Friends of the Fair Day at the Orange County Fair!

Ben, Rene and Joanna 'clowning around'.

April on the Swing ride.

April, Joanna and Margaret waiting in line for a ride.

Bradley looking so happy to go into the fairgrounds.

April riding a big pink bird.

Sharon and Darren getting ready to look at the horses in the barn.

Carol, Michelle, Karen and Mignon having fun at the O.C. Fair.

On July 20th many of the Hope University students attended the Orange County Fair at the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa California.  Each year the O.C. Fair provides a day, called 'Friends of the Fair' Day where persons with disabilities get in free.  We are so grateful to the O. C. Fair for providing this service for us all.  The theme of the Fair this year was 'Let's Eat!' celebrating all of the wonderful Fair foods we love.  The students and staff rode in a chartered bus to and from the Fair.  Some of the things we saw were, rides, horses, sunflowers, vendors selling all sorts of things and food, lots of food!
Everyone had a lot of fun and can hardly wait to go back again next year.  Thank you Orange County Fair for having 'Friends of the Fair' Day.

Mural Unveiling!

On Saturday, July 30th 2011 from 2:00 to 6:00 pm we will be hosting the Integrity House Mural Collaboration Unveiling.  Everyone is invited to this exhibition and opening reception at Integrity House, 2043 North Broadway, Santa Ana California 92706.
The Integrity House Mural was created by the artists of Hope University, specifically for the members of Integrity House.  After a collaborative design process, about 40 Hope University artists, 20 volunteers, 3 Integrity House members and several Hope University staff members worked together to complete the Mural.

Artists from Hope University and Integrity House worked together to create this large, amazing work of art.  The images were taken from client artworks and transferred onto  the building to be brought to life through paint and ceramic mosaic.  Here a picture truly tells a story of ability and acceptance. 
Parking is available in adjacent lot and lot directly across the street on Saturdays only. 
There will be refreshments and a performance by the renowned Hope University band, The HiHopes.  The exhibition runs from July 30th  through September 30th.  Viewing hours after the opening are 10:00am to Noon and 3:00pm to 5:00pm Monday through Friday.  Parking is available only in rear lot of Integrity House.
For more information, please contact: Shelley RuggThorp (714) 778-4440 or at sruggthorp@hopeu.com.  You also visit our website at www.hopeu.com.
Some of the students that worked on the Mural had this to say about their Mural Memories;
"I liked having a volunteer help me paint the top of the Mural on a scaffold.  I also had fun breaking up the tiles for the mosaic part."  Tanette Tuttle
"I liked spreading the glue, putting it on the tiles and adding them to the mosaic wall." Lori Slikker
"My favorite part was painting a large flower orange." Margaret Kelley

VSA Performance

The Hope University Choir

The Ladies of the Choir accompanied by Hope U student Ron Langloe on the guitar.

Men of the Choir.

Terry C. and April R. perform with the dance.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Hi-Hopes!

Hope University student Jim L. accompanies the Hope U. Dancers on the violin.

In April the VSA had their annual event at the Westfield Main Place Mall in Santa Ana California.  There was art on display by clients and students from around Orange County. Hope University was represented by several visual artists, poets, musicians, singers and dancers.  The Hope University Choir performed along with the Hi-Hopes and the Hope University Dance class.  The art is on display currently.  The students and staff of Hope U will be going on field trips to view the art work, so look for the blog posts about the field trips!

Several art pieces were chosen for a traveling show as well.  Hope University artists will have their work on display across the continent.

At The Laundromat

Dena (Cerebral Palsy)  loads the washer.

Mikki  takes clean laundry out of the washer.

Mikki gets ready to add wet laundry to the dryer.

Margaret  makes good use of her time by knitting while the laundry washes.

Life skills class takes the dirty laundry to the laundromat.  We go every Thursday to wash our clean up towels. We also launder some of our performance outfits and bell table covers.  The laundromat  is nearby and a great experience for the students to learn how to wash clothes, operate the washers and dryers as well as navigate in a a public facility.  Life skills are often overlooked with this population and with classes like this they can feel empowered and confident that they know how to take care of different aspects of their own care.  They learn how to set the washer, measure detergent, load the washer and use the 'money card' to activate the machine.  Then, after the washer is finished they unload it and move the wet laundry to the dryers where they reload the laundry into the dryer and set it to dry.  Lastly they unload the dryer and take the clean laundry to the tables, fold it and pack it to go back to Hope.  While learning how to do laundry they also must navigate the laundromat space and be appropriate with the other patrons using the facility.  The students are enjoying the laundromat experience, feeling more independent and being out in the community.

Exquisite Creatures

In November several of our students' artwork will be featured at a show entitled 'Exquisite Creatures'.  This show takes a spin on the art form of 'Exquisite Corpse'.  This show will be held at the George V. Daneff Gallery,  3962 N. Studebaker road.  # 206, Long Beach CA, 90808.  The opening reception will be on Nov. 5th, 6:00 to 8:00 pm and the show will run until January 25th, 2011.
Some of the Hope University artists included are, Frank Luna, Delores (Shadow) Franks, Sharon Mauck, Jim Lin, Miguel Aldaz, Fred Mezzo and Tammy Grant.
Here are a few pieces of the Exquisite Creature.  You could print them up and add your own!

