Express Yourself with Chalk Art aims to reduce stress. Author: Megan Rivers Updated: 8:09 AM EDT May 19, 2021
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. May is Mental Health Awareness month and let’s face it, the last year has been taxing on us all one way or another. Sometimes talking out our emotions, thoughts, or feelings is difficult.
One local non-profit is giving you another option, color therapy! Stars Performing Arts is hosting an “Express Yourself with Chalk Art” event Saturday where you can color in or outside of the lines. Being oral is something that a lot of people have challenges with. So, we figured we d make it to where they can just write down and express ourselves with chalk, and it ll be fun. It ll be colorful, and they can feel proud and good to look back on something that they created for themselves, said Tamika Harris-Russell, Founder and President of Stars Performing Arts.
After two months of watching their brother recover from multiple gunshot wounds suffered during a mental health crisis where a Chatham Police officer shot him, sisters Sunshine Clemons and Shawnaci Schroeder took to social media this week to speak out for their brother, Gregory Small Jr. It s Mental Health Awareness Month and we really want to highlight changes that are needed in our society,” said Clemons, who is the co-founder of Black Lives Matter Springfield. “We really need a mental health crisis response option other than the police.”
While the sisters hope talking publicly about their family’s recent experience will start productive conversations about mental health and bring awareness to how mental health crisis calls are handled, the family’s primary objective is getting the aggravated assault charge brought against Small dropped.
If you’re a Jewish educator, I know what you were doing last week.
It’s Mental Health Awareness Month. It’s also Jewish American Heritage Month. Shavuot starts on Sunday evening. We’re also entering the last month of the academic year, with many congregational and community schools already immersed in graduation ceremonies. You were busy planning and teaching and preparing for the end of what has been an exhausting and especially challenging year.
If you’re a Jewish educator, I know what you were thinking about and planning for… and then everything changed.
The news coming out of Israel over the last few days is tragic. Over the last few days, those of us outside of the Middle East have been bombarded with images from Tel Aviv, Gaza, Sheik Jarrah, the Kotel, Ashkelon… The devastation of these events as seen on screens is nothing compared to the suffering and the fear being felt by the inhabitants of the region.
A José Andrés Talk, a Billy Collins Poetry Reading, and a New Series on the DC Sniper: Things to Do in DC, May 10-12
Plus: Mental health awareness.
Hi everyone,
We’ve got a José Andrés talk, poetry from Billy Collins, and a new series about the DC sniper attacks.
Here’s what you should check out this week:
Local star: Humanitarian chef José Andres will sit down for a conversation about faith, religion, and service with National Cathedral Dean Randolph Marshall Hollerith and Canon Missioner Leonard Hamlin. The virtual event is part of the cathedral’s “Honest to God” talk series which focuses on how leaders are motivated by their faiths. Tuesday 5/11 at 7 PM; Free, register here.
Enter in Dr. Robin Smith.
She’s best known as the Therapist-in-Residence on Oprah. The licensed psychologist has also partnered with the AARP Foundation launching Connect2Affect.org. The site addresses how we can manage post-pandemic stress, depression, the impact of social isolation and and more. Listen in to this important topic.