During the spring 2009 semester, Hill students enrolled in Studio Art classes with Mr. Burt Merriam and Mrs. Ellen Nelson, Hill instructors of the arts, created kites as a project. These kites, which were adorned with portraits of people expressing particular emotions, were on display in the Boyer Gallery in the Center for the Arts as part of the end-of-the-year student exhibit. The kites were then sent to an organization called KiteGang, a nonprofit organization that focuses on manufacturing kites and other toys within urban slums, urban communities, and refugee camps around the world. Mrs. Nelson says "she picks one project a year to make her students think a little more globally." Her classes also have worked with the Memory Project and the Empty Bowl Benefit in previous years.
Thirty-seven students in Hill's Studio Art classes created kites for KiteGang: Erika Anderson ’11, Patty Boyer ’11, Katie Gibbs ’11, Peter Harrison ’11, Katie Kalis ’11, Kenny King, Jr. ’11, Maureen Kohar ’11, Shannon MacCabe ’11, Nick McCall ’11, Eric Nehrbas ’11, Alex Peters ’11, Liz Veys ’11, Colleen Cordaro ’09, Lexxi Gerrick ’11, Shanaye Glenn ’10, Jak Hutchinson ’11, Emily Kerwin ’11, Trevor Mack ’10, Marie Nelson ’10, Ngan Nguyen ’10, Evie Whelan ’09, Elizabeth Williams ’11, Varsha Yerram ’11, Catherine Zimmerman ’11, Sinead Cheung ’11, Cait Klein ’09, PJ Mara, III ’10, Jackie Massare ’10, Maggie Meagher ’10, Shayna Nugent ’09, Vinnie Parlatore ’10, Olivia Simons ’10, Suzanne Bruno ’10, Annie Cunningham ’10, Melissa Lee ’10, Samantha Lurio ’09, and Christine Oh ’10.
Many of the kites created by KiteGang are sent to places like Afghanistan, Chad, and Darfur where the children there do not have easy access to materials to make kites. Kitegang believes that play is essential for the development of children and hopes that through their organization and kites, "the world of tomorrow will dream a little higher."
Read more about what Kitegang’s organization does around the world.