-grader Ashley Vanpelt decorated her umbrella with stars and hearts and rainbows to help her feel safe. But through the process of learning about the project and decorating her umbrella, she said she learned a valuable lesson.
"The world stands a much stronger chance of having peace if we solve our problems with spoken words instead of guns," she said.
Alyssa Wolfe, 11, said she and her siblings also have taken the project to heart.
"The whole point is that we should not be making others feel like they need to get under an umbrella," Wolfe said. "The umbrella should only be needed in emergencies so my family has been practicing that since we've been working on the project."
Lamb, 77, is a self-taught painter whose works are used to push his campaign for world peace. On his Web site, Lamb says he augments his art career with various projects that advance his personal mantra of "Peace, Tolerance, Understanding, Hope and Love," including the umbrella project.