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Date: 3/22/2022
EASTHAMPTON – In celebration of Youth Art Month the Easthampton Resilient Community Arts organization is hosting a Doodle-A-Thon Fundraiser on March 26 to raise money for youth arts and bring the community together through the arts.
The event will take place at the boardwalk on Cottage Street and will last from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. All ages of the community are invited to attend, and all proceeds will benefit the Art is for Everybody Scholarship Fund to help youth and teens from low-income homes attend Resilient Community Arts studio programs. The fundraising goal is $2,000.
Maddie McDougall, director and founder of Resilient Community Arts, was a public school visual arts teacher for three years before deciding to create more accessible opportunities in the arts for low-income families. McDougall and some of her artists friends tried to identify this need and formed the Resilient Community Arts organization in July of 2021.
The nonprofit group has a location in the Eastworks building and began programming last September. This past January they started after-school programs for students. McDougall said their space is for all ages who are interested in creating art in a space made just for that.
Leading up to this point, the organization has had smaller community outreach events before they moved to their new location at Eastworks.
“We had public art making and group sessions to find out what would be needed from a community art space like this,” McDougall said.
The Doodle-A-Thon itself will have a 30-foot piece of paper open to anyone attending to add to with their own “doodle.” Using a wide variety of art utensils, the long piece of paper can be added to in collaboration with the community to create a fun piece of art on behalf of the residents of Easthampton. There currently has been no decision made on where this piece of art will go following the event.
There will also be paid activities available for fundraising where for $10 you can receive one pass to one of the three workshops that afternoon and $5 for any additional workshop passes. The first workshop will be for creating mosaic tiles at 12 p.m., followed by DIY stencils at 1 p.m., and the event will wrap up with a workshop on creating mini junk journals at 2 p.m. Tickets will be available at the event.
There will also be a maker’s market on scene where Resilient Community Arts will have artwork made by their students in the studio as well as other pieces of work available for purchase.
“This event is totally something for everyone, all ages can participate,” McDougall said.
McDougall hopes the funds raised can provide an opportunity to a disadvantaged youth and provide them the chance to take a class and express their artistry. She added that she hopes to continue raising money for similar projects as the year goes on.
“We’re hoping to be able to create a fun event that folks will remember as a good time. We want to create some fun collaborative art with the community,” McDougall said.
April 2 is the rain date set if weather postpones the event.