My incredible Operation Sock Monkey Western Division teamof youth, teachers, support staff, community members of all ages have been hard at work since July, volunteering time and donating supplies and monkeys.
And now part of this great sock monkey collection goes on sale this Saturday at the Strathcona Craft Fair 10 AM-4 PM! 601 Keefer, Vancouver BC
Only $20 each!
Proceeds benefits the KYT Foundation‘s water pipeline project in Nepal as well as my sock monkey therapy for local at-risk youth!
Huge thank you to my sock monkey makers and support team!
I love you all!!! YOU ARE AMAZING!
Special mention to my hero Lynn Gosnell, “Auntie Lynn,” who has created and donated an incredible collection of her monkeys. She is an angel on earth and has positively impacted countless of youth in her many years as a child and youth worker.
Auntie Lynn receiving a sock monkey made by student, Liz, at Keith Lynn Alternative Secondary School in 2011.
And thank you to our beloved customers and donors whose generosity keeps us going!
This is such a feel-good craftivist movement for everyone involved!!!
Check out:
UPDATE November 30, 2015:
The craft sale went well!!! We sold about thirty monkeys- most at $20 each, some at $10 and some given to vulnerable kids. We raised $524.00! I sent $290.00 to KYT Foundation and the rest goes to much-needed supplies and free workshops with local homeless women and youth, as well workshops with refugee youth and students at Mountainside Secondary.
My daughter, Anna Thorsen, manned the booth with me and Queen of sock monkeys, Auntie Lynn, visited us! Her monkeys were a huge hit!Operation Sock Monkey Western Division Operative, Leann Weisbecker, dropped off some gorgeous creations!One of our very happy customers!
Mountainside will be hosting a craft sale December 11 at which we will sell more monkeys (funds from the craft table rentals and sock monkey sales to KYT) and I have a stock of 20 at home I will be offering on ETSY (proceeds to KYT). LINK
I held a workshop for refugee youth last month and we all had a great time! Monkeys spoke a language we all understood! I will be offering more of these workshops in the new year as the need increases and will be assisted by social justice students.
Tons of love! Kat
“I am doing what I can.” – Dukdukdiya, the hummingbird
Update December 9, 2015
A total of $350.00 has been donated so far to Kamala Yonzon Tahrayli Foundation from Operation Sock Monkey sock monkey sales from Nov 28 craft fair sales and Dec 7 sales. Sock monkeys were made by local community members and students at Mountainside Secondary School! And the school is holding a craft fair on Friday Dec 11 to benefit KYT Foundation!
Operation Sock Monkey Western Division is embarking on a Summer journey to create 200 + sock monkeys that will be sold to benefit the KYT FOUNDATION a Vancouver, B.C.-based non-profit established to bring flowing water to a remote Nepali village in the Kabre Palanchowk District; Healay Chaubas. The village is now rebuilding after the earthquake and is in urgent need of help.
Kamala’s dream to bring water to her village has been in progress since her father’s passing 5 years ago. But after the devastating earthquake, 80% of the buildings in Kamala’s village have been ruined and the residents now sleep in the fields. As the residents begin the difficult task of rebuilding, this is the optimum time to bring in a water pipeline as infrastructure is reevaluated.
Photos courtesy KYT Foundation
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I want to help in a substantial way while at the same time creating healing projects in our local community. Nothing is quite as healing as sewing a sock monkey!
And having a goal of 200 monkeys truly lights the fire!
Operation Sock Monkey, Keith Lynn Alternative Secondary School 2010Operation Sock Monkey, Keith Lynn Alternative Secondary School 2010
I’ll be coordinating my teams of sock monkey makers (of all ages) in my local circles in Vancouver, BC- we’ll work individually and in groups and host sock monkeys sew-ins. The goal is to collect 200 monkeys as a group for a major craft sale. Additional monkeys will also be up for adoption/sponsorship starting now and will be sent to the village to do healing work on the ground.
$20from the sale of each monkey will be donated directly to the KYT FOUNDATION
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HOW YOU CAN HELP/JOIN!
1. Sponsor a sock monkey– $10. You’ll receive a picture of the sock monkey and your name and message will be added to the sock monkey’s tag. Sponsored sock monkeys will be collected and sent to Kamala’s village in the Fall.
