COCHRANE— Young artists are brewing alongside the bubble tea at a local shop this summer thanks to a trifecta of community efforts.
With funding from Home Treasures, the non-profit Filipino-Canadian Association of Cochrane Alberta (FCACA) launched the Kids Summer Painting Workshop for youth ages six to 10 on July 6.
The workshop runs every Tuesday and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., until Sept. 2 at Bubble Tea Brewers Cochrane.
“It's part of our call as officers in the Filipino community, both of us,” Edwin Aguanta said, vice-president of the FCACA, who co-coordinates the classes with Mila Prout, secretary of the non-profit.
“It just so happens that we are passionate with arts. We want to share it with the new generation right now.”
The workshop started as a way to allow youth to explore their creative side, while also giving parents, especially frontline workers, some relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prout said it has also been a great opportunity to give back to a local business.
Each week, which comes with two painting sessions, costs $20 and comes with an order of bubble tea that participants can take home to enjoy.
“This workshop would not have been possible without Home Treasures,” Prout said. “They gave us money to buy all the supplies for the kids.”
Some of the supplies include canvases, paints and brushes lining the tables of the workshop.
The classes are designed to progress from a beginner to an advanced level. However, this is flexible based on the penchant of each participant and all who have an interest are welcome.
“In the first level we do, we teach them basic colours, basic mixing, strokes and stuff,” Aguanta said. “This is just for children to be exposed in art and somehow unleash their creativity, their creative juices. I always tell them imagination is the limit.”
Not only has it allowed kids in the community a creative outlet, it has also created a fun space for them to socialize with their peers, and give parents a break if they need one.
Art crafted in the workshop will be on display at Bubble Tea Brewers Cochrane until September, at which point the participants will be able to take their work home.
