Round 7
September-December 2022

The following14 projects brought communities together in spaces of learning and healing. They support their participants in deepening our understanding of and connection to our friends, neighbors, communities, and ourselves.

Expectant Parent Preparation for Attunement with Newborn--A Good Beginning for Child Wellbeing

Eileen Escarce

To promote child wellbeing, Eileen will teach expectant parents how to prepare for interacting in sensitive and responsive ways with their newborn, while first examining their own state (feelings/thoughts/behaviors) and then the baby's state (crying/calm and alert). Parents will be taught mindful meditation and calming breathing exercises as strategies to
implement in their daily lives to better their self-regulation during meetings over the course of 4-6 weeks.

Compost Awareness

Jane Monteagle

A 3rd-time Microgrant recipient, Jane's project arranges (fee-based if proven feasible) one-on-one, group, and neighborhood educational gatherings around a Basic Soil Science event. Participants will receive a “Compost Mama” certificate indicating their elevated awareness of soil microbes and the participant's ability to nurture soil through Permaculture practices such as no-dig growing, no chemical inputs, and with in-situ composting methods and accompanying extract and tea amendments.

Move with Pilates!

Tanya Scott

This project will offer weekly free pilates class for all, especially those aged +70. The class will offer new techniques for those who need to move their bodies to feelwell, move safely and efficiently, and get strong to accomplish daily tasks.

The Queer Book Club Project

Leah O'Connor & Livi Langen

About a year after its creation, this book club has turned into a flourishing community where LGBTQ+ folks can meet like-minded neighbors, dive into a diverse selection of fiction and nonfiction, and ultimately start to
recover from the social isolation caused by the pandemic. Funding for this project will go towards supplying niche queer texts to club members and a speaker/author to participate in a meeting to create access to academic interpretations of key queer texts.

Living on The Edge of Expression

Kathleen Benjamin

A workshop on the creative expressions of loss, grief, and growing through change, this project is one of a series of healing workshops. The goal of this workshop is to educate women/people on how to process grief, loss, and change. We plan to accomplish this through means of education, art, conversation, and resources.

Her event will be held October 8th, 2022.

Santa Monica Special Needs Siblings Project

Grace Lanzetta

With her grant, Grace will host a Parent/Child celebration day in honor of special needs siblings. Having started Santa Monica Sibs, a special needs sibling support group that meets virtually for children aged 5-18. Once a month they support each other through sharing stories, journaling, playing games and using art as therapy. From being a mom to both special needs child with an ultra rare genetic syndrome and one who is typical, she' learned, if asked a special needs sibling what they wish they could change about their
family life, it would be "Spending more time alone with my parent(s)" as special needs family life is often focused on the special needs child,a special needs sibling can feel guilty to ask for attention or simply does not receive it in the daily fray. Grace's event would provide a day for typical siblings to be in the spotlight to combat this feeling.

Deep Listening

Dani Lunn

Dani will facilitate Deep Listening® workshops where she will teach participants
empathy-building and group transformation developed by the late composer and humanitarian, Pauline Oliveiros. Deep Listening® offersn experiential and interactive journey into the healing power of
creative expression. This series will be tailored to support the individual and collective wellbeing of all participants through sonic meditations and text scores.

Malikah's Mom Mixer

Books for Kids

Phoebe Benun & Maeko Gross

Phoebe & Maeko will be holding a book drive in Santa Monica for children’s books to be donated to schools in Los Angeles that have low literacy rates or a high percentage of students whose second language is English. As many students in these schools struggle with reading proficiency their learning spaces lack resources or organization of their materials, to combat this Phoebe and Maeko will be building classroom book nooks to help students improve their reading skills and discover the joy of literature.

Malikah Muied

Malikah will hold a mixer for SMC and Santa Monica area moms to build community, create strong bonds and for mental/emotional support while navigating school, work, and life. Moms will come together to share their journeys through motherhood nd to support each other with the intetion to create a safe space where their experience can be validated and normalized.

Youth Sports & Injuries: Prevention, Training, Rehab, & Sustaining Good Health

Andrena Seals

A two day event for student athletes, their parents, and their coaches. Nutritionists, representatives from local hospital systems, and other youth sports experts will share information and tips for preventing injuries and ensuring the athletes' success well into the future. Coaches can gain information on how to prevent youth athlete injuries; parents will learn proper nutrition to support their student athletes; and student athletes will learn the importance of learning the correct techniques.

Outdoor Community Sound Healing

Indy Rishi Singh

The community is suffering from a lack of good sleep, feelings of sadness and frustration, and general anxiety. Sound healings (also called Sound Baths) are multi-instrument meditation and breathwork
experiences that are universal and inclusive for all people, all ages, and all situations. This project would be to produce several public, free, community sound healings to the support the mental and physical health of people.

Weaving Our Dreams

GabrIela Solano

Weaving our dreams will help mothers to learn about their abilities by creating art with
their hands, serve as therapy connecting to their mind and share skills with families.
They will learn to knit crochet, two needles, and cross stitch. A space will be created
where they can freely ask questions to build trust and feel support as a group.

Callejera

Carina Reyes

Callejera, an event production and digital media space for Spaniglish mami's that reclaim the streets and unapologetically express themselves through hip hop, skateboarding, photography and fashion. The goal of the project is to highlight and support femme artists in their chosen expression as a way to advocate for equal representation and allocation of resources within these industries and genres that are traditionally male dominated.

Soccer for Everyone

Freddy Paniagua