 Those  Hope University artists have really created some Exquisite Creatures!

Three Day Weekend!

This coming weekend is a holiday, we are off on Monday for Columbus Day. The Hope U students are excited to have an extra day to do with as they please. Here we have some students having fun on field trips, to the mall and the Orange County Fair. Margaret on a swing ride, Cathy and Paul at the mall, Lori, Michelle and Tom waving at the camera outside the mall in Santa Ana California, lastly several students on a rocket at the Orange County fair this summer.
If you are looking forward to a long weekend and need some ideas, the Hope U students have these suggestions:

"Work on an art project."
Darren Petersen

"Rest and take it easy."
Howard Miller

"Have a barbecue."
Karen Leeb

"Go to Disneyland!"
Cathy Acton

"Visit with neighbors and practice basketball."
Chris Friedman

"Sleep in and watch cartoons."
Rene Smith

We hope everyone has a terrific weekend, long or not.

Students Rehearse for Beau Monde Float

Beau Monde Float is coming up fast! The staff and students of Hope U are rehearsing dances, arranging music and making sets and costumes. Here we have Marvin Castillo playing a traditional Djembe drum, which is used in the opening drum circle pictured. Next are staff, guest artists and students working together on the electronic sound effects. This performance has complex sound and visual components coordinated through laptop computers. The music is evocative and haunting. The visuals are a compilation of student artwork, movement and sounds. An origional score was created by the guest artists from MLuM. The sets were designed, knitted, painted and sculpted by the students at Hope University. The performace is interactive and audience participatory. A wonder to behold! We hope that you will join us for this one of a kind show that will delight your eyes and your heart.

Hope Handbags

Hope University creates items for sale at our boutique shows and performances. We have a wide array of items ranging from refrigerator magnets to original linoleum block prints. We also have a Cafe Press Shop where you can custom order or choose from items already on display, made from Hope U student artwork. Our most recent addition to the Hope University Boutique is the Hope Handbag! We are very excited about his new item. Each one is as unique as the creator, and the magic happens....in the washer!
Here is the information found on the tag added to each bag.
"The Hope Handbag, Wicked Fun Wool Felt Bags". 'Felted or "fulled" wool bags are created by knitting the bag with wool yarn on large needles, then shrinking the bag to the desired size. Due to the differences in wool, and the shrinking process, each bag is unique. The knit on this bag is very dense, sturdy and easy to care for. Just hand was in cool wash in cool water and then air dry.'

Here are what some of the students are saying about the new Hope Handbags:
"It has very pretty material on it." Darren P.
"I like the color and think it is very furry." Chris F.
"It is so beautiful." Rene S.
"It looks good." Delores F.
"The knitter did a good job." Margaret K.
"I like the blue color on the bottom." Richard G.
Here are some photos of two purses available now from the students at Hope U!

Field Trip to the Queen Mary in Long Beach

On August 25th, 2008, Monday, we went on a field trip to the Queen Mary in Long Beach California. It was a perfect day for a field trip to the water. The boat is amazing and huge! Did you know that the Queen Mary is TWICE the size that the Titanic was? Well it's true. We were able to go on a guided tour of the ship and we learned a lot about her. One of our favorite places on the ship was the 'Winston Churchill' suite. It was very big and had great closets! The wood in the ship is just beautiful. The tour guide told us that there were over 50 different types of wood used in the interior of the ship. Here are some photos of us on our field trip. One is of Jim standing in front of the Queen Mary, another is of Cathy and Paul in front of an English phone booth and there is a wonderful photo of Jim, Cesar, Michael and Darren getting ready go up the gang way into the ship. You can see what a beautiful sunny day it was. After visiting the ship we went to a picnic area near The Aquarium of the Pacific for lunch. We were right by the water and were able to watch harbor cruise boats and pelicans come and go. It was a great day.

Christmas Cards and Holiday Show!

Here is a sample of the artwork available on the Hope University line of Christmas and Holiday cards available for purchase now. They are packaged in sets of of 3 for $5.00 or by the each $2.00. The cards are printed on white high quality card stock, you can let us choose the design for you or you can choose your favorite Hope U artists' work. The Santa was drawn my Sharon M. the Christmas Tree was painted by Christina C. and the Angel was painted by Jim L. They are beautiful, unique and show you care this holiday season. Hope University calendars are also available and make great gifts! Follow the Hope U students through a year of fun and inspiration with this delightfully designed calendar. What a deal at $10.00 each! Visit us at www.hopeu.com and send us an email, or leave a comment on this blog with your email address (we will not publish it).
Our annual Holiday show is December 5th at the Sisters of St. Joseph Auditorium in Santa Ana. This show is not to be missed!

Something Fishey for Hope University

Frank L. and Michael M. wave to us from inside the walk-through fish tank at the Cabrillo Beach Aquarium. We went there on a field trip Tuesday, August 14th. There was so much to see we all wished that we had more time to visit the fish. There were picnic tables at the beach so we had our lunch right by the water. It was so beautiful there. Cindy H. was sea-ing stars! She could not believe how colorful they are. A whale skeleton impressed Isela E. The Cabrillo Museum is located at Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro California. We had fun there and hope to go back.