INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS
 Teens come together to create Healing Arts work Present Sept. 11 commemorative paintings to Secretary of the Army by Victoria A. Palmer 16 Aug 2002
Eleven teens from around the world came together to collaborate on a series of three canvas paintings commemorating Sept. 11 during the third annual Space and Missile Defense Command’s (SMDC) Army Family Action Plan (AFAP) Planning and Training Conference, Aug. 13-16 in Arlington, Va. The teens presented the paintings to Secretary of the Army Thomas E. White during the post-conference report-out session.
“I’m glad to accept what is really something truly wonderful,” said Secretary of the Army Thomas E. White, as he accepted the art on behalf of the United States Army. “This is a remarkable, extraordinary thing and it shows that youth will always lead us in the right direction,” White said.
“This particular conference is unique,” said conference organizer Portia Davidson, Chief of the SMDC Community Family Support Program Division. “We do more than just work the issues. We bring in a teen delegation that works the well-being issues but we also give them empowering, mentoring, and educational projects to work.”
The project for the teens this year was part of the ongoing “Healing Arts” project, a program of Army MWR Arts and Crafts. Marietta Dantonio-Fryer, Professor of Art at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania and a nationally recognized expert on healing arts, directed the teen conference attendees in the painting project during the conference. She designed the original healing arts program in collaboration with artist Joel T. Keener and worked with Army Arts and Crafts Program Manager Jan Osthus to adapt the program especially for the Army.
The teens were unsure about the project initially, said Dantonio-Fryer. “When I first went in the room, the boys were on the right side, the girls were on the left side, and nobody would communicate,” she said.
 To see the process the teens underwent was phenomenal, she said. “Going from not knowing each other and then having them completely bare their soul, share their deepest feelings about fear and anger and sadness, and taking that and expressing it in a creative, non-threatening way on three beautiful canvases that tell before Sept. 11, during, and where we are now.”
During the presentation to Secretary White, teen group facilitator Elizabeth Hurt, a SMDC program analyst from Huntsville, Ala., described the process the teens undertook in creating the work they titled “Overcoming the Face of Tragedy.”
The teens brainstormed to choose words to describe their feelings in the aftermath of the events of Sept. 11. Then they related colors to their words and choose symbols to express what and how they felt.
With three canvases comprising the project, the teens divided into three teams. The teams collaborated to translate their feelings into art through use of the chosen colors and images, coming together periodically to evaluate at the work as a whole and continue the brainstorming process under the direction of Dantonio-Fryer. The three teams then merged into one group to complete the work and present the painting. “They have to work as a community,” said Dantonio-Fryer. “They come in as individuals but have to agree, work side-by-side, share their deepest thoughts and feelings and then create together. So there’s lot of negotiations, and creativity just flies everywhere.”
“This really brought us together,” said teen delegate Amanda Mosher. “We came in not knowing each other and not really talking together. We started throwing ideas out and it brought us a lot closer. And we got to know each other pretty well.”
“This was a great experience,” said teen delegate Nicole Tidwell. “I had no experience painting and to see the final outcome and what it symbolizes was great.”
“It’s been hectic, it’s been life-changing, it’s been something that I will always remember,” said Hurt, a veteran AFAP facilitator. “Working with the kids made this the very best AFAP ever.”
“The creativity and energy are beautiful, which is a wonderful strength of our country,” Secretary White commented after the presentation. “It commemorates, in a way that will endure, not only the tragedy of the 11th of Sept. but how the nation has responded to that tragedy since then. I think the three paintings all tied together really capture that spirit.”
”What happened here today will leave a legacy to this command for years to come,” said Davidson at the conclusion of the conference. “The teens’ lives have changed as a result of them being a part of this painting and telling the story of how they got to the end product.”
The paintings are now on exhibit at the Pentagon. According to Davidson, they will also be exhibited at the United Nations in New York City and featured in the next edition of the International Child Art Foundation magazine.
The teens represented SMDC installations from across the country, Germany and Kwajalien in the Marshall Islands. They included Stedman Flowers, Lynndsey Hyter, Michael LaValle, Zachary Lepine, Timothy Lewis, Ryan Manbodh, Meghan Martin, Amanda Mosher, Samantha Nixon, Roberto Ponzio and Nicole Tidwell.
Guidelines for the original Army Arts and Crafts Operation Healing Arts project are available on the Army MWR Web site at www.armymwr.com. Click on Rec & Leisure/Arts & Crafts, then click on the Innovative Programs icon/Operation Healing Arts USA guidance.
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