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Project ClayPlay Newsletters:
Our Programs accomplish our mission:
The Mud Dauber I brought a weekly class to 5th grade students at Wooten Elementary School in April and May. During the summer, classes were held for 8 sessions at Santa Rita Courts and George Washington Carver Museum in East Austin. Fall was busy with classes at Wooten for 2nd grade students, at the Kealing Middle School internship program, at Lifeworks Transitional Living Program and Booker T. Washington housing project. Public exhibits of student work were held with receptions at Carver Museum, Santa Rita Courts and Kealing. Despite the late start, we served 129 students in these classes during the year.
Classes will continue at these sites, in partnership with 21st Century, Citizen Schools and Lifeworks. We plan to begin classes at additional sites as funding for salaries and supplies becomes available. Clearly, the children experience the joy of clay.
Community Outreach involves many people:
The Mud Dauber I brought clay play activities to children at the Austin Cycling Association Family Ride in Bertram in April, to the Juneteenth celebration at the Carver Museum, the 4th of July picnic at Ramsey Park, the Kealing Magnet reunion, and Pflugerfest. Austin Groups for the Elderly engaged Project ClayPlay to bring clay classes to 51 seniors at Elderhaven day program sites in Austin and Round Rock. Over 500 people participated during the year.
Enthusiastic Community Support:
Our major funders are A Glimmer of Hope Foundation, Dell, 3M, LCRA Employees United Charities, Texas Commission on the Arts and City of Austin Cultural Division. Volunteers presented two major fundraising events: a theater gala and silent auction in March and a sale of ClayWays student work in August. The Director and instructors of Project ClayPlay are part time, and these events could not have occurred without the 350 hours of volunteer work from the Board of Directors and supporters. Besides many individual donations, in-kind gifts included the Mud Dauber, a laptop and printer, and secure parking for the mobile studio.
Project ClayPlay will meet Future Challenges:
We continue to seek fee income from corporate team building events, or private birthday parties. We have stable funding for our current level of classes and several summer workshops, but have many requests to serve additional sites in Austin, and also rural low income children in Hays County and Manor.
The Mud Dauber has had some mechanical problems this year, and we need to pay off the costs for repair. We could us a smaller vehicle for sites where the Dauber cannot be used. We need a team to strip the clearcoat off the Dauber so that it can be wrapped with our logo and information. We continue to need lots of volunteers. We would like to hire a permanent Executive Director at 50% time to expand programs and donor support.
June 2010