FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Libby Raiford, 423-648-6096, lfr@cdmfun.org or
Carla Campbell, 423-648-6054, cbc@cdmfun.org
“Helping Hands”
Creative Discovery Museum Features Exhibit for
Little Hands to make a Big Difference,
November 21 through January 3
(October 7, 2009) Creative Discovery Museum is presenting “Helping Hands” this holiday season. Created locally by Museum staff, the exhibit is dedicated to showing that giving and helping others is fun. Each child and family who visits the exhibit will have the opportunity to help others -- locally, nationally, and globally -- while learning about the importance of philanthropy and that every gift can make a difference.
“Giving doesn’t just happen. It has to be modeled and taught,” said Dr. Jayne Griffin, Director of Education for the Museum. “We need to teach children about the joy of giving. When they learn to meet the needs of others, they learn more about themselves, too. That’s one way they gain self esteem.”
The development of this exhibit was originally funded by the Benwood Foundation, Lyndhurst Foundation, United Way of Greater Chattanooga, Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga and Maclellan Foundation.
Media Opportunity
* Media Preview and Tree of Warmth Presentation, Nov. 20: Representatives of sponsor organizations will officially open the exhibit; Mayor’s Office will present Salvation Army’s Tree of Warmth. Media are welcome all day, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
The Helping Hands exhibit includes the following areas:
What is Philanthropy: This area will explain the origins of the word Philanthropy – the love of humankind – and through photographs explore how Chattanooga and Chattanoogans have benefited from the generosity of its citizens. Also, children will explore examples of giving time, talent, and treasure on a matching game and have an opportunity to post how they give there time, talent, and treasure.
The Choices We Make: This area will enable visitors to play the role of a donor. Visitors will be presented with brief case statements from different causes, and then they will be asked to select the cause that they would like to support. At the conclusion of the exhibit, a donation will be made to an organization that locally represents the cause that received the most votes. Both the causes and designated local organization will be selected by teen volunteers at Creative Discovery Museum.
Hands on Helping: At the Hands on Helping stations, children will become engaged in a number of hands on activities designed to help others. Visitors will be able to make cards that will be sent to soldiers, build small bee houses for mason bees that will go to the Tennessee River Gorge Trust, and make bookmarks that will be distributed through United Ways’ Project Ready for School.
What Kids Have Done: In 2007, a former Creative Discovery Museum teen volunteer, Samantha Gilley, who is blind and is also a cancer survivor completed a bike ride from Chattanooga to Memphis to raise funds for St. Jude Hospital. This area will feature her ride and give guests a chance to ride stationary bicycles to help raise money for the Chattanooga Candlelighters Family Support Group.
How Can I Help: Here, children and families can learn more about how to get involved in their communities. The resource center will include information about how children and families can help locally, nationally and globally and include information about how parents can discuss giving and philanthropy with their child at different ages. Children’s books related to philanthropy and giving will also be featured. Also, children and their caregivers learn hands-on about two local non-profit organizations. Children can pretend to be a bell ringer for Salvation Army or to participate in the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree Program. Habitat for Humanity of Greater Chattanooga will also have a space in the exhibit where children can try their own hand at building.
Gingerbread: Local non-profits will share their messages and themes through child-sized, decorated Gingerbread cutouts. Also, in the holiday spirit, guests will climb “Gumdrop Mountain” and learn about local land trusts.
Museum admission is $9.95 for children and adults. For more information, call (423) 756-2738.
About Creative Discovery Museum
Creative Discovery Museum is open Mon-Sat: 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun: noon-5 p.m. CLOSED Wednesdays. 321 Chestnut Street, Chattanooga, TN 37402. Creative Discovery Museum is recognized as one of the top children’s museums in the nation. It is a non-profit organization dedicated to educational enrichment for children ages 4-months to 12-years-old through interactive, hands-on experiences that foster creative and critical thinking. Creative Discovery Museum focuses on a broad range of areas encompassed by Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Technology and the Sciences. In addition to its exhibits, Creative Discovery Museum provides local residents and visitors with special events, educational programming, teacher resources for the classroom, field trips, after school programming, early childhood education classes, artist residencies, camps, art lessons, science demonstrations, and a branch of the local library. Creative Discovery Museum is a funded agency of Allied Arts and Tennessee Arts Commission and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
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