Since Solutions For Change is a transitional program for families without homes, we had a lot of fun with all the kids. Unlike the adults, they needed very little coaxing to get them started. Some kids completed four or five drawings!

Although it was sometimes hard to keep track of them, I think we had about 12 kids and 5 adults all together. Everyone had a lot of fun. As the opportunity arose, we interviewed and filmed participants and captured some great footage. Consequently, we are editing the film and hope to compile a short video soon. When it i completed, we will post it on this site and also on our Face Book page.

A big thank you to all the wonderful staff and residents at Solutions For Change for allowing us to contribute to the great work you are all doing.

And a very special thanks from Solutions For Change!

Bob Ballard, founder of the Hearts Of Fire Project and an award-winning singer/songwriter, will perform several of his songs inspired by the people without homes who he met in his travels around the U.S. working on the project.

The project team video taped some of the art empowerment workshops and interviewed  participants. Three of these short, inspiring videos will be screened at this event.

In addition to the art, music and film screening, Bob will explain the origin and evolution of the project and describe some of his amazing experiences. He will generate a new perspective on what we commonly call homelessness and inspire people with his vision of empowerment. Bob will also describe our new program which we will be launching locally in the near future.

Refreshments will be served. A $10 admission charge is suggested. Proceeds to benefit the Hearts Of Fire Project and the Center for Spiritual Living, Palm Springs. In addition to art prints, merchandise will be available on site at our on line store. Event begins promptly at 7:30PM on Saturday, May 17. You won’t want to miss a minute of it.

This will be an incredible experience, unlike anything you may have seen before. That is our promise.

We are leaving on September 30 from our home base in Ojai, CA. We expect to arrive at our destination by October 4, a few days before the occupation begins on October 6. We will be communicating our journey and experiences in Washington, D.C as we occupy Freedom Plaza. Bob will communicate via Twitter @HeartsOfFire and on our Facebook Page, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hearts-Of-Fire-Project/89773729521. Bob will also be video taping for later review, edit and posting on our web site, http://www.heartsoffireproject.org.

We will be based in Maryland, outside D.C., but don’t expect to be in the RV much, so most communication will be via my iPhone using Twitter and FB, with photos whenever possible. We will also be setting up a travel map on line here http://trackmytour.com/GL2m5 so you can follow along. Nothing there yet, but will be when tour starts.

In addition to participating in the occupation ourselves, we will empowering and organizing homeless people in D.C. Our intention, as always, is to bring their voice and their contribution forth for the benefit of all. Bob will be performing the End Of Fear and other songs on Freedom Plaza which were inspired by his experiences with the Hearts Of Fire Project.

Your support is important to us; it will really help us to know that you are with us. I ask that you tell as many people as you can about the October 2011 Movement and let them know we are there for them. If you feel so inclined, we could also use any monetary support you can provide https://www.wepay.com/donate/135366. We can also use lots of reinforcements, we are going to be there for the duration. So everyone is welcome at any time. There are also occupations springing in LA and other cities around the U.S. which you can support.

The change you wish to see in the world begins with YOU. There is no one who will do it for us; there is only you and me. We are the leaders we have been looking for.

Peace and love to all of you. We are One.

Washington, D.C, here we come!

Our purpose is to empower people to replace the paradigm of competition with one of cooperation, a new system that supports our natural human instinct to help each other for our common good. Now, we are all living inside the system that produces homelessness trying to undo it. We must act to create systemic change now.

One cannot alter a condition with the same mind set that created it in the first place – Albert Einstein

Background

Over the last 5 years, I have met many homeless people and the kind and generous people that seek to help them. Much of the time, these are the same people – homeless people helping each other. I asked myself why this was so. It reminds me of how we step up to help each other in the face of natural disasters, or in this case, personal disaster. Why does this natural desire to help each other appear sometimes, but is absent the rest of the time in our daily affairs?

The answer that came to me involves our social and economic system. The system evolved to benefit the few at the expense of the many. In order to keep it going, there must be competition among people and organizations, a perceived scarcity of resources and most all, fear. Fear is the primary motivating factor. In this world, cooperation and connection is perceived as weakness while aggression and anger is considered strength.

