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Sunday, February 9, 2014

Let's Make Something Happen

This event started with a mission. It is a mission to feed. Feed the passionate. Feed the hungry. Feed the homeless, the forgotten and the lost.

We are called the Starving Artists. But let me say that no one that has participated in the show in the past has missed a meal lately. Our name jokingly refers to the stereotypical artist that is so broke they eat Ramen noodles, sleep on a mattress on the floor and ride the bus because they have no car. But, in America, if you are lucky enough to purchase art supplies, you are typically well fed and well dressed.

The Starving Starving Artists.

But that is not true for everyone.

So, while the first part of our mission is to connect the artist to the marketplace, the second part of our goal is to feed the hungry.

Local and abroad.

Locally, we have collected canned goods at our event and donated these to Impact Church to feed the homeless and to the Restoration Center that helps people transition back into the world after being released from prison. Both of these groups of people often have the fewest resources to work with to survive or make a place for themselves in the world. The food is collected from those who attend our show and put in the hands of those who need and appreciate it most right here in Rome, Ga.

To extend aid abroad, we support an organization called Next Generation Nepal.  This non-profit
group was founded to rescue trafficked children in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. Some of these children are orphans and some have been separated from their parents through a veiled kidnapping scheme. NGN runs multiple orphanages in Nepal for children rescued from illegal orphanages and other terrible living situations where children are fed very little, hidden in small dark rooms, made to pan handle in the streets and given little or no medical attention. Many suffer from malnutrition. Some do not survive. NGN also works to reconnect and return kidnapped children to their parents. The Starving Artist Expo has supported this organization since 2013 through donations from our patrons. Proceeds from the 2014 event will continue to support this organization through sales of the book Little Princes and proceeds from sales of Spotlighted Artist's work.

Read more about the book written by NGN's founder here:
http://momastery.com/blog/2013/01/11/book-numero-uno/

All this is to say that this event is more than an art show. It's about making things happen. Making someone's dream to be an artist come true. Helping someone who has been released from prison get back on their feet and make a new start. And helping little tiny feet find their way home to their parents all the way over in Nepal.

So save the date, grab some canned goods each time you go to the grocery store and order Little Princes off amazon.

And you can make some great things happen by coming to an Art Show.

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