Light of Chance, a nonprofit organization that serves area youth through innovative arts and wellness programs, launched a GoFundMe campaign this week in an effort to raise money to keep the organization’s “Breathe” program up and running.
The campaign began Wednesday and its goal is to raise $4,200 in three weeks to pay its year lease at the Rosenwald-Smith Multicultural Center.
“One of our biggest expenses is our leasing,” executive director Eric Logan, a Bowling Green resident, said. “If we can get that taken care of, then that will ensure that our program is around for at least another year.”
The program’s staff is comprised entirely of volunteers who meet with the children, grades 5-12, from 3:30-6 p.m. on Tuesdays. They are music teachers, dance instructors and artists who give their time to foster the childrens’ creativity, according to Logan.
“We allow the kids to be free to create and we challenge them,” he said. “I think they really respond to that. Even though it’s only one day a week, we still have a huge impact on the kids.”
That impact extends beyond the creative outlet it provides for children, according to 14-year-old Kayley Tucker.
Tucker has been attending sessions for more than a year now, and said that while she came to the program for the music, it affected her life in multiple ways.
“When I came here, I met some of the best people I’ve met in my whole life,” she said. “This program has actually gotten me through a lot. You come here and you’re surrounded by people that love you, and you know they love you. That can help somebody a lot.”
Another attendee, 12-year-old Bruce Gilbert, said he’d had a similar experience.
“The people here are nice,” Gilbert said. “If you’re having trouble with something, they will try to help you. I want people to know that this is a really fun place.”
Logan said he thinks the children enjoy their experience at Breathe because they are free to express themselves and be in control.
“A lot of people want to tell kids what to do and how to do it,” he said. “We listen to them. We ask them what they want to do and foster their creativity. We really take into consideration what they’re thinking.
“These kids are creating this art that is powerful, meaningful and exciting,” he continued. “It just happens to be kids doing it.”
Jontae Minor, 14, said he has attended Breathe for its music program since the age of 10. Minor likes to sing, rap and write music.
“(Breathe) is helpful for everybody,” he said. “You’re expressing yourself and showing it to the world. You can influence everybody else.”
Tiera Brown, a 17-year-old with autism, comes to the program to improve her vocal abilities.
“I love to sing because my mom told me I had a great voice,” Brown said. “She wanted me to share it with the whole world. The best thing about this place is that you get to be with your friends and learn.”
For Logan, the program is an opportunity to do what he loves: helping kids.
“It’s all about the kids,” he said. “I love to see their faces (when they’re learning or performing). You can’t put a price on that. It’s what makes me drive 100 miles from my doorstep to get here.
“We really need the community’s support, though,” he continued. “There’s no program like this in Hopkins County. We are making a positive impact in these children’s lives.”
For more information or to donate, visit www.gofundme.com/breatheprogram. Donation checks can be made out to “Light of Chance” and sent to P.O. Box 1932 in Madisonville.
Karis Rogerson
Messenger Intern
krogerson@the-messenger.com