A picture may say a thousand words, but a piece of art can tell a survival story, according to the leaders of Single Mothers Outreach, who held their annual “Empowering HeArts” kickoff event at Closet on Main on Friday.
The event the organization’s largest of the year is a chance to pair a single parent who the organization assists with an artist who will then meet with them, learn about them, and use their chosen artistic medium to depict that honoree’s story.
Lisette Ferguson, right, makes a presentation from NewMark (cq) Merrill to Single Mothers Outreach President John Vance, left,, during the Single Mothers Outreach Empowering HeArts kickoff event to pair artists and honorees attending in Newhall on Saturd
Jessica Delazari, a recent College of the Canyons graduate and one of many local single mothers, found herself crying on the floor, sick with COVID-19 knowing she could not take care of her two young daughters as best as she could.
It was August 2020 when she and her 3-year-old daughter contracted the virus from her 7-year-old daughter, who Delazari believes became infected at a daycare in Valencia. It was a cry of frustration, stress, and loneliness. It was a cry for help.
She had just graduated from college in June and because her job contract as a work-study college assistant ended upon graduation, she was also unemployed and then the virus struck home.