Communities

Word Vision, Old Brick create project

With the spread of the COVID-19 virus, school systems across the country have been shut down for nearly 30 million children for the foreseeable future - more than half of the nation's school enrollment.

In response to the pandemic, the Old Brick Playhouse of Elkins and World Vision in Philippi have teamed up to create and distribute an online video blog known as Home-Aid.

The video blog was born out of a desire to create contact with and provide consistent support for children and families that are homebound. The online program will provide students and their families with video "shows" that will be accessible through multiple video outlets, including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Theatre and music will serve as the vehicle to deliver messages of hope, calm, strength, comedy, resiliency, love, and activism in a fun, child-friendly format. Each Home-aid VLOG episode will follow the same format as to provide consistency, an element currently absent from daily life.

The format for the show is based on various rooms in one's house and will provide programming for positive activities that take place in each of those rooms. Most importantly, the virtual site will provide guidance and resources for children and families most susceptible to social and emotional impacts caused by this pandemic.

World Vision and the Old Brick Playhouse have partnered on various projects through the organization's KidREACH afterschool program in Barbour County, including several summer theatre camps and drama instruction during the afterschool hours. Working together to create a virtual space for students to explore and engage was a natural progression to the partnership.

Internationally, World Vision has provided proven, evidenced-based, child-friendly space programming to support the well-being of children during emergencies to address psychosocial risks from conflicts, natural disaster, or potentially exploitative situations.

"It's important to show concern for a child's education during this mercurial time of crisis, our worry is equally urgent for the wellbeing of their spirits and hearts" said The Old Brick Playhouse Executive Director Missy Armentrout McCollam. "As a child, my terror was of the Wicked Witch of the West from 'The Wizard of Oz.' I will never forget that at age 5, my dad told me that the only way to defeat her was to face her head on. When the movie played annually on our TV at home, I stood up and walked close to the screen and repeated 'I'm not afraid of you' over and over.

"Our hope is that this VLOG will prompt children to enjoy being home with their families and to empower them with a voice against this virus. To let them know that there are tangible things they can do to contribute world-wide efforts of eradication and that we care for them and that they are definitely not alone," she said..

"Additionally, we never skip the opportunity to extol the therapeutic virtues of performance and creating art, whether it be at the Met or in your own living room, the overall benefit is miraculous."

Other collaborators, including the Augusta Heritage Center, Davis & Elkins, and a score of administrators, actors, musicians, technicians, writers, puppet makers, psychologists and developers, were willing to contribute their time and talents in order to bolster children and youth.

"The magic of this collaboration and it's caring intentions surely illustrate the kindness in humanity," McCollam said. "It was almost as if it were meant to be and we are so very grateful for each individual."

Home-Aid was also created with extreme devotion to safe protective measures against the spread of COVID-19.

Each episode will be accompanied with a Things to Remember sheet to provide parents a record of the activities and methodologies for later use.

Episodes of Home-Aid can be found on YouTube or on the KidREACH Academy, or The Old Brick Playhouse Facebook page. If you would like more information, please contact Missy Armentrout McCollam of the Old Brick Playhouse (missy@theoldbrick.org ) or Shelby Dettinger of World Vision (sdetting@worldvision.org).