Artwork fills the lobby of the Goshen Theater for the next few weeks. It’s all created by members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Elkhart County.
Young artists from the Elkhart, Goshen, Middlebury and Nappanee Clubhouses have been working on the projects for the past few months. They competed for recognition in the county-wide art show on January 26.
“The goal is to showcase our kids and their abilities,” said Bethany Cornell, Boys & Girls Clubs of Elkhart County’s art supervisor. “We wanted to show off the work in a place where people can see it.”
The theater will showcase the work for the next month. Cornell said she’s please so many members wanted to take part in the contest, which is based on the Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Fine Arts Contest. Some of the winners will be forwarded as entries in that contest.
Nappanee Club member Sam Newcomer won the national contest last year. Cornell said 129 entries were submitted for the local contest.
“We had more participation than last year. I love that we have so many talented kids in the county and can showcase their work like this,” she said.
Susan Visser from Goshen Theater was one of the judges of the local contest. She said she was impressed by what she saw.
“I love kids’ art in general because it’s always so fresh. There was a huge diversity of style and quality,” she said.
Visser said young people often show creativity in unexpected ways.
“There is always a new generation of artists — a new generation of young people — which a new perspective on the world.”
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Elkhart County began operations in 1956. The Clubs offer programming and service opportunities for children and teens to reach their full potential within the community. Each day, the Clubs provide powerful relationships with the youth they serve and open avenues of opportunity for young people across their community by offering safe places where young people can learn, grow and succeed.
