A Phoenix-based nonprofit that provides free art programs to children affected by abuse recently expanded into Yavapai County as part of its goal to broaden its mission statewide. For some children the organization has been a lifeline.

In a video on the FreeArtsAZ.org website, Myra, 16, describes how her dance class allows her to let out her fear “and to make it into something great.” In June the group started a webcast series called Canvas of the Heart, which can be seen on YouTube.

Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona has been operating for 30 years, but it only served metro Phoenix communities till August, when it held a reception actively seeking local volunteers to train to work with children with backgrounds of abuse in the home or who have had other traumatic experiences. The group’s goal is to eventually expand throughout the state, says Matt Sandoval, vice president of programs for the group. Its next expansion location is Tucson, part of a ten-year strategic plan.

“We don't imagine (expanding) equally across the state,” Sandoval said. “It’s more a function of where our population lives, and where the community rallies around it. We've had a great response, beyond our expectations, with Prescott so far, so we're excited.” A board-certified art therapist started the original nonprofit location in Los Angeles in 1977, and individual nonprofits formed in Portland Oregon, New York and Phoenix.

“They have experienced abuse, neglect or homelessness,” Sandoval said of the children in the program. “Most of them are in some way involved with the child-welfare system. Many of the young people that we work with come from group homes and some also from foster families.”

Free Arts currently serves an average of 7,500 children each year, ranging in age from kindergarteners to 18-year-olds. Its programs are supported by 700 volunteers along with 110 paid teachers and 50 paid positions for program alumni. Art forms taught in the program include painting, drawing, cooking, dancing, writing, drumming and beat-making. While many of its programs are planned in coordination with existing nonprofits that serve children, including Big Brothers Big Sisters and Boys and Girls Clubs, Free Arts also holds standalone days of programming, or “free art days,” usually at a cultural center like a museum or performing-arts center.

Sandoval said the group started its push into Yavapai County when staff met with Mike and Jodi Maas, two married painters who used to volunteer for Free Arts in Phoenix and have been living in Prescott for several years. The couple assisted in getting the group information on potential volunteers through arts groups and connections so that they could invite them to the August reception. Catholic Charities, school districts in Cottonwood, Sedona and several in the Prescott area and the Prescott Public Library are among the entities expressing interest in hosting workshops through the group.

“If we find an artist in the community who says, ‘I want to come, teach sculpture, I'd love to work in your program,’ we'll talk to them,” Sandoval said. “We find our onboarding process will determine if they fit with our theory of change and how we work with young people. Sometimes adding an artist to our cadre of other artists can lead into programming very quickly. So we do really offer art that matters to the young people and is a function of the artists themselves.”

The volunteer teachers undergo an hour-long orientation before they can sign up for the program. They’re required to complete an application, provide references, get a fingerprint card and undergo a background screening. A one-on-one interview helps the staff get to know volunteers and how to best use their skills. Once accepted they undergo training in how to interact with children and about adverse childhood experiences, trauma-informed care, self-regulation and using the arts for self-expression.

While the group focuses on children up to 18, this past summer it added a young-adult program because so many of the population it serves are in foster care who have aged out of the program, but are still not on their own.

“We've established something new called our young-adult empowerment program,” Sandoval said. “That's actually going to create programming specific to people 18 to 25. But that is brand new, so things are just beginning to be offered for the age group. … I think we all know there just needs to be a little bit more support there while they're managing life and understanding the big choices. It’s about handling a huge adjustment for someone who's transitioning out of child welfare.”

Sandoval said the group intends to start setting up both orientations and trainings locally to attract potential volunteers and artists. He said Free Arts hopes to have some events in Yavapai County set up by the beginning of 2024.