Through a legacy of generosity
On a warm June day, Tracy Stople gathered with a group of 20 participants at Victoria General Hospital’s Miracle Garden for this year’s Art in the Garden workshop. The one-day event aims to provide creative opportunities in a safe space for individuals living with schizophrenia and other mental health issues.
The day, June 14, holds personal significance for Tracy, as it commemorates the passing of her mother, Jennie, who lived with schizophrenia. “She would have just loved it,” Tracy gushes, referring to her mom. “She was legally blind, but she would have been right in the front trying to do everything.”
Tracy established The Stople Hope Fund through The Winnipeg Foundation in 2009 to honour her late mother. Since then, the fund has grown and now grants back to the community. For the past three years, it has hosted Art in the Garden workshops in partnership with Artbeat Studio and the Victoria Hospital Foundation.
When Tracy started the fund, she was uncertain about its vision but remembered her mom attending weekly women’s groups at the Manitoba Schizophrenia Society, where art and writing classes significantly improved her well-being.
Glenna, a participant whose post-traumatic stress disorder manifests as schizophrenia, looks forward to the event every year. “I’ve attended for three years now, and I appreciate it so much,” she says. “When my symptoms are there, one of the first things I turn to is drawing.”
Art facilitator Logan Powell also extolls the benefits of blending art with mental health initiatives. “Art is like mindfulness. It shifts my attention to smaller problems, focusing on details like my brushstrokes or shading, making me forget about what else I might be facing.”
The Stople Hope Fund has created opportunities to create, connect, and heal through creativity. Emphasizing the importance of starting such initiatives, Jaime Kyle, a Winnipeg Foundation Generosity Advisor says, “anyone starting a legacy fund or something similar should know that the possibilities are endless.”
To learn more, head to www.thevicfoundation.ca.