Sparks United

With the wild weather this week, we have had to make the unfortunate decision to cancel our pool party on Saturday. The funds already donated can be transferred to our fall event, or we will be happy to refund you. Please contact us with any questions you may have and thank you for joining us on this journey!

“In the 20 years since the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 defined “arts” as a “core academic subject,” and the six years since the Every Student Succeeds Act declared them as part of a “well-rounded education,” arts education in American public schools has shrunk dramatically. The Commission on the Arts, at the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, says we are at a crisis point, where access to arts education is declining steadily—and action must be taken to reverse the trend.”

Sparks is on a mission to provide every opportunity to every child that needs it. We believe in the power of the arts and pouring into the next generation. Please reach out to us if you’d like to get involved!

data taken from https://www.amacad.org/news/arts-education-report

Did you know that we teach everything from music to cooking to chess? Sparks is dedicated to the enrichment of every student in every way possible!

If you want to get involved, join us for our Pool Party Fundraiser on August 27! You can donate $50 via cash app or PayPal and get all the details!
CashApp: $SparksUnited
PayPal: PayPal.me/sparksunited

Creativity is just one of the sparks we hope to ignite in our students. It seeps into every area our lives and can help propel us forward. We hope to empower our students with the skills to strengthen their creativity and think outside the box.

If you’re interested in learning more, be sure to check out our website or shoot us a DM!

We are strong believers in the multiple benefits that the arts bring to children’s lives. Impacting their overall GPA or test scores for the better only sets them up for further success.

*data taken from Americans for the Arts

Baby it’s cold outside! Got a full closet? We would love take any gently used (or new!) coats off your hands and get them to those in need! Thanks to all our sponsors for hosting drop off locations! Together we can spark change in our communities.
Drop off locations include:
Elevate Performing Arts Center

Phoenix Community Church of Gainesville

Urbain Hair Artistry

Downtown Drafts

J’s Place Recovery Center

Aldo’s Barbershop

Northside Church

The Dance Company

Harvest Kitchen

Wayne Farms Corporate Office

We love this!

Wow... THIS LETTER. In 2006 a high school English teacher asked students to write a famous author and ask for advice. Kurt Vonnegut was the only one to respond - and his response is magnificent: “Dear Xavier High School, and Ms. Lockwood, and Messrs Perin, McFeely, Batten, Maurer and Congiusta:

I thank you for your friendly letters. You sure know how to cheer up a really old geezer (84) in his sunset years. I don’t make public appearances any more because I now resemble nothing so much as an iguana.

What I had to say to you, moreover, would not take long, to wit: Practice any art, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage, no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame, but to experience becoming, to find out what’s inside you, to make your soul grow.

Seriously! I mean starting right now, do art and do it for the rest of your lives. Draw a funny or nice picture of Ms. Lockwood, and give it to her. Dance home after school, and sing in the shower and on and on. Make a face in your mashed potatoes. Pretend you’re Count Dracula.

Here’s an assignment for tonight, and I hope Ms. Lockwood will flunk you if you don’t do it: Write a six line poem, about anything, but rhymed. No fair tennis without a net. Make it as good as you possibly can. But don’t tell anybody what you’re doing. Don’t show it or recite it to anybody, not even your girlfriend or parents or whatever, or Ms. Lockwood. OK?

Tear it up into teeny-weeny pieces, and discard them into widely separated trash recepticals. You will find that you have already been gloriously rewarded for your poem. You have experienced becoming, learned a lot more about what’s inside you, and you have made your soul grow.

God bless you all!

Kurt Vonnegut

Amongst all the crazy - we are believing in the power of people and a single vision
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Quarantine got us on that cooking daze
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We hope that everyone is staying safe, staying home, and making the best of this unique time in history. Our thoughts go out to everyone feeling the burden of this pandemic. While we don’t know how long this will last; we look forward to seeing you again soon. Until then; wash your hands and cook all the food
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