Healthy Connections Students Showcase a Summer of Self-Expression

Last week, we capped off the conclusion of our Healthy Connections summer programming with a pair of showcases where students shared the hard work they put in throughout the summer on a variety of creative projects.

At their Tales from the Big Chair event at the Anacostia Arts Center, students exhibited original photography and illustrations, and even pitched their own podcast ideas to a panel of local influencers. Their art reflected their dreams for the future, as well as their experiences as teenagers growing up in Southeast Washington. Jaden, a 9th grader who worked in the photography program with our partner Critical Exposure, shared a portrait of his friend Jeremiah grinning, crouched next to a new car. Jeremiah, Jaden notes in the caption, treats the world like his oyster, and pushes Jaden to not give up on his own dream of being a lawyer.

Later in the week, students, their families, and neighbors convened at the FBR Boys and Girls Club, located within the THEARC, for another special presentation. First, students premiered an original film that will be featured prominently in Martha’s Table’s new Ward 8 headquarters. Then, each student presented their very own custom-built websites for business ideas they dreamed up by themselves. From an all-in-one vacation booking service to a farm-to-counter grocery market, their innovative presentations thoroughly impressed a group of professional marketers brought in to judge the sites and provide advice. Tim Weedon, who led the website-creation course, explained that the program was designed to help these young men and women think outside the box, and flip their perspective from consumers of technology to producers of it.

Martha’s Table was proud to work with Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Department of Employment Services to offer our summer programs as a designated Summer Youth Employment Program site. Thank you to all of our amazing partners who helped enrich our programming for teens and older youth this summer!