News

ELLY GRIMM

   • Leader & Times

Summer vacation is officially here, and parents are looking for good and educational opportunities to keep their children active.

The Baker Arts Center will be among many local facilities offering summer programs, and Baker Arts Center Director Brittyn Heronemus said there will be a lot to keep an eye out for.

“Our official summer hours are now in effect, and they will be 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and then by appointment only on Sundays. We'll then start our summer camps the week after that, and everything for the children will kick off June 9, and we'll have rotating camps throughout the entire summer,” Heronemus said. “We also have some new adult classes we're very excited about, specifically our adult pottery class that will start June 3, and we'll have that twice a week throughout the summer for people 16 years old and older. We also have some adult classes that will start in July, and we're particularly excited about the crochet class that will start July 3. We'll also have our Watercolor Wednesdays that will continue throughout the summer as well as some concerts on the patio and pop-up Wine and Watercolor events. It's just really nice to get out of the house during the summer, so if you're looking for something for your child(ren) to do, we'll have some great opportunities for that. It's a great way for some hands-on experience with a new skill, and we're also expanding into more areas – we've had the pottery studio downstairs for a long time, and we're finally getting an instructor down there again, so it'll be great having that hands-on work.”

Heronemus said planning had begun late last year.

“We do a full year's spread, and then quarterly, we go back in and discuss/decide what classes we'll do and then go from there,” Heronemus said. “Some things fall in line really easily and quickly, and others take a bit more time depending on circumstances. We also have multiple artists in the area who will have residencies at Baker Arts Center, which we're also really excited about.”

The summer is always a great time for children to learn such skills, Heronemus said.

“With school ending, there's a lot of open time for creativity, and we love helping to keep the learning going. It's really good for children to keep their brains moving and working throughout the summer – not unlike the goal of the summer reading program – so this is a great way to help children keep their brains active,” Heronemus said. “It's another side of the brain to be triggered and just a great way to introduce them to something new. We really want to help the children who participate in our classes and camps to possibly come away with a new skill. Our first camp is all about fiber arts, which includes sewing, crocheting, etc., and those take patience and determination when working on a project. We break everything down step by step so everything is easy to understand and grasp so the children can grow upon them and maybe turn it into a new hobby. You just never know what participating in one of our classes or camps could turn into!”

While there will be many programs for children, Heronemus said the adults in the community are not being ignored.

“As adults, we tend to forget to take some time for ourselves to detach and take a break once in a while with a hobby. Mental health is so important, and hobbies help us maintain our well-being and help us take a break from the world for a bit,” Heronemus said. “Watercolor painting is always a fun and relaxing time on Wednesday evenings, and so is pottery. It's always fun getting your hands a little dirty for a bit and just taking a break.”

Heronemus added signing up for this summer’s programs is very easy.

“The easiest way to sign up – and pay ahead for a guaranteed spot – is to pay online at bakerarts.org, and people can select all the classes they'd like to take either all at once or one class at a time as the summer goes along, it's entirely up to them how they want to do that,” Heronemus said. “If you want to pay at the door, you can call (620) 624-2810 and get your name on the list, and you can pay by cash, check or card at the door.”

Overall, Heronemus said, she hopes to have a busy summer at Baker Arts Center.

“We've been listening to the community a lot while planning out this summer, so I hope to see a big response to everything we'll be offering, especially with the crochet class and the pottery class. With the pottery, we've already had a lot of people try that out downstairs and tell us they enjoy that hands-on instruction, and we also had a lot of people tell us they either wanted to start or get back into crocheting, so we found a great instructor there too,” Heronemus said. “We also had multiple requests for a woodworking class, that was something else a lot of people were interested in, and we've had multiple session of that. We truly want to provide classes and camps people are legitimately interested in, so if you have a thought or idea for a future class, or if you're an instructor, please reach out to us and tell us what you're thinking, because we'd love to know. I would also remind people our Splat Shack is open, and we have a summer special of $15, which includes a 16x20 canvas and all of the equipment in there. I'm particularly excited about a class we'll have that will be focusing on upcycling old clothes, a local artist will be in charge of that and it should be really, really fun. With the concerts, they're always a great time to enjoy a nice night outdoors listening to some good music, and it's only $5 admission, so it'll be great to really utilize that space since the weather's warming up now.”