“I’ve discovered that being an artist and writer is less about achievement and more about endurance. And endurance can feel impossible without community. None of us survives in a vacuum. Community arts centers, mentorship programs, residencies, nonprofits are all indispensable for their commitment to the idea that art isn’t a luxury, but a necessity. Art increases the quality of ALL of our lives.

Arts organizations are the scaffolding for this. They create safe space for people to admit, “I want to make something,” and meet them where they are, offering encouragement instead of skepticism. They make it possible for burgeoning talent to find adequate nourishment, for vulnerability to disarm, and for imagination to transform into power and agency.”