Bring healing art to kids in medical crisis

The minute I arrived on 10 South, she started hugging me and talking in rapid-fire Spanish.  It took a moment to understand…. “Thank you! Thank you!” she was saying. “He is so happy now. I never thought he could paint, he has changed so much and he is so happy! Thank you, thank you!”

When I first met them, newly admitted Raul* lay quietly in bed with Mom and Dad hovering and fussing around him, as nurses settled him in. Although 14 years old, he is non-verbal and appears to have developmental delays, so presents as a much younger child.  “No thank you,” they graciously said, they did not care for any art supplies. The next week, after a few more visits from CHAP staff and encouragement for the adults to participate even if Raul didn’t feel like it, Dad came in for some beads. Their daughter at home is a “Daddy’s girl” he explains, and he would like to make her a necklace. He picks out an assortment of lavender beads and retreats to their room to work.  A bit later he proudly returns with a stunning, intricate and carefully designed necklace and then decides to make a matching bracelet. 

With Dad’s visible pride, success and encouragement, Mom and Raul now decide to come into the art room.   “He doesn’t like to get dirty,” Mom is quick to warn us, as Raul decides to give painting a try. Mom draws a heart on the large paper for Raul, shows him how to dip the brush in the paint and apply it to the paper. She paints alongside him, as he gingerly begins. He dips and paints, dips and paints, over and over again, covering the paper, edge to edge with layer upon layer of color. He looks calm and is smiling; he appears mesmerized by the process. More paper, and he continues to paint!

Dad needs to head home and get back to work, but before leaving, comes in for another set of beads. This time he makes an intricate pink necklace and bracelet for his daughter, telling me all about her, as I close the jewelry for him and bid him safe travels. Raul continues painting regularly with CHAP, but Mom always just watches and helps, despite encouragement to do her own project. Then at Parent Night she admits seeing others painting canvas bags and decides to give it a try.  Reluctant to get started and hesitant with each step, Mary guides her and the project turns out beautifully successful. She tells Mary that at forty-two, she had never painted and had no idea she could learn something new, “at THAT age!”  

When I arrived the next day, after the first round of hugs, she tells me about painting the bag. She texted pictures of it to her husband, who exclaimed it was so gorgeous and couldn’t believe that SHE painted it on her FIRST try! She had to tell him three times that she did it herself, before he finally believed her! 

Several times throughout that Saturday shift, she hugged me and told me “thank you” for a multitude of different things. And today, for the first time, she leaves him alone in the art room with us…painting…while she packed up the room to leave.  Although the adults speak perfect English, she tells me before leaving to pack, that Raul likes it when I speak to him in Spanish.

“You know,” she finally confides to me, “I thought you were all crazy when you kept offering for him to do some art. I just saw him as very sick and thought he should just lie there to get better. Now I know that painting has changed his life! He loves it, he is smiling more than ever, he doesn’t mind getting messy. He has changed so much! He is happy! Thank you!”

*Name changed to honor confidentiality

The numbers are in - thanks to our generous supporters, we provided OVER 7500 healing art experiences in the hospital in 2015. (11,000 total, counting work outside the hospital) THANK YOU FOR MAKING THIS POSSIBLE!

Links:

• http://chappdx.org
• http://chap.name

• CHAP Outcomes in 2015 (PDF)