#Saytheirnames
I’ve been thinking about namessince the death of George Floyd. Hisname, and the names of other victims of violence such as Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Michael Brown,Eric Garner, Philando Castile, and Breonna Taylor. #SayTheirNames is a movement encouraging peopleand publications to focus on the humanity of black Americans beinginjured or killed in encounters with police or targeted with violence becauseof the color of their skin.
I have the privilege of workingwith a program called The Jeremiah Project. The Jeremiah Project is an after school and summer ceramic arts program formiddle school students in under-served communities. We operate out of the second story of theFirst Congregational Church of Winter Park, Florida. Seventeen years ago when welaunched our project, we hoped art could serve as a bridge crossing theeconomic and racial divide of Park Avenue to the west side of Winter Park. We don’t preach our theology to the studentswe serve, choosing instead to live our theology of empathy, compassion, andsocial justice. The program name wasinspired by a verse from the Old Testament book of Jeremiah…
Iwent down to the potter’s house and there he was working at his wheel….Thevessel he was making was spoiled in the potter’s hand and he reworked it intoanother vessel that seemed good to him…then the Lord said, “just like the clayin the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand.”
“Just like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand”. That line has served as such a wonderfulmetaphor for our program. Clay comesfrom the ground and grounds those who touch it; clay requires centering on thepotter’s wheel before it can be shaped; clay is forgiving, it can be remoldedif we make a mistake; shaping a vessel is similar to the power we have to shapeour own lives; opening the clay, a step in the process of clay creation issimilar to opening ourselves to our own infinite possibilities. These are the messages we hope, ever sosubtly to convey. It’s amazing how aball of clay and a spinning wheel ground and center even the most anxious ofpupils. And hearing bits and pieces ofthe lives of the children we serve makes us realize these kids have a lot to beanxious about.
Tyliah, Abigaelle, Anthony, Brianna, Jackson, Ayana, Jerome, are just a few of the names of the students we have served. It seems like a tiny thing but a staff mandate has always been to learn and call these students by their names. We consider this to be a small gesture of respect and acknowledgement for the bravery they have demonstrated even by showing up at our studio to learn something new and different. Our brave students are willing to take creative risks, often outside their comfort zone. Shy smiles and ear-to-ear grins offer evidence of newfound self-esteem and pride of accomplishment as kids behold their sculptures or cereal bowls fresh from the kiln.
The Jeremiah Project is fortunateto partner with the Central Florida Boys & Girls Clubs. Tasha Robinson Banks, the director of theLevy-Hughes branch in downtown Orlando honored our program by saying:
“What I love aboutthe Jeremiah Project is the connection the staff have with our kids. Some of our kids face challenges. The only way they have been able to expressthemselves is through art. I love thateach kid is inspired to be an individual. When you come to the Jeremiah Project you expect art but what you get incompassion.”
Austin Long, director of the EastAltamonte Springs branch said:
“I witnessed firsthand how the Jeremiah Project eliminates the perception of barriers that stopmany talented urban youth from realizing their full potential as productive,well rounded, successful, caring citizens.”
And Marquette Carmichael,programming director at the downtown Orlando Club shared this:
“I can’t begin toexplain how wonderful this program is and how it has changed the lives of manyof our children. These kids would nothave these opportunities otherwise.”
Teaching pottery techniques has never been the ultimate goal of The Jeremiah Project and we are humbled and honored our partners recognize that fact. I confess to feeling a sense of dread whenever I read the names of victims of violence in my community, fearing I might recognize one of those precious names. Lately, I’ve replaced that fear with the hope I might recognize the name or face of one or more of those young men and women marching on the front line for peace and justice.
