SHINE!

The artwork in this auction was created collaboratively by some members of The Sisterhood at Austin Street Center and the 4th grade class at Wesley Prep, Dallas. This group of friends co-wrote and illustrated a beautiful children's story about letting your light shine. Their motto is "Together we shine brighter" because we have seen first hand how much more we can accomplish when we take the time to know one another and work together.

All money raised during this auction will be divided evenly between The Austin Street Center and The Laura Bush Foundation. We chose these organizations because we want to support our friends in The Sisterhood at Austin Street Center as they move closer to permanent housing, and we want to help restore school libraries that were damaged in recent floods and hurricanes so that every student has access to great books.

We Believe...
-The world needs more unity; less margins and bubbles
-Shared time and experiences spark friendships
-Collaborative creativity ignites a sense of community
-What we can accomplish together is greater than what we can do
alone.
-Kids can make a difference and light the way for others
-Everyone's voice deserves to be heard
-Together our light shines brighter, and we can be a beacon of hope
and compassion to make our community radiant!

So here's what we're doing:
Project Illuminate grew from some Wesley Prep 4th graders who wanted to make a difference and their friends in the Sisterhood at Austin Street who wanted to help. We joined together to write and illustrate a children's story called Shine. We want to spread the message that we should always be light seekers. Light is there if we look for it...in ourselves and in others.

We will auction off our original artwork and sell our book to raise money for two special causes. Half of our proceeds will benefit The Sisterhood program at Austin Street Center, and we will donate the other half to The Laura Bush Foundation.

Want to help us SHINE?
Here's how you can help:

1. Bid on one of our beautiful illustration pieces!
2. Pre-order our book, Shine here:
https://commongroundexperiment.com/shop-or-donate?
3. Come to our book reading/signing event May 19th, 7 p.m. at Interabang Books. We would love for you to join our community of light seekers! More info here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/shine-book-launch-event-tickets-44761222020