What would it be like to live in a world of sufficient resources, a world where we work together for our common good? A world where we get along and are no longer encouraged to fight and kill each other. I believe such a world is possible if we join together and stand in unison for it.

Objective

To address the root cause of poverty and homelessness will require systemic change; we can’t solve it by working within the system that caused it. We need a new system, a new paradigm. We need a system that honors the inherent value and dignity of every human being. The occupation of Freedom Plaza on October 6 is our opportunity to change the course of history and set us on a new path to social justice. That is why I will be there with the Hearts Of Fire Project and many other people and organizations whose goals are aligned with ours.

I am looking for support from those who agree with these objectives and seek systemic change. I will be your representative in Washington, D.C. on October 6. I know many of you would be there with me if you could.

Help me be your voice for change and a voice for the poor and homeless.

Please donate online at https://www.wepay.com/donate/135366 or send your check to:

Hearts Of Fire Project, 323 E. Matilija Street, Ste. 110-251, Ojai, CA 93023.

Thank you.

We will debut all the art work from the just completed World Homeless Day tour on December 12 at the E.P. Foster Library’s Topping Room in Ventura, CA. We will also hold the world premiere of the documentary film we made about the tour!

During the 2.700 mile tour, 135 homeless men, women and children from Seattle to Santa Barbara created some amazing art. We will be showing all of this art work along with a short bio about each person. We interviewed many of them. They told us about what was important and what they wanted people to know about them. The interviews, the art workshops and much more are included in our new documentary film.

Check out our special tour site!

The Hearts Of Fire Project team will travel to Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Santa Barbara and other cities along the way, stopping at homeless shelters where we will conduct an art empowerment workshop. At each shelter, we develop a context that empowers people to envision, create and contribute who they are and what they want to say to the world. Men, women and children freely express themselves in their art and in a powerful and often profound group discussion which follows. We also record the original music of participants and film the entire trip.

We plan to travel September 15 through October 9 culminating in a collaborative, community event in Santa Barbara on October 10, World Homeless Day, a global celebration that will take place in major cities around the world. At this event, and others along the way, we will display the art work we collected at each site and show a video of our tour, including interviews with the people we meet at the shelters.

Our teams have logged more than 6,000 miles visiting shelters over the last three years. We have a strong track record and have inspired many to open their hearts and connect with people who don’t have homes. Likewise, the people we meet at the shelters are inspired, many for the first time in their lives, about their ability to make a contribution that is valued by others. We believe that any real “solution” to homelessness must begin with a basic shift in our understanding of and connection with our fellow human beings. The first step in breaking through negative attitudes and social anxiety about homelessness is to create a bridge between people and encourage them to communicate directly. The arts have served this function for centuries and it works. People are consistently touched, moved and inspired at our art shows and film screenings. You can see some of the art here and videos here.

We are looking for volunteers who want to help with the tour. We need people to help us plan events to raise funds for the tour, local teams in the cities we are visiting to help us at the shelters and art shows, and people to help publicize the tour and related events. If any of this sounds like you or someone you know, please email us at heartsoffire@ureach.com. We will be posting updates about the tour on this web site and keep you updated on our progress.

The funding we raise will be used to pay travel expenses for a 3 person team, purchase art and other supplies, rent event venues and pay a stipend to people who provide technical and/or professional services (e.g., art therapy, audio/video editing, etc.). We travel in a donated RV which helps us save money on lodging and food. We live in the RV and cook our meals there as well. Most of the time, we park the RV at a shelter and stay there over night. This allows us to interact with everyone and really get to know people. Unfortunately, the RV uses a lot of gas (8 MPG) so a substantial portion of our funding goes for fuel. Whenever possible, we obtain goods and services via donation, but this does not always work when on the road.

We have done a lot with very little. With your help, we can create a greater understanding and acceptance of the huge contribution that homeless people hold for the world. When they are empowered, everyone will be empowered and a new and inspiring vision of what is possible for human beings will begin to unfold. We need everyone to create a world that works for everyone.

He delivered an inspiring speech which came from someone who is wise beyond his years. Although he appeared a little tired and dazed by all the media attention, he did a fabulous job.

