C.cada is an artist’s community based in Winchendon MA. Our mission is:
to give artists from every genre an opportunity to come together to discover, develop, and deploy their talents in ways that will better the church and the community.
This month I am beginning an online discussion with the artists of C.cada to discover their thoughts on the subject of Christian art. Anyone can join in so let me hear your voice.
Here is our first discussion question:
What is the difference between these two statements:
Every month our church’s artist ministry, C.cada, gets together to do its personal and group art work. The morning is given to personal work and the afternoon is given to a group project. April was the month we set aside to make May Baskets as an outreach to our shut-in and elderly congregants.
Artist Lynn Roux
Artist Ken Knowlton
The camaraderie at the tables was great.
But the most fun was handing them out. We collaborated with the Children’s ministry at our church and on April 30th we took a few hours to hand out 32 May baskets in our community.
Bigger news still a Dayhab we work with in music ministry has asked us to come in and help make 57 more baskets for their Individuals on May 12th!
I am way behind this week with the story writing….But in my defense last week was one bussssssssssy week! Patricia’s prompt was from ee cummings and you can find the link to her blog along with the rules of the game at:
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.“ ee cummings
The Girl Who Never Came Out Of the Barn
by JE Lillie
She remembered cold winter mornings spent filling the manger for the scrawny milk cow her parents kept. She recalled sweeping the seat of the outhouse on hot summer nights to make sure there were no spiders before she sat down. She never tasted soda until she was teen-ager but drank only water from the hand pumped well all her childhood. In her girlhood angst she grew to hate the farm. She grew to hate the poverty that clung to it even more.
In high school she would steal magazines from the local drug store: McCall’s, Harper’s Bazaar and even Forbes. She would dream of life in the big city, being a business woman or an actress. But it takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.
She married the farm boy down the street when she was seventeen when he promised to give her indoor plumbing. He built her a house on a hundred acres five miles from her parents. She had four children. She milked her own cow, Their artesian well spilt better water than any other well in the county. The girl who had hated the farm, never came out of the barn, but one day when she was dandling her grandson on her knee in the parlor of her country home she realized it was because she had never really wanted to.
C.cada is the artist’s wing of Cornerstone Church. It is a place people gather to discover their talents, develop their talents and deploy their talents in community. That is a simple definition of a makerspace. C.cada was birthed almost five years ago and since then our artists have met one Saturday a month at our church to practice using their talents in community and to figure out how do we use those talents to enhance our region.
Every month I am amazed at how much work can be accomplished by these dedicated folks in just one day: This month a group of ten artists met via Skype with Kidzark, a drama ministry in the Netherlands. Our team participated in a read through and editing workshop of Kidzark’s newest play (scheduled to go up fall 2015). The prayer shawl ministry met and put the finishing touches on 48 new shawls slated to go out sometime this month to sick and hurting individuals around the world. While that was happening two of us met to edit next month’s newsletter. Our circulation of this letter has recently found an open door in a prison church about 40 minutes East of here and some of their members have begun writing devotional articles for publication. I met and interviewed with another young artist who is looking for ways he can collaborate with us for community monthly even though his work is not transportable and while I was meeting with him one of our members was giving music lessons to a group of elementary students. All the while individual artists were working throughout the building on instruments or easels. Finally in the afternoon twenty of us met for a choir practice in preparation for Holy Week.
This is makerspace, people coming together to be creative in community and to better their community…and the world. We are not a group of geniuses or prodigies. We are just regular people who don’t want to neglect the gifts God has put in us any longer and so we have decided to be intentional and set aside time to use those gifts. We know that most of us will never make a living off of our art. That doesn’t mean our art can’t produce a better life for us or those around us.
If you would like more information about C.cada you can view our website at artistdayapart.com or you can contact me directly at 978-297-3125 xt. 105
Our artist’s group met a few weeks ago. This month our group project was to create works of flash fiction based around photo prompts. I have already published Deb Maciorowski’s offering here…
Here is Charlotte Dorais’ offering based on the photo prompt below
Granny Applegate
By Charlotte Dorais
The smile belies my true feelings. My character choice, spider-man was not an option so I became Granny Applegate’s baby. Being the butt of the joke was not new to me. I’ve never met a nerd who wasn’t thick skinned. This dream of a children’s theater was coming to fruition at last and Monica was great at seeing your true character.
