Family Legends at Carpenter's Shelter

The Carpenter’s Shelter, 930 N. Henry St., is offering Family Legends workshops to the children of women enrolled in their MYA (My Year of Action) program. As the largest homeless shelter in Northern Virginia, Carpenter’s Shelter serves over 1,000 homeless and formerly homeless children and adults each year. The shelter provides a continuum of services and tools necessary for its clients to achieve lasting independence. In the MYA program women who have transitioned out of Carpenter’s Shelter meet with a life/leadership coach every other week to learn to give their lives new direction.

Sisters Jayda, 8, Kiana, 13 and Unique, 6, pose for the camera.  
 

Six-year-old Unique creates her "author's page"
with assistance from volunteer LaDawn Fronapel.

Photos by Nina Tisara

In the Family Legends workshop, families research and record “legendary” family members and make their stories into handmade storybooks that include illustrations, photos and maps. They have their photos taken and write their biographies for the author’s page. At the end of the class the students read their stories aloud to friends and families gaining experience in public speaking.

Family Legends is a project of Living Legends of Alexandria, a photo-documentary project to identify, honor and chronicle people making current history in Alexandria, Virginia. Family Legends is led by artist/educator Sushmita Mazumdar who teaches art education programs for children and adults encouraging storytelling and the sharing of cultural heritage. She has conducted workshops at museums, schools, and arts institutions in the Washington, D.C. area.

 

For information about Living Legends of Alexandria or Family Legends, contact Nina Tisara at 703-625-2330. For information about the program at Carpenter’s Shelter, contact Mary Parker Lamm, 703-548-7500.