For those who have experienced trauma in their life, being able to find a distraction or hobby can help them find peace and be a really important step in helping them overcome their ordeal. Talitha Arts is a small organisation which helps such individuals undertake creative pursuits to help them support their mental health and make a positive impact on their daily life. We spoke to Jenny, a primary fundraiser to learn more about the cause and the work they do.
Tell us all about Talitha Arts
Talitha was set up primarily to help trafficked women deal with their mental health by providing therapeutic arts workshops and creative experiences. It has grown to include many groups who have undergone trauma including survivors of domestic abuse and rape, refugees and migrants and those recovering from addiction. We have now developed our service to also help people living with dementia. We are a very small team of 3 with 14 practitioners who are art therapists or artists and actors.
What do you need funding for?
We need to buy resources for the workshops so that participants have high quality materials to work with and can create something special as a group, and for themselves. We would also like to grow our team, so it’s important we have the funds to be able to promote our service to ultimately help more people in need through the arts.
Why did you sign up to easyfundraising?
As explained we are a small operation and we can’t devote a lot of time or expense to fundraising. Easyfundraising provides us with a really simple method of fundraising that is completely free for our supporters, who are just doing what they would be doing anyway – shopping!
How has the money raised helped?
We have been able to buy many craft resources which help our attendees to light up a memory, for example beautiful ribbons for our ‘make a kite’ sessions and balloons galore for improving muscle memory. We have also been able to replace some musical instruments that we use for introductions at the beginning of workshops which the participants love as they can use their own style and take back their identity.
What are you currently fundraising towards?
We are specifically raising money to extend our work in dementia care settings as the demand for this work increases. We are developing our classes so that we can use more creative ways to trigger memories and feelings, muscle memory and empower our visitors to be their true selves through creative passions.
How have you promoted easyfundraising to your supporters?
We post about it regularly on social media and in our newsletters. We use the ready-made promotional materials that easyfundraising provide for us. We have it prominently on our website and mention it at all events and encourage our Trustees to spread the word wherever they go.
What advice would you give other causes to help them raise?
Take advantage of the support the easyfundraising offer, including their referral incentives and competitions – these are a great way to engage people and grow your donations. Most importantly, just continue to remind people that it’s free – and that the money does make a huge difference!
How you can support Talitha Arts
Talitha is providing a very important service to their visitors. From such a small team, they are making a huge difference to the lives of women in need. If you would like to support them with every online shop, you can sign up to support them.
Connected to a good cause that could use some extra funding? Register a cause with us.