2020 Creative Arts Gallery

The Holy Angels Dance Troupe was founded nearly 30 years ago by the late Joanna Nichols, a local dance teacher. Through the use of ballet and creative movement, the dancers have tapped into their creativity. It is an expressive form of art that helps each dancer learn to work together as members of a team, listen and participate in an activity that is fun for all.

The hand bell choir offers the participants the opportunity to learn basic musical rhythms and patterns and very basic chord construction. It also helps in the development of a musical ear (understanding what to listen for). The members must work as a team and follow directions – when to play – when to be quiet and focus on the director. In a performance settingthey must be poised and attentive to one another as well as the audience. The result . . . some beautiful music.

Located on our main campus, stands a large greenhouse and organic garden: the primary space for our Horticulture Therapy Program. Residents use adapted hand shovels and other special instruments to work in the soil, care for plants and engage their senses and creativity through gardening in an outdoor setting. Using raised beds to produce higher yields of fruits and vegetables – requiring less soil, water and maintenance – the organic gardens can be planted for all four seasons yielding year-round produce, including cucumbers, tomatoes, radishes and other foods used on menus in some of our facilities and at Cherubs Café.

For higher functioning individuals, the greenhouse also allows residents to develop important vocational skills and teamwork. A nearby pond with a fountain further stimulates with sights and sounds.

The Leonard Music Program, named in memory of Don Leonard and in honor of Lynn Leonard, is an innovative music therapy program that includes many opportunities for our residents to express themselves creatively using simple instruments and innovative tools to help improve cognitive, physical, social and emotional skills. The Sound Beam, an award-winning device that converts body, hand or arm movements into digitally generated sound, allows residents to hear and produce their own music through movement and interaction. The Rhythmic Arts Project (TRAP) is a cutting-edge music therapy that integrates drums and percussion instruments as creative learning tools that address life skills and enhance the mind, body and spirit.

When presented the opportunity to create art, our residents’ creative spirits are awakened. Using hand-over-hand techniques where staff members or volunteers place their hand over the resident’s, each individual creates their own artwork and make individualized choices in color, medium or textures. Integrated with communication therapy, residents enjoy creating beautiful works of art and visual expression.