Kindness Rocks! Small Arts of Kindness project

by Lianne Angeles

(with

from Mila Bongco-Philipzig and Sandy Castillo Lubuguin)

I was honoured to be invited by Mila Bongco-Philipzig to take part in the Kindness Rocks workshop, which was held in the Edmonton Philippine International Centre (EPIC) on April 22.

The intent of the project is to spread messages of kindness and encouragement across the city through cultural art and multilingual motivational messages on painted rocks. These workshops will be conducted in schools, libraries, and parks for wide-public participation. The rocks will then be used to create Kindness Inspiration Gardens. I was part of a group of other amazing artists, consisting of Oliver Rabara (FB: The ArtCamp), Antonio “Val” Ludovico (Instagram: @tludovico1458), Sandy Castillo Lubuguin (Instagram: @art.of.sandy), Michael Moya (Instagram @michaelmoyaillustrations), and E-Man Moya (Instagram: @zwayzak)

This is part of the City of Edmonton Community Safety and WellBeing overall strategy. The Philippine Edmonton Events and Arts Society (PHIDEAS) is 1 of only 25 grant recipients of this inaugural programme where the city funds relevant community groups to carry out projects in the areas of Anti-Racism, Crime Prevention and Crisis Intervention, Equitable Policies, Pathways In and Out of Poverty, Reconciliation, Safe and Inclusive Spaces and Well-Being. There were 265 applications to this grant. PHIDEAS received a grant under the Well-Being category.

The fruits of our labour:

Community Safety and Well-being (CSWB) Grant

To encourage community leaders and organizations to be involved in this strategy, the City of Edmonton offered a one-time grant program available only in 2022 - the Community Safety and Well-being (CSWB) Grant Program. These grants are one way to empower communities to be involved and, in this case, advance community safety and well-being.

A total of $1,581,157 was allocated to advance community safety and well-being through initiatives that address emergent community needs or opportunities, and that can be completed within the next 24 months. Community leaders and organizations with initiatives or projects that address emergent community needs that make Edmonton a more inclusive city and improve community safety and well-being, and align with CSWB Strategy outcomes, were eligible. (https://www.edmonton.ca/programs_services/funding_grants/ community-safety-and-well-being-cswb-grant)