Published June 19, 2024

On Friday, June 7, a group of 14 clients from our life enrichment program, staff, and the teaching artists from Upstream Arts proudly presented “The Art of Me” at Hanifl Performing Arts Center in White Bear Lake.

A collaboration between Merrick and Upstream Arts, “The Art of Me” featured live art, musical instruments, skits, songs, poems, dancing, and lots of laughter from both performers and audience members alike. The theme of the morning was “I’m here! You’re here! We’re here together!” This statement more than anything perfectly encapsulated the feelings of joy and connection that emulated from the performers.

For the artists on stage, the performance represented the accumulation of several months of collaboration between the clients at Merrick and the Upstream Arts’ teaching artists during which relationships were built and the creative arts were explored.

The performance marked the third time that Merrick has partnered with Upstream Arts to create such a production, which is a record for the number of times that an organization has partnered with Upstream Arts. And based on the feedback from this year’s production, it probably won’t be the last.

Published June 19, 2024

The 2023-24 Ambassadors for Respect (A4R) season has concluded and the final numbers are in.

Our 2024 A4R team consisted of 5 self-advocates: Leanne, Christine, Doris, Cindy, and Sam. From February through April, they visited 9 fourth-grade classrooms at three elementary schools reaching a total of 219 students.

Based on the survey completed by participants following the presentation, the following outcomes were achieved:

• 99% of fourth graders could list three ways to include others;
• 96% indicated that they had learned how to use person-first language;
• 99% could list three ways to advocate for themselves and others.

The complete report may be downloaded below.

2023-24 Merrick A4R Impact Report

We are so proud of these five self-advocates for stepping out of their comfort zone and seeking to make the world a better place by telling their story to the younger generation.

Ambassadors for Respect is a program of PeaceMaker Minnesota and represents one example of how Merrick practices its core belief of civic responsibility.