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NOTES FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Some History of the Kirsha Foundation
My daughter Kirsha Melanie died unexpectedly on September 11, 1994. She was 20. On September 11, 2001 my phone rang early in the morning and I was deployed shortly after to New York City as a trauma counselor. Thousands of deaths! I was honored to help other families deal with the losses of their beloveds. I knew how to help and had the credibility of having walked the walk... and survived. When people looked me in the eye with a haunted “how can we bear it” expression, I could look back with them and provide hope that they might actually live through these horrors.
I was assigned to help firefighters and their families on Staten Island. I took police officers to Ground Zero and held them while they wept. I sat with men and women who had to sift through the rubble at the landfill. I sat with mothers and fathers, siblings, and grandparents, friends and employees who were still hoping against hope that their special person would be spared…and found alive. We sat together until the time came that they knew. I remembered the moment I really “knew” Kirsha was gone. It changed how I saw everything. Forever.
Everywhere I went in New York I was surrounded by children’s art. Children’s art spoke to me. I listened. When I returned home, changed once again by the devastations and miracles of life and death, I decided to finally create a “memory” to my daughter, which would also support others. I had long wanted to do something enduring. I thought about how to create a program or scholarship and my dear friend, Ed Bohart, suggested I think “bigger.” Thus began the brainstorming and paperwork tasks of creating a non-profit organization. In June of 2005, the official documents arrived from the IRS and the Kirsha Foundation Board of Directors began planning how this organization could best serve children. We started searching for a perfect kickoff event that would set the tone for the Foundation’s work.
Planning for our first event
As a Disaster Counselor, Certified Traumatologist, Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Red Cross Volunteer, my work with disaster survivors, volunteers and staff, and teaching nationally led itself naturally to caring deeply about the long-term effects on children created by the Hurricanes in the Gulf. I was having coffee with my friend Cheryl Coppinger, and she offered to assist in making the first Kirsha Foundation event face these concerns locally. As a community leader who cares about children and offers her own significant event with a grand horse riding camp for disabled children each summer, this was a perfect first volunteer partnership. We all began thinking how to get local children involved in the arts. Kyrin Pack, my daughter and Kirsha’s younger sister, teaches locally and was able to ask her students if they wanted to participate. As a graduate student, she was also able to entice some helpers from her program at WSU. A few other young artists in the community wanted to join, and we had the beginnings of an art event. But how to get it linked to Katrina? An art auction…all the proceeds going to purchase art products for the kids down south…perfect! A connecting collaboration began to help local kids feel connected with the disaster while at the same time finding a reciprocal connection to other kids in the Gulf States.
Unaccustomed to asking for money from strangers, off I went to donors and was astonished at the generosity of people and companies! I was humbled and grateful for openhearted people who understood the need for children to express themselves through art and how they gave what they had. People and companies showed up with money and art supplies. And then the art was produced! It was amazing. (see sponsors list)We received childlike color crayon drawings of volcanoes and tornadoes, paintings of peace signs and prayers, pastels of tsunamis and earthquakes, and poetry from the depths of the soul. Art that represented what local Tri-Cities children felt and knew about disasters, and what they had seen in the media were created as they talked about their feelings. It was interesting to see how many Northwest children saw volcanoes as disaster topics…living in the shadow of great volcanoes nearby, it wasn’t a surprise! It also wasn’t a surprise, although it was compelling, to see all the drawings of Tsunamis and Tornadoes. Little ones see through such precious eyes!
The Event
On December 5, my husband Dave and I hung the art through the temporary-indoor Tri-Art Gallery because it was snowing. We tried to create the Children’s Art atmosphere we had seen at countless New York City memorial locations. As people came through the door they were met by photos of the young artists suspended from the ceiling as their colorful art floated beside their angelic faces. Tables were covered with paper mache plates and vases and collages and photographs and poetry. Yummy treats were available to snack on, and a nice fire glowed in the fireplace. We were a bit concerned about turnout for the event due to the first extreme-surprise snow of the season. We also didn’t plan on the main highway in the region to be closed. Both ways! Nonetheless, supporters braved the elements and came and donated. It was a sweet night. The local news media came and did a lovely job of reporting. Good people want to help! It was precious. All the art pieces received a bid and hundreds of dollars were raised to help support Gulf Coast children. (Thank you, donors!!)
Phase Two
By mid-December, 2005 all the art pieces were delivered. Certificates and thank yous were extended. Pledged money has been collected. Gift bags for the young artists were donated and handed out. Meetings continue to create the perfect match for Phase 2 of the project…getting 100% of the donated money to young victims of Hurricane Katrina in a way that will directly serve those who need support. Our plans were changed, with the agreement of all our donors, to distribute this support after the holidays as children there will need ongoing support and we have found options that can expand the money donated so we can reach even more children. Stay tuned! It is looking very special!!!
Vali Hawkins Mitchell, Ph.D., LMHC
Executive Director
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