Please scroll down and read and watch positive feedback videos from Organizations, Parents, Phycologist, Social Workers, and Team Leaders.
What Phycologists & Social Workers Say
Mary Pellicci Hamilton, Harvard Global Mental Health: Trauma and Recovery Certificate Program
“Kristina brought her skillful artistic expertise to a grieving community and provided incredible compassion and grounding to the participants and their families. The children’s expressive smiles and excitement can be seen captured through the amazing photography by Keane Photography. The paper art-making process was healing on multiple levels, allowing the children to recreate chaos. The written story narration empowered the children with themes of superhero abilities and majestic power and control. The families and Newtown community embraced KSW. A win-win for all!”
Keith Storace Psychologist in Melbourne, Australia
“Kids Share Workshops’ mission to inspire self-expression in children echoes my personal and professional commitment to encourage a child’s healthy sense of self in connecting with the community. My interest in contributing to Kids Share Workshops stems from my chosen area of work that emphasizes the importance and impact of the child’s interpretation and belief about their environment and that art can be a welcomed catalyst for change within that environment.”
Kian F Jacobs, LCSW, Psychotherapist/private practice at Kian F Jacobs, LCSW
“Kristina had more energy than the 30+ Newtown children in the room. It was a fun experience, artistic, creative, sensitive, multimedia, and curative for all involved. I would recommend Kristina for artwork with children, especially since this form of expression has been diminished over the years in the standard academic system.
What Professionals Say
Pamela Getsie, Corporate Director and Change Leader, Blue Cross/Blue Shield
“If you are looking for a partner for a social change project, reach out to Kristina. Kids Share Workshops offer quality, meaningful, and highly adaptable programming. I’m looking forward to the exciting next chapter in KSW’s inspiring adventure!”
Kris Shonk Pfeifer is a Graphic Designer specializing in creative design services and solutions.
“Working with Kids Share Workshops has been one of my favorite projects that I’ve been proud to be involved in. Kristina is a talented, highly creative, and motivated person who puts her heart and soul into her work and life. I hope we can work together in some capacity again in the future!”
What NonProfit Organizations are Saying
La Touche, Togo, West Africa
Sylvie Enyonam, Lead Teacher at La Touche Supplementary School
“The Togolese government just authorized visitation and activities back in the prisons. And you know what, this time since August, I got inspiration from your Kids Share Workshops in April by introducing a new approach to La Touche activities. We asked the inmates to draw and/or write their own stories, just like we learned with the Kids Share curriculum, and it was just amazing! With the art supplies left from your workshop, we used crayons, which proved therapeutic.
When you return someday to Togo, you will see for yourself the beautiful outcome! Kristina, you gave me new inspiration through your Kids Share Workshops. Please feel free to count this as a positive testimony from Sylvie Enyonam of La Touche. Thank you!
World Vision USA & Zambia
Rahsaan Graham, Former Senior Director for Child Protection and Education with World Vision USA
“This was the first time World Vision has partnered with another organization like Kids Share Workshops in our education and development work. It was a great opportunity, and we wanted to look at Kids Share’s programming to ensure it was technically sound. I partnered with colleagues in World Vision from our Child Protection Sector, Education Sector, our Psycho-Social Sector, Psycho-Emotional Development Sectors, and Youth Workforce Development. And they all looked at the Kids Share curriculum, and we decided this was a great opportunity for us to focus and work with them.
We looked closely at their social and emotional aspects of learning, the self-awareness that children have to manage their feelings, motivation, empathy, and even their social skills, and we saw that Kids Share’s curriculum fit right in the middle of the work we were doing. We have built it into our first module in our Youth Ready work, Module One, Who am I? And who are we?
So, in our partnering with the two Zambian communities at the Bimbe Primary School and the Home of Hope, the Kids Share work has been a tremendous fit.”
