Morgan Arts Centre Gives the Arts to Big Brothers Big Sisters

"Big Brother" Paul Zander, a 2013 graduate of Toledo High School, playfully catches the hands of LITTLE Derrik before they reach his face at a ceramic event hosted by the Morgan Arts Centre, and sponsored by Trans-Alta, in Toledo Thursday.

The Morgan Arts Centre is active in the local community, hosting classes and local events, but on Thursday, it played host to a special group of kids. Six matches from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Washington traveled to Toledo on Thursday night to participate in a ceramics class taught by Mike Morgan. The event was also sponsored by Trans-Alta.

Big Brothers Big Sisters matches adults and teens with younger children to provide one-on-one mentoring. In south Lewis County, five school districts participate in the program with high school BIGs and LITTLEs from the elementary or middle school in each district. The matches meet once a week during the school year and several times during the summer at events organized by the local coordinator.

On Thursday, matches came from Adna, Chehalis and the Toledo Schools. Mike Morgan patiently worked with BIGs and LITTLEs on the finer points of creating ceramics on a potter's wheel while the rest of the group worked on creations inside the studio.

LITTLE Derrik offered the most enjoyable part of the evening.

"It was when I was able to get clay all over my BIG," as he described how he grabbed his BIG Paul Zander by the arms while his hands were covered with sticky clay fresh from the potter's wheel. Derrik and Paul are students in the Toledo School District. Big Brothers Big Sisters policy keeps the last name of LITTLEs unpublished.

The matches designed projects this week and are now scheduled to return July 16 to glaze the fired products.

For more information on the Big Brothers Big Sisters program or how to volunteer, please call (360) 943-0409.