Click on this button:
2. Donate $ for supplies and snacks and shipping costs– we are volunteers and gather our own supplies and host workshops in homes and at schools. We could use $ to purchase supplies like sock, stuffing and to cover shipping costs.
Click on this button:
3. Make a sock monkey and send it to us to join the group of 200! Message me for my address as I will be collecting them!
Kamala and Sunkosi of the KYT Foundation (china marker on newsprint)
Kamala Yonzon and her daughter Sunkosi treated me to a beautiful Nepalese dinner at Café Kathmandu last night and we chatted about life and creativity and family. I am so blessed to connect on a deeper level with these two extraordinary women.
The Kamala Yonzon Tahrayli Foundation is a Vancouver, B.C.-based non-profit established to bring flowing water to a remote Nepali village in the Kabre Palanchowk District; Healay Chaubas.
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Kamala’s dream to bring water to her village has been in progress since her father’s passing 5 years ago. Now with the devastating earthquake, the dream has become an urgent quest. 80% of the buildings in Kamala’s village have been ruined and the residents now sleep in the fields.
Photo courtesy of Kamala YonzonPhoto courtesy of Kamala Yonzon
As the residents begin the difficult task of rebuilding, this is the optimum time to bring in a water pipeline as infrastructure is reevaluated.
My youth programming continues to maintain a connection to the KYT Foundation.
Next goals, besides a social media/awareness push, is a fundraising dinner hosted by Kamala, a re-creation of the distance walked by villagers to get water from the nearest river and interactive art installation and a school-wide celebration.
Help us reach the $5000 goal! ❤️
The Nepalese national flower: rhododendron (chinamarker and acrylic on newsprint)
North Vancouver teen finds her passion through arts-based program and launches campaign to raise funds to bring water tank and pipeline to remote village in Nepal:
It is such an honor to be facilitating The Inside Out Project at Mountainside Secondary, North Vancouver, with my colleague Ian Powell.
The heart of the Inside Out Project is to awaken the passion within the participants- to encourage the students to own their journey– and to support them as they project-plan and as they enter their futures.
Can art change the world? Maybe… we should change the question: Can art change people’s lives? – JR
Caddy’s passion:
Caddy Pattison, a Mountainside student who has struggled with school avoidance and her own challenges, awakened to her passion during the Inside Out Project– to make a positive global impact and to create awareness about conditions children and youth experience around the world.
Caddy is specifically inspired to raise awareness about children who need to walk miles for water daily, impeding their ability to attend school.
Serendipitously, when Caddy told me her idea, I knew of a local/global cause that fits the bill.
The cause:
I connected Caddy with my friend, Kamala Yonzon, of the KYTFOUNDATION.
The Kamala Yonzon Tahrayli Foundation is a Vancouver, B.C.-based non-profit established to bring flowing water to a remote Nepali village in the Kabre Palanchowk District; Healay Chaubas.
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Caddy’s mission:
Caddy’s mission is to help Kamala raise the $20,000 needed to build the tank and pipeline for her village. This will open the opportunity for children to attend school, for the building of a local hospital, to create employment etc.
My name is Caddy Pattison and I’m starting my year of empowerment and change by raising awareness for the remote Nepal village in the Kabre Palanchowk District; Healay Chaubas.
This community walks over an hour, several times a day, for a jug of water from the river. That means whenever they want to cook, clean, bathe, or simply get a drink they’re walking miles to do so. It is mostly the children and women of the community that are doing the walking and missing out on an education. With this campaign, I am looking to raise $20,000 for a water pipeline leading from the river to the village. There is also going to be a substantial walk in June to put ourselves in their shoes. Once the pipeline is started, it will create room for employment, education, and empowerment in the community.
We have the advantage in North America of having an endless water supply, free education, and millions of chances for employment. Take a moment to please like and share this page with your family and friends to raise awareness for this good cause. Donations will begin in May, but if you are eager to help, you can donate at http://kytfoundation.org/ . This is a honest, and tangible foundation. 100% of the proceeds will be going to building the pipeline. We are currently looking for sponsors for promotion.
Thank you for taking the time to read and your consideration. – Caddy Pattison
Caddy’s action plan:
Caddy is now in process of achieving this goal. She has met with Kamala, created a plan of action, a blog, a facebook page.
Caddy meeting with Kamala and Kamala’s daughter, Suna.
