Today, I got to meet 14 year old “Randy” who went through the Chill & Spill program during the school year. He was part of a boy’s group that met twice a week for 10 weeks. During the group, they worked on the activities individually, and then discussed them as a group with their counselor.

He told us that the two Chill & Spill activities that really stood out to him and made a difference for him were “I Really Really Feel” (which is a guided, free-association activity) and “Personal Lifeline” where he mapped out his history and where he wanted to be in the future.

“The Feelings activity helped me talk about my dad who is in the hospital and probably won’t make it much longer. The lifeline page helped me see that I have things that I want to do in the future and that I need to make good choices to make that happen,” he told us. He credits this page to helping him quit smoking, as one of the first steps in that direction.

“It also helped me respect my mom more ’cause now I see that she’s really stressed out because of my dad, and the move and my new baby brother who’s only 3 months old.”

His sister had also gone through the program the year before because she was struggling with keeping her grades up and her social worker felt that she could benefit from it. She said she used the journal to “write her stress out.”

Randy sums it up by saying, “When I’m in the classroom, I feel hated by everyone. When I’m in my Chill & Spill group, I feel like we are brothers – we get closer and closer. It’s like a safe place to be.”

As we enter into our 15th year of service to children in crisis, we are grateful for everyone who has supported us in various ways.

To celebrate, we have decided to hold a STORY CONTEST!

You can submit stories about a special memory: Maybe your child was touched in some way by our work, or you’ve volunteered or donated, or maybe you have used our therapeutic books and can share how Art with Heart has affected the work that you do. Whatever the case may be, we want to share your story with other caring individuals like yourself!

As a THANK YOU for submitting your story, we will send you an Art with Heart tote bag (donated by BLINK Product Design). In addition, three WINNERS in total will be selected at random to win:

• A $100 gift certificate to Target (donated by founder, Steffanie Lorig)
• An out-of-print 124-page edition of “Oodles of Doodles” (not available anywhere!)
• Or a limited-edition signed glicée museum-quality print from the original Oodles book!

RULES:  Stories need to be TRUE, authentic and relevant to how Art with Heart helped you or someone in your life. The Story Contest is open to individuals of any age and will run through December 31, 2011. Only one submission per person. Entries will be picked at random. Stories should include the Who, What, Why, Where, When, and How. If you want, you can attach a photo of you that helps bring your story to life (photos of children with our books are most appreciated). Be sure to include your full name, age, city/state, telephone number and full address so we can send you the prize if you won! Email to info@artwithheart.org with “STORY CONTEST” in the subject line. Some stories will be posted on our blog and FaceBook page. We reserve the right to edit for length and clarity. By submitting your story and/or photo, you agree to allow Art with Heart permission to share the story/image with others via print and web. All submissions will be moderated – offensive, irrelevant or defamatory content will be deemed ineligible. Good luck!