Ben’s Bells Workshop

We were bribed with doughnuts.

And downtown.

On our day off.

My sister Leticia and I have gone to a few workshops presented by Susana Starbuck and Theresa Delaney of Creative Tribe Workshop. For this one, they partnered with Alyssa of Social Dogooder, an organization dedicated to spreading positivity and a sense of community in our city through events and meetups. For this workshop, we volunteered our time and art skills at a ceramics studio called Ben’s Bells.

Tyler briefly shared the backstory of Ben’s Bells with our small group. After a mother tragically lost her 3 year old son, Ben, she found that one of the only things that got her through each day was the gentle kindness of strangers. Eventually she got together with friends to create small pieces of artwork to hang in the community with a message attached. Whoever finds the bell is to take it with them and hang it as a reminder to be kind. Make the world a better place one act at a time. We have to help each other.

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Our table’s task was to paint the beads that hang from the bells using glaze, as the beads hadn’t been fired yet. Glaze is a colored liquid glass that melts together to a shine when fired in the kiln. The other table in the room got to apply 3 coats of brightly colored glaze to mini ceramic flowers that also decorate the completed hanging pieces. Between coats of glaze and selection of beads, we generously helped to consume the provided doughnuts, fruit kabobs, and juice while making new friends and chatting.

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Looking forward to the next event and continuing to donate my time to Ben’s Bells!

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