Brownsburg students make art for Florida school shooting victims
BROWNSBURG, Ind. (WISH) — Art students at Brownsburg High School are sharing messages of hope and love with the victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida.
On Monday, art teacher Lori Woodcock directed students in her six art classes to create an inspiring piece of art that she will send to the staff at Douglas High.
“Imagine that you were at school and you watched something tragic like that happen,” Woodcock said to her students. “If we flood their halls with positive art and they’re standing in a hallway thinking, ‘I can’t do this; I can’t finish this school day,’ and they see a poster you’ve made with a positive message, then maybe that’ll get them through that day.”
With that, she let her students create art with whatever mode was available and with whatever message they wanted to send.
“I personally have not stopped thinking about it since it happened,” said Keyarah Peppel, 17, a senior at BHS. “I thought of a galaxy because it seems so dark, but it’s really just endless and there can be so much exploration.”
As she painted her starscape, Peppel said she also works on political cartoons to express her feelings about the tragedy. While she won’t be sending one of those to Florida, she’s eager to share her support to students her age.
“Art is like the biggest relief for me, for sure,” she said. “I also want to be an art therapist when I’m older, and I know how art makes people feel better and how it can make a big difference in people’s lives.”
Across the table from Peppel sits Olivia McIntosh, 17, also a senior at BHS. She started her project early: the profile of a boy and a girl facing each other, shaded with sunset colors, a mountain rising in between them.
“I feel really deeply for those kids,” McIntosh said as she painted in watercolor. “If you climb a mountain and you see a sunset, it’s kind of like you’ve made it.”
Across the room, another student began her piece of art with just a pencil and paper.
“I plan on using gold paint to draw 17 orbs for those that were killed in the shooting,” said Keila Bonilla, 17. “I want that to be the main focus of my art.”
Bonilla says the glowing orbs will symbolize the spirits of the departed on their way to heaven. She says she doesn’t want people to dwell on the tragedy in the situation but find the strength to move on.
“I want them to feel like they’re not alone in everything and there are people that support them in this tragedy,” added Caeleigh Reaves, 16, a junior at BHS. She went straight to the computer to make a digital image to print and send to Parkland.
“I’m a working on a picture of a friend of mine holding a string of lights,” she explained. “The project I originally did it for was about finding the light in the darkest of times, and I think that really applies here to what these kids are going through.”
As her students work to support their peers in Florida, Woodcock hopes they too will find the peace they need.
“The students are recognizing that this tragic event has happened, and it’s tragedy, it’s a horrible thing but that you can get through it,” Woodcock said. “They’re believing that these students will get through it. And since they’re their peers, I think that’s a really positive thing to come out of this.”
Woodcock says she isn’t the only art teacher contributing to the halls of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Others from around the country will send in art packages to adorn the school when students do return to class.
“It’s okay to feel sad about it and hurt and scared. It’s okay to have a positive reaction to it and make art and reach out to people who you may not know,” Woodcock said.