World Refugee day & Make MUSIC DAY

BuildaBridge returned to in-Person programming for a brief two-days. On Sunday, June 20, BuildaBridge offered visual arts experientials at the World Refugee Day celebration in Mifflin Park. The next day, BuildaBridge hunkered down at the Concert Garden in Point Breeze and celebrated Make Music Day.

From Jihan Thomas, Visual Artist

World Refugee Day 2021 went great! It was a beautiful, hot day and families were out having fun, listening to each other's stories and enjoying some fun in the sun. The programming included a variety of testimonies, music demonstrations, dance performances and a beautiful choir. Our table was filled with youth and families that were excited to make their own artwork to take home. Many youths created their own Happy World Refugee Day flyers and they added positive words to their artwork for hope for current refugees in Philadelphia. Everyone was smiling and seemed to enjoy and appreciate the creative space.

From BuildaBridge ED, Ami Yares

Make Music Day began in France a number of years ago and celebrates all the wonderfulness that we associate with music-making - sounds, movement, emotion, creativity, therapeutic connection, community and more. In the past, BuildaBridge partnered with Beyond Skin, BaB's sister organization in Northern Ireland and this year, BuildaBridge ran programming in a local park, the Concert Garden (20th & Ellsworth). BuildaBridge Restorative Teaching Artists, Ali Richardson, Alyssa Resh and Sanovia Garrett joined the event and facilitated some collective singing and songwriting. Local folk singer and activist, Emily Joy Goldberg shared some lovely original music and Nathalie Cerin, a longtime BaB supporter and an incredible Haitian folk and R & B singer-songwriter also dropped by. We were joined by Point Breeze neighbors and other BaB community members. The afternoon culminate in an act of collective songwriting:

From the moment that butterfly

Flew past my eyes

Through the window it flew

I remember the summertime

Old friends and new

I remember you

And all the birds whistled through the night

And I am no longer afraid of the light

and some singing:

BuildaBridge would also like to acknowledge the support and leadership of the Make Music Philly crew, cheers to Vincent James & Joann Pierdomenico from Keep Music Alive!