Dress rehearsal was chaotic; the mixture of adult and child actors tends to be that way. Most of us were experienced and had practiced our lines and music, remembered our blocking and felt we were ready for the show. Jimmy and Sally were 7 year-old talented, yet inexperienced actors who were my partners in these skits. Tripping me seemed to be their goal in life. I wondered why Monica hadn’t stopped the rehearsal, and quickly realized she found humor in their antics and encouraged them to continue.
I had a choice, I could rebel and refuse to be the klutz they were making me, or grow and allow my character to become the laughable old lady who had no balance.
Granny Applegate stole the show.
If you would like to stop by one of our artist’s gatherings just shoot me a response here on Lillie-Put or you can check out our artists website at
For those of you who may not be familiar with it, C. cada is the artists community of Cornerstone Church our mission is to: give artists from every genre an opportunity to come together to discover, develop, and deploy their talents in ways that will better the church and the community.
The C.cada Cross. One of our collaborative projects
I haven’t written much about our doings because we have been so busy doing them but God has been good! We are currently working on several projects as a group:
1. A group of our artists is in the planning stages of redoing the pediatrics play room at our local hospital.
2. One of our artists just finished collaborating with a local elementary school on the show, Aristocats. In fact, I have to unload our portable sound system, which they used, after I am done here.
3. We are in the midst of preparing for an outdoor art show in honor of our town’s 250th anniversary. Here is our link if anyone out there is interested
4. Plans are underway for C.cada to be a collaborator with many other town committees on a town Makerspace project.
5. One of our artists is preparing to lead worship for a Frontiersmen Camping Fraternity Fellowship in May
6. One Desire, our church youth band is cutting its first album.
7. Clayton Phelps, one of our artists is playing out several times a week reaching people with the gospel through his guitar. In fact yesterday he played at GALA another art association’s art show.
That is just a taste of the exciting stuff going on. Books are being written. Music is being played. choirs are singing. Paintings are being prepared for shows and galleries around the area. GOD IS GOOD.
A few months ago our group project was a short story writing prompt. I have already shared Deb Maciorowski’s offering with you and mine but here is another from our very own Charlotte Dorais
First Day
The flashing school bus lights warned me how late I was. My first day teaching Junior High was causing me enough anxiety without being the last one to arrive in my class room. I had planned on time to pray and make final preparations for the day before the first students arrived, this day would only be blessed if I depended on God to lead me. I prayed God this is your day and I need you more now than ever. Thank you for your peace.
Last nights dream was playing like an old silent film in my mind. Still shots of the class room and each student flashed one by one. I knew a few of the kinds personally from church, but so many of the faces were strangers and the fact that this class was special needs excited me. God see potential where no one else does. He would lead me to the best plan for each student.
The parking lot was filled and late comers like me were left to the back 40. Shouldering my heavy bag I trotted the length of the parking lot. First bell rang as I entered the class room door and most of the students were paired up and talking excitedly to one another. As the final bell rang I turned to close the door Jeff rushed past and slide into an empty seat. Jeff was one of my church kids and I counted on him for support. My greeting to him was ignored and he kept his head down and eyes averted.
These students would spend the day with me, one by one we would get acquainted and develop an individual teaching plan. I looked forward to the challenge.
Marie stood in the front by my desk and introduced herself to me, she knew all the students and offered to assist me in any way I needed. I knew God had sent her. As I turned to get material to pass out I saw Jeff slip out the door. Rule number one broken the first hour of the day, no one leaves the room without permission. I decided to step out and look for him and he was right outside the door with his face to the wall praying, God make it stop.
My quick pray was give me words, and I ask Jeff to tell me what had to stop. His said a line from a book:
He heard the crunch of leaves behind him, he turned……
was playing nonstop in his mind and he couldn’t turn it off. I suggested he finish the thought, when he turned what did he see? All fear left him as he replaced the lie with Jesus. God’s power is always work and He never fails us when we cry out to him. I was where He meant me to be.
Charlotte L Dorais
I can honestly say what we are doing is hard work but it is so exciting! I am convinced that God is in this because the results are beyond us. We are offering what we have. We know it is not enough and yet He is multiplying us even as He multiplied the fish and loaves.
