Trisha Oldfield

My goal before I left Vancouver Island was to paint more than I usually do in my daily life. I was thrilled by their reception to allow me to paint a mural at the day care center. With Marena Sheppard’s assistance I was able to complete an approximately 200 sq.ft. mural at the entrance of the playground for the children. What an experience! We worked on it almost everyday that we were there. These children are so loving and so good and since we didn’t really speak Spanish – it was a great way to interact with the kids as they taught us the names of the animals we were p a i n t i n g ! We were also able to be part of their daily schedules and play time.

In the evening Marena and I had the grueling task of dressing up to go out to recruit talented musicians to donate their time for a benefit concert. It was tough – but we did it! For those of you who do not know, Marena is a fabulous jazz singer. After many happy hours, margaritas, open-mike nights, dinners and dancing we were able to find some absolutely amazing musicians. I can’t believe it all came together but with help from Casa’s intern, Sally Black, and a generous Irish/Mexican couple who own a great live music pub, Finnegan’s Pub, we were able to promote a fundraising benefit in the form of a jazz concert. It was actually quite surreal. The posters we designed with Marena’s picture on it were splashed all over town (in both English & Spanish). Over 500 flyers were distributed and there was even an article written about it in the local newspaper, Atención! We are elated to say that THE SHOW WAS SOLD OUT!!! Over 120 tickets were sold! The night was a success . . . Marena sang beautifully, Casa de los Angeles got lots of exposure. We had an absolutely wonderful, love filled send-off from the children and the teachers that work at the day care center. We will miss them very much. This experience has shown me how incredible and uplifting it feels to try and make a difference.