Check out this video, Zach Bonner, Homeless Youth Advocate

The best way to reach him is via his Twitter account, @Zach_Bonner.

Go Zach!!

Roger Houston

We all had a fabulous night at the Talking Stick in Venice on Friday night! The juices were flowing and excitement was palpable (love that word). Several great performers lent their time to help us empower people without homes.

To the best of our knowledge, this was the first ever concert by homeless or formerly homeless musicians for the benefit of other homeless people. Empowered people create their own solutions and connections. We need only provide a way for them to do it.

Roger Houston started off the evening and really warmed up the crowd (even he was sweating).  With his double-necked guitar and Oscar Silvas playing the congas, it sounded great.

Carol McArthur

Next up was Carol McArthur, and she blew us away. She only did three tunes, but they were masterpieces as was her picking of that wonderful 12-string guitar.

Kent Klineman and his sidekick Gary from their band Blind Pony came up and really cooked. Kent’s original material is really great and the licks Gary served up were really tasty.

Blind Pony

Amy Ultch

After showing our short documentary film, I played my songs about homelessness and then Amy Ultch soothed our tired souls with her wonderful voice and guitar. Amy’s songs are amazing and we were blessed to have her.  Bruce took the stage and just smoked that Roland keyboard, I think the keys melted! He did some great jazz versions of Stevie Wonder and a few other tunes as well.

Bruce

It was an exciting evening and we were very happy to have the Ventura County Star covering the event. Marjorie Hernandez was just amazing. She filmed the entire event and interviewed several people, sometimes simultaneously. Now that is talent. Karen Quincy Loberg, the photographer was also incredle talking with people are shooting pictures everywhere it seemed.

You can read Ventura County Star story here

We plan to create more of these events in Southern California and elsewhere in the near future.  If you would like to help, please Contact Us.

Hearts Of Fire Project On The Air

Catch me on the radio! I’m was on the Dr. Bunny Vreeland show on AM 1400 in Ventura, CA on Friday, February 19 at 3PM PST. Listen to the show on Dr. Vreeland’s web site here.

Unique Live Music Event, Friday March 5

A unique performance featuring homeless and formerly homeless singer/songwriters. Several talented artists will take the stage with their original music at The Talking Stick, 1411 Lincoln Avenue in Venice, CA. The bill includes: Sunny War, Ishmael, Blind Pony, Javelyn, Bob Ballard and direct from Europe, Peter Kasen!

Show starts at 7PM. Art work and a short documentary film about the Hearts Of Fire Project will also be featured. You don’t miss this one-of-a-kind event! Donation/admission $3 to support the Hearts Of Fire Project.

Art Show, February 2010

Now through February 28 at Oxnard Community College Library. In the lobby you will see art created by the homeless people of Ventura County.

L-R Ed, Mikey, Bob, Maria, Victoria & Connor

Wow! What an amazing day we had at the launch of our new Motor Home Housing Program. This past Saturday, January 30 we awarded a motor home to Maria Pollack and her son Mikey at a ceremony hosted by Regalo Virgin Olive Oil. Representatives from three local newspapers covered the event as well as the local access TV station. (See links to stories below)

Maria and her son were overjoyed when they saw the motor home; tears rolled down her face as she expressed her gratitude to everyone involved. Ed and Connie Bermudez donated the RV a few weeks ago. Ed wanted it to go to a homeless family. It was his generosity that started the program.

Victoria Stratton is Maria’s friend and sponsor. Victoria volunteers with Casa Esperanza homeless shelter in Santa Barbara where she heard about our program. She contacted me and told me about Maria and her son Mikey. Like many homeless people, Maria is employed but doesn’t earn enough money to rent an apartment or even buy a car. Maria met Victoria at church a year or so ago and they became friends. In addition to connecting Maria with our program, Victoria is providing a private parking place for the motor home on her property.

More families have contacted us who want to participate in this program. We are looking for more late model motor homes in good shape and people to help us give them a second life.  We are also need places to store the RV’s temporarily while we get them ready to distribute to homeless families. If you can help, please call our toll free message line at 877-827-2012 or email us at heartsoffire@ureach.com.

Media Links

Ventura County Star

Ventura County Reporter

Video (courtesy of Barrett Productions)