After the event, Helms spent some time processing the Change Makers’ Rehearsal Dinner experience through art. She started by studying the participant input into themes: “Truthtelling, What we pay attention to grows, the power of we, collective healing, and creative imagination.” After recording the input and themes, Helms began to add color, shape, and texture to the collected index cards.
After creating the art pieces, Helms sent “What We Pay Attention To Grows” to Bernard Singleton at Nebadaye Farms. Thanks to Katrina Cherry, who delivered the piece, the painting is now installed at the farm.
This creative process helped to clarify the January 2022 Change Makers’ Rehearsal Dinner theme: to rehearse and explore Individual and Collective Healing; Healing for the common good, politicized healing: seeking to intervene and interrupt individual and collective generational trauma by sustaining practices & structures for social healing- our collective physical, emotional, spiritual, psychic, and environmental wellbeing.
A healing justice framework values holistic wellbeing, integration, and connectivity for the common good. The Change Makers’ Rehearsal Dinner is a participatory social cultural intervention crafted forfolks who work across disciplines (interdisciplinary) and cultural settings (intercultural) in order to make positive social change. These are folks who are cultivating community for the common good in integrated and creative ways.
Together, using art and culture as tools, we reimagine and rehearse what’s possible for our city and beyond. The Change Makers’ Rehearsal Dinner provides an opportunity to make unexpected connections that generate meaningful relationships and that shape community solutions which positively impact our neighborhoods and city.
Our hope is that the upcoming event in January will allow participants to experience art/creativity/community in fresh ways that will leave them feeling energized and hopeful. We hope that participants will connect with one another to form collective action and next steps. By hiring and paying a just wage to local Change Maker facilitators, we hope Change Makers/Artists/Creatives will gain exposure to a broader audience, be paid for their facilitation, and be provided additional leadership opportunities. By partnering with Black owned businesses, we hope to embody collective healing and highlight Black leadership.
