Public Invited to Symposium on Arts Programs to Support Military

The public is invited to attend a one-day, hands-on symposium at The University of Tampa that will explore how arts programs and communities can come together to support active military, veterans, wounded warriors and their caregivers.

The symposium, coordinated by Arts for Health Florida, will be held on Saturday, June 4, at the Reeves Theater in the Vaughn Center at UT, 401 W. Kennedy Blvd.

Titled “Engaging Community and the Arts in Health and Well-Being Across the Military Continuum,” the symposium will inform participants about best practices and model military and veteran arts programs. There will be opportunities for learning about and sharing resources in local communities to better serve military connected populations. Specifically, participants will:

Learn about national initiatives related to arts in health and well-being in the military.
Learn about local resources in the arts in health and well-being.
Learn how to more effectively work with the military connected, veterans and their families.
Learn about best practices in the arts in health and well-being community.
Learn how to engage the community in arts in health and well-being.

The keynote speaker is Capt. G. McGuire, a nurse officer and chief of Integrative Health and Wellness at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. McGuire is also the founder of the Healing Arts Exhibit at Walter Reed.

The symposium will also host a full-day “art hive” where community members, artists, active military, veterans and their families can engage in arts experiences at no charge.

To register, go to www.artsforhealthflorida.myevent.com. Cost is $30 for Arts for Health Florida members and $45 for the general public (includes a one-year individual membership to Arts for Health Florida).

Similar symposiums will also be held in Orlando on May 31 and Tarpon Springs on June 3.

Arts for Health Florida is funded in part by the State of Florida Department of State-Division of Cultural Affairs, UT and the Arts Council of Hillsborough County.