Finding ways to keep yourself occupied in recent times has proven to be a task that is far more difficult than it used to be. Especially for those with smaller children, life has enveloped itself around the question of “How can I keep my child engaged while practicing social distancing?” One of the answers to this question lies in a group known as Fine Arts for All (FAFA) led by founder Sean Kim and assisting student leaders Luke Deutschman (lead music director) and Eugine Chung (lead art director).
These students are in their senior year of high school and have already made a lasting impact on both the elderly, as well as, young children. “My inspiration to start this was a conversation I had with my dad when he said he thought he didn’t have much time to discover or learn something new. I wanted to prove to him that anyone can learn something new no matter how old or young they are,” Kim replied when questioned about the inspiration behind the founding of FAFA.
The focus of their organization before the start of the pandemic was to visit the elderly in senior citizen homes and spend time with them by engaging them in art and music-related activities. However, since senior citizens are one of the groups that are at the highest risk of contracting the coronavirus, FAFA needed to step back and re-evaluate their plans to continue their work. “We thought we had to stop but when we discovered that we could do online lessons, it helped us to think outside the box and find a way to keep helping the community,” said Deutschman.
After moving to online lessons, the group’s main focus has been directed towards children. “Each time I do a lesson I just feel so happy that there are kids that are as passionate about art as I am who want to draw and paint. The fact that some of them come back after each week makes me feel like what I’m doing brightens our community even if it’s one person coming to lessons. After each lesson, I have a better day,” stated Chung.
“What we were trying to do was make music and art accessible to the elderly because that is a primarily forgotten group. They don’t get these kinds of things. Now with online, it is accessible to everyone with the pandemic going on and it helps people that can’t afford it otherwise,” Deutschman added.
FAFA and its volunteers have proven to their community that even during a pandemic it’s possible to bring some fun and joy into the lives of people and that it is never too late to take on something new. Each art and music lesson is free of charge and available to anyone that is willing to learn. For more information or to schedule a lesson, please visit fineartsforall.com.