Caddy’s blog:
Caddy’s Facebook page:
Caddy has presented to the school district:
Congratulations Caddy Pattison on an incredible presentation on Feb 10, 2015 in front of 150 teachers #SD44 on your #walkforwater project benefitting KYT FOUNDATION and thank you Parmida Afsahi for documenting the event and to my colleague Ian Powell.
And has presented to the legislature in Victoria:
Sr. MSS student Caddy Pattison at the Victoria Legislature telling her story and experiences at MSS to the Premier and MLA’s on this Bully Free Pink Shirt Day!! Caddy spoke eloquently about mental health, finding support at school, and wrap around services.Caddy and Mountainside principal, Jeremy Church, on their way to Victoria.
And Caddy attends school!
Caddy has struggled with school avoidance and lack of engagement. Mountainside has provided her with the safe haven she needs to heal and develop to her full potential. And her Walk for Water Nepal project is teaching her life skills and academic skills in a way that has true longevity and positive impact on both Caddy and the community.
So what’s next?
Several events have been planned to lead up to the main fundraising event on Indiegogo Life in May.
Pre-launch events such as:
• Awareness and activty day with Braemar Elementary School
• A North Vancouver walk event
• An instagram hashtag selfie campaign
• A re-creation of the length of the walk and the weight of the water the children in the village have to endure on a daily basis.
So why this one cause, this one girl?
Caddy illustrates the future of education– passion-based learning. To truly engage students we must engage their passion and we must share our own. Profound life skills are organically learned. The student and teacher, the school and the community at large are profoundly and positively impacted.
When instruction is driven not just by data but by the passions of the students behind the data there is no child left behind scratching their head wondering what they’re going to do with their lives. – Lisa Nielsen
So what can you do to help?
Caddy’s cause needs $. That is indeed the goal- for Caddy to present Kamala with a cheque for $20,000 by June 2015. On one hand, that is alot of $. But is it? Not in this internet age.
• So start saving your pennies for the May campaign.
• Stay tuned here for the events mentioned above.
• If you are in the media, interview Caddy.
• If you are on social media: Share Caddy’s story. Share Kamala’s story.
• If you are inspired by this story, find your own passion. Share it with us!
On September 30, 2014, I began my collaboration with Ian Powell at Mountainside Secondary on the INSIDE OUT PROJECT- OWN YOUR JOURNEY, inspired by my hero JR:
My portrait of JR, China Marker on Newsprint, pasted in Gastown in 2014
MOUNTAINSIDE SECONDARY: Inside Out Project: Own Your Journey
Youth-run initiative using the vehicle of portrait photography and street art to learn life and transferable skills while developing self-empowerment, peer to peer interaction and community connections.
THEMES: Connection and Empowerment
As they work through the curriculum, the students gain valuable life and transferable skills.
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We use TED TALKS to inspire and to induce dialogue and self-reflection around the theme.
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Student journal entry
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When you try to be yourself there will be people who will put you down. You grow up looking up to people and not knowing who you are and being told what to do and what not to do. We all deal with pain in different ways- some do it in a sad way. Having to live in a world where judging a person we don’t even know is a good way to make yourself feel better, or even judging a person makes ‘cool.’ But in the end we are all on this earth for a reason ans we should all love ourselves the way we are and respect all of our good qualities and get rid of all the negative, cruelty thoughts. – student journal entry
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Our unique angle is that this is a youth run project: by addressing their own vulnerability as they connect wtih people/community through portrait photography, the youth feel empowered— and, in turn— empower the subject to feel comfortable being vulnerable in front of the camera!
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Behind-the-scenes documentary by Parmida Afsahi:
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The curriculum includes photography, rubrics, journaling, mindmapping, project planning, visual art, wheatpasting, discussions, field trips, group work and self-directed studies from animation to community projects.
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The project continues until the end of April.
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The plan is for the project to culminate in a large outdoor installation in the Spring.
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The beauty of an art project is that you cannot always measure the impact, but one day it can become clear.
– JR
Can art change the world? Maybe… we should change the question: Can art change people’s lives? – JR
Congratulations Caddy Pattison on an incredible presentation on Feb 10, 2015 in front of 150 teachers #SD44 on your #walkforwater project benefitting KYT FOUNDATION and thank you Parmida Afsahi for documenting the event and to my colleague Ian Powell.
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STAY TUNED FOR INCREDIBLE NEWS RE: INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH PROJECTS AND GLORIOUS ANIMATIONS!
