Dunedin was host to a national art and writing competition in July, thematically inspired by Mother Teresa's charitable sentiments.
‘Doing small things with great love’ was this year's theme for the ‘Love Reaches Out’ creative initiative; encouraging an exploration of how we can show love to others. Previous years had similar topics, including ‘Caring for our World’ (2014) and 'Love in Action' (2016).
Children between kindergarten age and Year 8 were invited to submit artistic interpretations or representations of the theme. The entries came in a range of formats: painting, sketching, sculpture, poetry, and short stories.
“We know many kids have very creative ideas,” said Carolyn Sims, Community Mission Coordinator and competition facilitator, “so we encouraged them to get creative, and it's been great to see what has been submitted. We were thrilled to have over 150 entries sent in to us.”
The competition was a perfect activity for a number of Buddy Programme pairs and other interested children who came together to discuss and create art on Saturday, 8 July. The day was a wonderful opportunity for fun and vibrancy!
All of the submitted works were part of a public exhibition on display at Knox Presbyterian Church in Dunedin, held during August.
Love Reaches Out is a joint annual activity coordinated by Presbyterian Support’s Family Works service, the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa, Kids Friendly and Presbyterian Savings and Development Society.
Congratulations to all of the children who participated in this competition.
Article by Jack Sharp