Meagan Cain, Volunteer Coordinator
I become connected with COW by an unlikely request: would I be interested in taking art kits with me on my upcoming trip to Tanzania, East Africa? Although I had my doubts as I managed to fit 28 art kits into my already overstuffed backpack, the experiencing of bringing art to a remote village became one of the most meaningful events of the entire trip. From overcrowded buses, to a ferry across Lake Victoria, to motorcycles through Kampala, to a raft down the Nile, to hostels in Rwanda, when I finally arrived in the village of Igodivaha with art kits in hand, I knew that bringing the supplies to the village was only half the journey. For the next few days, art became a bridge across two different worlds and I watched in amazement as children who had never even seen a crayon opened up their lives on pieces of paper.

My role within COW is to connect individuals to opportunities to share in different, yet very similar experiences. As a graduate student in Community Health Education, I appreciate the connection between artistic expression and ownership of art as a pathway to positive self-image and community building. Reaching diverse individuals through art is an amazing gift to share in, not only for the individuals receiving the supplies but for those who help to distribute them. My role is to sniff out those opportunities to share our supplies and to connect those capable of participating in this amazing process to the opportunities to do so.

Antonia David, Media Jedi