Compassion Through the Arts — Compassionate Houston

Compassion Through the Arts continues - Arts Grant Campaign

To expand on our successful virtual event in June and August 2021 (scroll down to learn more about the event, featured artists, a full recording, and line-up of sponsors), Compassionate Houston proudly announces a campaign to specifically identify, highlight, and financially support several local artists whose work promotes compassion. With the expertise and guidance of an esteemed selection panel of artists we have articulated the following vision:

The Vision

“Compassion Through the Arts” recognizes the Creative Arts as unique and necessary tools for building compassionate communities and strives to inspire and encourage artistic engagement and creative partnerships that cultivate compassion within the greater Houston community.

The Arts Grant Campaign

This newly established program, “Compassion Through the Arts”, intends to foster support for the important community building work of Houston-based artists.

To that end, Compassionate Houston has invited a panel of esteemed practicing artists in the Houston community to identify and nominate qualified artists from the visual, literary, musical, and performing arts whose work exemplifies, at a high level, an artistic expression of compassion. From among those nominees, three artists will be selected to receive financial support and recognition to highlight the critical role played by creative arts that are informed by, express and promote compassion throughout Greater Houston.

Our initial financial goal is $15,000 so that we’re able to provide three $5000 awards, and we ask that you, the sponsors, partners, and friends of Compassionate Houston and the Houston arts community, consider a direct contribution in support of this compelling vision and campaign. Additionally, if you know of anyone in your contact network who might be personally aligned in support of this project, please share this information with them as another contribution to the cause.

Donation

Donations for this grant may be made by using either a credit or debit card or PayPal. Please indicate in the applicable notes section "Arts Grant." You may also send a check payable to Compassionate Houston; please write "Arts Grant" on your check. If you have any questions about your donation, please reach out to Ted Isensee, our Treasurer, at 832-541-0877 or email us.

Support Grant Through a Donation

Have questions? Reach out via Email

Know a philanthropist? Let us know

Meet the Committee Members (click on each name for a short bio)

SNEHA BHAVSAR

ROBIN DAVIDSON

KENNETH GAYLE

Compassion Through the Arts - How it all began

In Spring of 2021, Compassionate Houston’s board announced to celebrate our 10th anniversary with a special event by showcasing compassion through the arts, featuring internationally acclaimed and local inspiring artists who share music, poetry, and visual arts. We invited our partner organizations to support our efforts in celebrating the inclusive nature of compassion’s beauty while honoring Compassionate Houston’s 10th anniversary. This event kicked off a grant to recognize and encourage local emerging artists who highlight compassion in the Greater Houston region. Read more about the event below. It premiered in June with a second showing in August; learn about several featured artists and our wonderful sponsors.

As a gift to you, we would like to share the YouTube recording with our community and invite you to watch this colorful program.

Compassion through the arts - The Event…

Meet Our featured guests:

Young People’s Poet Laureate Naomi Shihab Nye

Singer-Songwriter-Senior Minster Michael Gott

““As a direct line to human feeling, empathic experience, genuine language and detail, poetry is everything that headline news is not.””

— Quote Source

NAOMI SHIHAB NYE is a poet, writer, anthologist, and champion of poetry. She has taught writing and poetry to people of all ages, all over the world, for the past forty-five years.

Shihab Nye is the Young People's Poet Laureate (Poetry Foundation) as well as the poetry editor for the New York Times Magazine and recipient of the National Book Critics Circles's Ivan Sandrof Award for Lifetime Achievement and the Texas Institute of Letters Lifetime Achievement Award, among numerous honors.

Shihab Nye serves on the faculty at Texas State University and lives in San Antonio, TX. She will share selections from her most recent book, Everything Comes Next: Collected & New Poems.

Recognized by the Centers for Spiritual Living, Rev. Michael Gott received an honorary doctorate for his contributions to contemporary spiritual music.

With his compassionate ability to create spiritual community and his background in various musical styles such as gospel, pop, opera, musical theater, classical piano and jazz, he offers exciting, engaging and heartfelt messages and music.

Rev. Gott has been featured in national and regional publications, shared the stage with internationally known leaders such as Dr. Deepak Chopra and Marianne Williamson, collaborated in several musical theatre productions and recorded, and released ten albums.

REV. MICHAEL GOTT, singer-songwriter and senior minister of Unity Church Houston, joined more than 170 musical artists worldwide, including our Texas Medical Center Orchestra, to create a music video in support of the UN Foundation’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization.

“Nothing is more inspiring to me than to see someone step out of a limiting idea and into possibility.”

— Rev. Michael Gott

And Here Is More…

During our 1-hour program, we hear from local street artists about their inspiration to create murals of healing and compassion. Michael Gott will present several of his songs, and Naomi Shihab Nye will read from her latest book. What a treat! We meet a local visual and literary arts organization, get inspired by a children’s kindness project and hear several messages from Compassionate Houston’s founding partners. And there is so much more to enjoy!

Following the one-hour program, we meet with a group of local artists for a live chat and Q&A.

Honoring…

In addition to celebrating compassion and the arts, the event will also honor our founder, the Reverend Betty Adam as Compassionate Houston is celebrating its 10-year anniversary.

Listen to Betty’s heartwarming stories in the video above on the early beginnings and rejoice with her as she shares the awe she feels now in recognizing how far her initial steps have taken the organizations. The Charter for Compassion is an umbrella for people to engage in collaborative partnerships worldwide. Did you know that the Reverend introduced the document “Charter for Compassion” soon after its launch in 2009 to a group of Houstonians and representatives of eight world religions at the Rothko Chapel? And that set in motion a vision for Houston that led to the birth of the non-profit Compassionate Houston in 2010.

“In her acceptance speech, Chloé Zhao, who won the Golden Globe for best director this February, acknowledges the arts as a “chance to learn from each other and to have more compassion for each other.” ”

— Chloé Zhao

Charter Info

Promo Video