Happy Halloween!

Just a few of the crazy costumes from our creative staff - Rosie the Riveter, Earl (from My Name is Earl), Cruella DeVille, Dr. Seuss, Mama & Baby Cow and the rest of the Big Thought - hope you have a safe & happy Halloween.

SLANT 45 teams take a stand against bullying

If you've watched the news lately, you've no doubt seen the stories of children who were so bullied and harassed at school they were driven to take their own lives.  It's a national epidemic that affects the lives of many North Texas children daily.

The Department of Education recently issued guidelines urging schools to do a better job of protecting students from bullying. 

President Obama recently said in a statement, "We've got to dispel the myth that bullying is just a normal rite of passage, or an inevitable part of growing up.  It's not.  We have an obligation to ensure that our schools are safe for all our kids.  Every single young person deserves the opportunity to learn and grow and achieve their potential, without having to worry about the constant threat of harassment."

The task of educating parents, teachers and students in every school to prevent, identify and stop bullying seems daunting, but several SLANT 45 teams have taken the initiative to put an end to bullying, one school at a time.

Girl Scout Troop 1273 of North Richland Hills, Brownie Troop 1296 of North Richland Hills, Barbara Jordan Elementary in Dallas, Bishop Elementary in Everman and Souder Elementary in Everman have all launched anti-bullying programs in their communities or schools.

"If we can lower the statistics on bullying in our community even a little, we have made a difference.  We expect all of our members to be able to end the major bullying around them and their friends.  Every positive touch our girls have will grow exponentially over time.  Being nice is contagious!" said Girl Scout Troop 1273 leader Angela Davis.

From making educational videos and leading role-playing games to creating posters and holding assemblies, all of these SLANT 45 teams have developed creative ways of educating their classmates about practical ways to prevent bullying and the importance of doing so.

Stacy Wells, SLANT 45 coach at Barbara Jordan Elementary, said, "We believe that bullying is not only a problem in our community but throughout other communities as well, and that if a change in attitude and behavior toward others is going to happen, it can begin in our community."

We're proud of all of these SLANT 45 teams for being champions of peace, kindess and tolerance in our schools!

Members of the Bishop Bulldogs SLANT 45 team stand proudly in front of some of the anti-bullying posters they created.

SLANT 45 Goes International

When SLANT 45 launched last February, our goal was to give children in Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant counties the opportunity to participate in this historic service-learning program.  A little more than 100 days out from Super Bowl XLV, we not only have participants representing more than eight North Texas counties, we also have out-of-state participants and even a participant in Ontario, Canada (according to Google maps, that's 1,432 miles from Dallas)!

Garrett's SLANT 45 project was GO GARRETT GO, a fundraising initiative where people were asked to pledge a dollar amount for every touchdown Garrett either threw to someone or scored himself during the spring 2010 Ontario Minor Football League season. Garrett scored 15 touchdowns himself and passed for one more for a total of 16 touchdowns.  People pledged $1,260 per touchdown, which multiplied by 16 touchdowns equals...$20,352, which was donated to Children's Miracle Network!

After being attacked two years ago by a virus that caused seizures, Garrett was unable to play football.  When he was well enough to play, he wanted to do something to help sick children not as fortunate as himself.

His father, Gerard, said, "Garrett's brush with mortality at such an early age has made him keenly aware of how lucky he is to be able to play any sport, let alone one he loves. He also knows that many kids are not so lucky - something he saw first hand while at SickKids. His experience, is something he thinks about every day. He knows that things can happen in life and that you could wake up one day and not be able to do something you love to do anymore.

That's why he wants to 'go' for the kids who 'can't', to let them know there is someone who understands what they are going through and is on their team. That's why he thought of GO GARRETT GO. He wants to raise money to help kids who can't play because of sickness or poverty, in Canada and around the world."

We are proud of Garrett and the BIG difference he made in his community.

SLANT 45 Project Highlights


Here are just a few of the SLANT 45 projects that took place around North Texas recently:

The SLANT 45 team from the Down Syndrome Guild of Dallas planned, facilitated and performed in "Party for Change", a talent show and party for the children of Family Gateway Homeless Center, and also collected over 100 backpacks, umbrellas and other supplies for the children and families.  "They were enabled to feel powerful and important in a world in which children which Down syndrome are often overlooked or thought of as "not able". On that day, they were the STARS!" said team coach Cara.



Students from Lakehill Preparatory School in East Dallas participated in several projects, including working in the Promise of Peace Community Garden.



Girl Scout Troop 1181 participated in a graffiti abatement project with the city of Fort Worth, helping paint over graffiti  downtown with a rain forest landscape.

Join us for FREE SLANT 45 art workshops on Oct. 16!

If you've read our last few posts, you know that SLANT 45 is gearing up for the Community Heroes Art Exhibition, which will showcase the reflective art collages of SLANT 45 participants.  The art exhibition will be on display at NorthPark Center, D/FW International Airport and the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History prior to Super Bowl XLV. 

Thousands of North Texans and Super Bowl visitors from around the country will have the opportunity to see these collages and the different service-learning projects they represent.

If your SLANT 45 team has not completed their reflective art collages (or if you aren't part of a SLANT 45 team but would like to create a collage depicting a secret act of kindness you've done) we'd like to invite you to join us for two free SLANT 45 art workhops on October 16.

Professional artists will be on hand at the Dallas Museum of Art and the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History to lead the workshops, and all art supplies will be provided.  Admission is free, but you must RSVP by calling 469-621-8989 or emailing info@slant45.org.

For more information about the workshops, including session times, please visit slant45.org/art-exhibition.

Photo Friday - Sample of SLANT 45 Reflective Art

These reflective art pieces  represent a small sample of the thousands of service-learning projects that more than 20,000 kids across North Texas have been working on to artistically tell the story of their service-learning
project. These pieces will become part of the Community Heroes Art Exhibition coming to NorthPark Center in November 2010, DFW International Airport in December 2010, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History in January 2011 and the State Capitol in February 2011.