Dear FCT Family,
May is about to start, bringing with it many wonderful traditions, celebrations, and festivals, like International Workers Day, Wake Up the Earth, Cinco de Mayo, and Mothers' Day. We hope you'll join us in celebrating the season, culture, family, and our power as workers!
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FCT runs Spring, Summer, and Fall Family Arts Learning Cycles, each with:
- A family art workshop series exploring an art form and a theme (4-6 sessions)
- A fieldtrip connected to the theme
- A training for parents/caregivers on using FCT's "process-oriented" approach to art with their children at home (2 sessions)
FCT PROGRAMS
 Final Session Wed. May 1, 5–7pm at Unitarian Universalist Urban Ministry, 10 Putnam St, Roxbury (on 41 bus; near Orange Line Roxbury Crossing stop and Dudley Sq. bus station; parking available)
Our intergenerational participants, families with members ages 2 - 70, have sculpted and glazed clay artwork, then built multimedia backdrops to tell the stories of their pieces. Visitors are welcome at the closing session to hear & celebrate the stories! (Reply to this email or call/text Maria Christina at 617-372-3022 to let us know if you will be coming as a visitor)
SPRING SERIES FOLLOWUP FIELDTRIP
All are welcome to join FCT's Spring workshop participants for a Field Trip to learn more about the art form of ceramics, which they explored in the series. (To coordinate with the group, reply to this email or call/text Maria Christina at 617-372-3022; or attend the event on your own at your convenience.)
Harvard University Ceramics Program Spring Show & Sale (All Ages), Gallery 224, 224 Western Ave, Allston (66 bus)
THURS 5/09, 4-8pm (Opening Reception); FRI-SUN 5/10-5/12, 10am-7pm
 50+ artists display clay artwork from functional dinnerware to sculptural masterpieces at Gallery 224, the Ceramics Program’s dedicated exhibition space. Wheelthrowing & handbuilding demonstrations by exhibiting artists provide opportunities for visitors to view the techniques and skills represented by the work on display. Proceeds from sales of mugs support scholarships to the program.
FREE!
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FREE & LOW-COST
ARTS, CULTURAL & SCIENCE EVENTS
with FCT's community partners
Click links in listings for more info; follow any instructions to register. **All locations wheelchair-accessible**
IMPORTANT! For events that cost $, if you make a reservation but don't go, you're still responsible for payment of your tickets.
QUESTIONS? Reply to this email or call/text Maria Christina (617-372-3022)
Intelligent Lives Film Screening (All Ages), Boston Teachers Union, 180 Mt. Vernon St, Dorchester (41 bus, Red Line JFK/UMass stop)
TUES 4/30, 5-7pm
 Join BPS Students, Families & Educators for a Screening & Discussion of this film starring 3 pioneering young American adults w/intellectual disabilities – Micah, Naieer (a BPS student!), and Naomie – who challenge perceptions of intelligence as they navigate high school, college, & the workforce. What should “inclusion done right” look like in our schools and communities? What responsibility does BPS have supporting inclusive transition plans post-high school? Meet Boston individuals featured in the film and join the conversation about how we can all work towards creating BPS schools and Boston communities where the contributions and talents of all are valued!
FREE! ASL interpretation, childcare, light dinner provided
Wake Up the Earth Festival (All Ages), Parades from Monument Sq. (Centre St, Jamaica Plain) & Egleston Sq. (Washington St, Roxbury) to festival site at Stony Brook T Station Field, 100 Boylston St, JP
SAT 5/04: Parades 11am-12pm; Festival 12-6pm
 In its 41st year, this parade & festival commemorates neighbors & activists banding together to stop Interstate 95 from cutting apart the Jamaica Plain neighborhood in the 70's. A celebration of what can be accomplished when people of all traditions, cultures, ages, and beliefs come together, it features music, dance, and other performances and 50+ craft, food, & nonprofit vendors.
FREE!