What Professional Kids Share Team Leaders Say
Kathy Chattoraj, Artist, Owner Operator Future Picassos
“I had the pleasure of working directly with Kristina on the Kids Share Zambia project. Being a part of such a gifted and talented team was a pure joy. Kristina’s professional leadership skills and detailed organizational skills made working together seamless and what seemed to be effortless. Kristina has endless amounts of energy as well as amazing and creative ideas. Working on any project with Kristina is a true gift, and I look forward to the next time we can share another amazing Workshop together.”
Kris Shonk Pfeifer, Graphic Designer
“Creative. Charismatic. Caring, Calm under pressure. That’s Kristina in a nutshell. I recently worked as part of the Kids Share Workshop Zambia team, on Kristina’s collaboration with World Vision. Kristina worked diligently to find World Vision USA as a partner to provide resources and a new location for Kids Share’s book-building workshop- with school children in Zambia. Kristina put together a creative, hard-working, and dedicated team, that under her leadership, presented a workshop that enriched the lives of children who had never experienced a workshop like this, much less had art supplies at their disposal and a book to call their own. The book, which the students wrote and illustrated, tells their story – empowering them by giving them a creative outlet and a voice to share with others.
Kristina wrote the curriculum for the workshop, worked graciously and professionally with World Vision to include them in her process and progress, and traveled with her team to Zambia to lead the program, and again to bring the students their published books and celebrate their achievements. I was fortunate to serve as an art director and book designer for Kids Share Zambia, and Kristina was a dream to work with – inspiring, punctual, accessible, and helpful while giving me creative freedom to do my part in the project. Her personal artwork (Kristina is also a talented professional fine artist) which she created collaboratively through a storytelling brainstorming and art directing session with the students, added a beautiful touch to the book and offered yet another creative teaching moment to the students. I very much enjoyed and was honored to be a part of this feel-good, empowering workshop for Kids Share Zambia.
I hope to be able to work with Kristina again on her future projects. She is both a leader and an excellent team player, and I know she will be successful and will continue to touch others with her passion and vision.”
What Parents Say
Quotes from Sandy Hook/Newtown, Connecticut Parents (Two-Year Workshops)
“My little man is super-duper excited about doing Kids Share Workshop for the second time. He loved, loved it the first time 2 years ago. So, the second time around would be even better. What a great way to express creativity through art. This Kids Share Workshop starting end of this March is going to be awesome and a great way to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and make it NEW!!!!”-Mai Tran
“The girls and I are so excited to be a part of yet another amazing Kids Share Workshop next week!!!”-Beth Gallagher Hegarty
“Super Excited to be working with these amazing Ladies Next week! Thank you, Kristina Applegate,!”-Kathy Gramolini, 3rd Grade Teacher
“What a great bunch of kids, volunteers, teachers, mothers…I was only there one day but WOW what an experience. You go, girls…changing the world!” –Brenda Berda
“WOW!!!! Omg, the stories were amazing!!!! What an awesome job on the art and stories the kiddos did. Love, love it!!!!” –Mai Tran
“Amazing experience for all!!! Keep up the good work Kristina!”-Beth Gallagher Hegarty
April 21, 2013, “Kids Share Workshop is awesome and brings out the creativity of the mind, the kids love loved it!”-Newtown Parent
[It was] an opportunity for my son to express himself and [to] heal.”-Sandy Hook Parent
“After the events that occurred here, I thought it would be wonderful for my child to write and put her thoughts elsewhere.”-Sandy Hook Parent
“[It offered] an excellent creative outlet.”-Sandy Hook Parent
“Team building!”-Newtown Parent
“My child had so much fun. She was excited every day to go!”
“It was an amazing opportunity to expand your imagination and creativity.” ~Participant
“Loved, loved, loved them [the activities]. Loved the imaginative stories and activities that corresponded with them!”
“The Kids Share team are superheroes!”
“Word cannot express the Kids Share leaders. They became our family.”
“[They were] compassionate, sensitive, and understanding.”
“The friendships we still have after the workshop!”
“Getting [the opportunity] to work together was very healing.”
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