Messages from the HeART Brixton
May 2023 After many months of workshops, plans and preparations, our first major London exhibition, at International House, Brixton, was an absolute triumph. The exhibition featured artwork from over 60 participants with lived experience of many kinds, each piece with a message for people in power. Our community launch and amazing performance evening were both full to capacity and visitor feedback was overwhelmingly positive. |
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June 2021 Huge thanks are due once again the the National Lottery Community Fund for making our current projects possible. From April 2021 to March 2022, we are working with groups and individuals with lived experience of a variety of issues. Our workshops The Gifts of Lived Experience and Messages from the HeArt are taking place in Penzance, Plymouth, London and Kent, and we are organising exciting exhibitions of creative works by participants to take place in 2022.
AMAZING NEWS - WE GOT THE FUNDING!!! From October 2021, our first three-year project, funded by the National Lottery's Reaching Communities Fund will provide further events, workshops, training and collaborations in the above areas as we encourage everyone to prioritise relationships over systems as the world strives to positively move forward after Covid. LIVED EXPERIENCE CREATIVE VIDEOS Please visit our YouTube channel to see a variety of short videos narrated and illustrated by people with lived experience. If you would like to work with HITH on creating a piece of art or a video, or learn more about our community workshops and organisational training, or book a session, please get in touch |
Our second Big Lottery-funded project, SOWING HOPE has been completed.
Its aim was to challenge prejudice, discrimination and hate crime in the South West, using resources from The Anne Frank Trust, including the powerful exhibition Anne Frank: A History for Today. http://annefrank.org.uk/ |
As well as UJ, Tam was happy to introduce The Virtues to representatives of a number of Soweto NGO's, Gogo's (elders) in the community of Eldorado Park, a township bordering Soweto, and orphaned and vulnerable children from that same community. She also ran workshops for the youth of St Paul's Anglican Parish in Soweto, exploring issues of freedom, reconciliation, and the experience of being a young person in Soweto 40 years after the uprising. These will be followed up when Tam returns to Soweto for Youth Month in June.
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In February, Tam went to Manchester to take part in Initiatives of Change UK's Sustainable Communities network gathering. Representatives of organisations across the UK, all working in the field of reconciliation and peacemaking, spent two days discussing collaborations and ways forward during these times of national and international challenge. Hope in the Heart gained several new contacts interested in working co-operatively and it was agreed that those present will meet regularly for the forseeable future.
on March 9th, Amina Khalid and documentary-maker Yee Liu Williams came to Cornwall to work with Tam for three days. Day One was spent at Cape Cornwall School in the morning, where Tam and Amina co-facilitate a workshop entitled "Where is Home", designed to inspire empathy and raise awareness of issues facing refugees fleeing their homes and coming to Europe. In the afternoon, students at Kehelland School impressed all three with their knowledge and expertise of The Virtues Project. On Friday 11th, while Yee Liu filmed the proceedings, Tam and Amina spoke at an event to bring those supporting refugees in Cornwall together. On Saturday 12th, the three visited Steve Double MP in Newquay. Tam is keen to borrow from iofc's model for engaging local politicians in community dialogue. She proposed that she might organise some events aimed to reconcile dissatisfied voters with their political leaders by finding common ground and humanity where there is currently division. Steve agreed to this in principle and promised to encourage his fellow Cornish MPs to take part. |
This video offers a glimpse of the talented youth choir at PUSH Centre for Orphaned and Vulnerable Children, with whom Tam and Fenna worked throughout August.
We are looking forward to deepening the relationships we developed, by returning to Soweto to run workshops with this group, and create links with youth groups in Cornwall and London. |
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AFRICAN CONNECTIONS
Tam has recently spent a month in Africa delivering Hope in the Heart workshops in Botswana and Soweto, training to be a Virtues Project facilitator, advising new and potential charter partners and the founder of the Compassionate Johannesburg Initiative, and connecting with other Charter Partner organisations in Botswana. More details, and photos, here |
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Tam, Fenna and Sophie had a number of exciting meetings and experiences in London and Brighton last week, including an incredible day in the company of Exceptional Survivors
Among these, and organising the event, was Jo Berry, whose father, Sir Anthony Berry, was killed in the Brighton Bombing 30 years ago today, and the man who planted the bomb, ex-IRA activist Pat McGee. Jo and Pat met when Pat was released from prison, and started a dialogue that has led to their working together all over the world to encourage peace and reconciliation where these are needed most. Their courage, humility and determination to make something positive out of a devastating event is inspiring and sets an example for us all on the power of, and necessity for, reconciliation in all areas of our lives and world. http://www.buildingbridgesforpeace.org/our-work-building-bridges-for-peace/) We met and heard from many others today whose work and aims share this ethos, and look forward to collaborating with them in the near future. |
Tam and Fenna attended the Charter for Compassion's first UK conference in London on 2nd July. We met many inspiring and proactive people including the US organisers of the Charter and Karen Armstrong (pictured left), best-selling author and founder of the Charter for Compassion. (Visit Charter for Compassion on the menu- left - for more information.)
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