James & the Giant Peach: A Musical (Ages 6+) Wheelock Family Theatre, 180 Riverway, Fenway (near Fenway & Longwood stops on Green D-line, parking available at MASCO garage, 375 Longwood Ave)
SUN 5/05, 2PM (ASL-interpreted/Audio-described)
 In a new musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s classic story, James’ thrilling quest across the pond leads him to discover family and home in the most unlikely of places. Click this link for written and video preview materials, including a study guide for students and a "Social Story" to prepare children with developmental or neurological differences.
$5/person discounted tickets thru FCT. (DON'T ORDER ON THEATRE WEBSITE - Register by replying to this email or calling/texting Maria Christina by Friday 12pm, then submit cash payment to the FCT staff attending that performance. ONCE REGISTERED, YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR PAYMENT EVEN IF YOU DON'T GO)
"Wee Free Black Mamas" Card-Making Marathon & Bailout Fundraiser (All Ages), MassArt DMC Atrium, 621 Huntington Ave, Boston (Green E Line MassArt stop, 39 bus)
SUN 5/05, 2-4pm
 A kid-powered creativity marathon with snacks and face-painting, we'll make Mother's Day cards & #FreeHer t-shirts to honor incarcerated women, crafting with stamps, collage, fabric, stencils. Also featuring: Boston Public Library Bibliocycle's pop-up book lounge; booths to learn about local orgs leading the movement to #EndMoneyBail and support families with incarcerated loved ones -- Families for Justice as Healing, Emancipation Initiative - Against Life Without Parole, Sisters Unchained, the Mass. Bail Fund; storytime & teach-in, where kids can learn how money bail hurts our communities, and how we can act.
FREE! (Donation of any amount requested)
Arnold Arboretum Family Hike: Flower Power (All Ages), leaving from Visitor Center, 125 Arborway, Jamaica Plain (Forest Hills stop on Orange Line, on-street parking available)
SUN 5/19, 2-3:30pm
 Families need nature at all times of the year! Meet inside the main gate at the Visitor Center. We’ll look at buds and blooms and learn how bees find flowers. Go on a StoryWalk®, get a bee tattoo, and look at flowers under microscopes.
FREE! (In case of inclement weather: 617-384-5209)
Memorial Day Open House at the MFA (All Ages), Museum of Fine Arts, 465 Huntington Ave, Boston (on Green E-line, 39 bus)
MON 5/27, 10am-5pm
 Start the summer season with family art-making activities, gallery tours and talks, musical performances, and a Frida Kahlo-inspired puppet show. Participate in fun outdoor activities and make art inspired by the exciting exhibitions on view, including “Toulouse-Lautrec and the Stars of Paris” and “Frida Kahlo and Arte Popular.”
FREE!
Haley House Block Party (All Ages), Montgomery St. between Dartmouth & Union Park, South End (Orange Line Back Bay stop, Silver Line Bus)
SAT 6/01, 4-7pm
 Kicking off summer with Haley House's 16th annual Block Party & Fundraiser, a fun neighborhood event featuring silent auction items & raffle prizes, music, games & activities for kids, wine tasting, and food.
FREE for kids, $10 suggested donation for adults
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TAKE ACTION for Arts & Accessibility
The Mass. Cultural Council (MCC), which makes grants to thousands of organizations in all 351 Mass. cities/towns, reaching millions of program attendees, is an important funder of FCT. In April, the Ways & Means Committee of the Mass. House of Representatives put forth a proposed state budget that included a $533K budget increase to MCC for arts, humanities, and sciences! This month and next, our state legislature will be debating and finalizing the Mass. budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2019. As MA residents, we need to raise our voices to support this arts funding. If you value the programs FCT and groups like us are able to offer affordably because of this state funding, please call or email your Representative NOW (find their contact info with the lookup tool at this link) and tell them: "I support the increased money for arts, humanities, and sciences proposed in the House Ways and Means FY20 budget. My family has benefited from arts workshops, trainings, and fieldtrips at Families Creating Together, funded by the Mass. Cultural Council." [Put it in your own words if you can.] Thanks for your advocacy!!!
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Families Creating Together is a program of the JP Tree Of Life Coalition and Community Service Care, Inc. FCT gratefully acknowledges financial support from the Lenny Zakim Fund, the Boston Cultural Council, the Mass. Cultural Council, our individual donors, and the generous in-kind contributions of our host site partners.
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