Healing HeARTS Mobile Art Studio, Inc. is a 501(c)3 non-profit company established in 2016. The founder, Diana Cercy, is a self-taught expressive artist who through the years has seen how powerful art can be in healing and self-expression. Expressive arts help people dealing with grief, emotional trauma, illness or difficult life decisions.
For the last decade, Diana has worked with youth at homeless shelters, in residential treatment programs, in the foster care system, in Boys and Girls Clubs, at a wounded warrior retreat and in a 3rd world country. She has also had her own teen girls, who struggled with anxiety and depression, use art and music for healing and hope.
In late 2017, Cercy created the Healing HeARTS Self Care Toolbox. The HHMAS Self Care Tool Box contains art supplies, journaling supplies, stress balls, and miscellaneous items for self-care and self-expression. It is a special container the child or teen can use to store items that give them feelings of peace, calm, and happiness and healthy coping skills. The Self Care idea packet, authored and published by HHMAS, guides the reader in creating his or her own personal self-care plan using the items in the Tool Box and providing suggestions for healthy self-care activities. The Art Journaling packet, also authored and published by HHMAS, provides prompts for visual self-expression as a means of exploring emotions and encouraging emotional healing and self-awareness.
In the past year, hundreds of boxes have been distributed to school Social Workers who have offered the boxes to students in one on one counseling sessions, group counseling sessions, and Mindfulness Clubs. The boxes have given the students a way to express when they don’t have the words, given them a positive outlet for emotions, and has helped with self-care, self-awareness, and self-confidence.
Feedback regarding the boxes:
Elementary School Principal: “This year, we have seen our students request their “self-care box” when they are upset or having trouble calming down ~ even our youngest Kindergarten student will ask to get out her box! By using the self-care tools together in school, these children are now prepared to use these tools at home when they are feeling angry, lonely, or just need an outlet.”
Middle School Social Worker: “Just this morning, I was working with a student with anxiety and she was telling me that she takes the sketch book around to all of her classes. She even went to the cafeteria for lunch twice this week, which is huge for her because she was anxious about it before. I had the box and the other items in my office for her to take home for the summer and she was so excited.”
Due to the positive results, all of the Social Workers have expressed a desire to see more boxes in more schools for more students, and Healing HeARTS wants to see this happen as well!
As a non-profit, they rely on donations, grants, and volunteers to carry out their mission of offering low to no cost expressive arts and self-care workshops for healing and hope.
Currently, they are ready to spread the word about the Self Care Toolboxes, but they need additional help before they can do so.
They are currently seeking assistance in the following areas:
- Additional assistance in identifying and applying for grants or other forms of funding
- Board Members – they are expanding their board and are seeking individuals willing to bring the talents and energy to their organization
- Volunteers to coordinate the packing and delivery of their Self Care Toolboxes and to participate in their workshops
If you have any questions or would like to follow Healing HeARTS, or donate/volunteer, you can find Healing HeARTS at:
Website: www.healingheartsmobileartstudio.org
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/healingheartsmobileartstudio/
HH email: [email protected]
Diana Cercy’s email: [email protected]
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