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Summer programs receive funding to reach at-risk youth

More than a dozen organizations have received grant money from the City of Knoxville or the East Tennessee Foundation to give children something positive to do.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Jackie Holloway knows firsthand how much of an impact art can have on someone's life.

"I was addicted to drugs for 12 years and art saved my life," she said. "Art gave me an outlet to express myself and to go through the different changes and things that I went through in rehab."

Now, she's hoping to show other people how art can impact them.

"If you can come and do some art and spend some time putting your thoughts down pen and paper or paint, then you'll have an opportunity to change the way you think and change your life," she said. "That's why we offer our services to the community — so that we can change the community."

Her organization, Canvas Can Do Miracles, is one of 13 grant recipients from the City of Knoxville. This summer, they'll be able to pay students ages 12 to 24 to come in and work with them.

Credit: Jackie Holloway

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"They're going through such a hard time and we need to be visible," she said. "Everyone is a community. If everyone would focus on that and not just your family, the human race, we can do this."

The East Tennessee Foundation is helping groups reach at-risk youth too. The Change Center and On the One partnered to host summer dance classes.

"[We] came up with a partnership to give these kids a healthy alternative to violence," said On the One's artistic director Ken Easterly. "We're going to do some hip-hop dancing. It's going to be a lot of fun. We're excited."

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Easterly said dance helped him find his place at Vine Middle School and Austin-East Magnet High School. He said he kept dancing even after school, helping transform his life for the better.

"As a kid, I never wanted to be home. I didn't like going home. Those dance programs allowed me to take part in dance and learn something new," he said. "It kept me busy from staying idle at home and in the street, so it's been everything for me. It's taken me across the world."

Now, he's coming full circle by helping other kids in East Knoxville get those opportunities to express themselves through Movement for Change classes.

"It means everything to me. It's my heart. That's all I want to do," Easterly said. "Starting this journey, I wanted to give kids the opportunities that I didn't have, especially the kids from my community."

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