Students reach out with the arts

MILFORD — The Delaware Valley High School Art Club is encouraging students to think seriously about the tradition and disciplines of the arts. Up to the present, the arts have played an essential role in enabling human beings to make sense of their world, to live with suffering when necessary and to be able to celebrate the joy of life. With that in mind, the Art Club has embarked on a journey to incorporate art into the lives of the senior citizens who reside at the Milford Convalescent home. For five to six weeks the students will be creating a community with the senior citizens comprised of the various arts, including literature, music, dance/movement, and visual arts. In a meeting on Oct. 14, the Literature Group of the art club designed a program in which the students interviewed the senior citizens to find out about their lives. They were able to touch each other’s lives through conversation and art, culminating in a drawing of their experience. The first session was a total success; students came back to the school overjoyed with what they had accomplished. They wrote poetry for the senior citizens to include in a book the students are creating of each experience to give to the senior citizens upon completion of the community art. The art club is grateful to Marla Dembeck Hulse, director of resident services, for her cooperation in facilitating this program. The students are looking forward to their next topic with the seniors- music.