‘A chance to escape.’ KY teacher delivers bags of art supplies to students’ homes

In a response to the coronavirus outbreak, Coventry Oak Elementary Art Teacher Kelsey Davis this week delivered bags of art supplies to her students’ homes, simply placing the bag on their doorstep, knocking, and waving from the front yard or her car.

“Times are tough for so many right now, and while kids are strong and resilient, they absolutely thrive when adults are committed to helping them navigate difficulties,” said Davis. “Hopefully, these art supplies provide students with a creative outlet, a release, a chance to escape, a way to process their emotions.”

Davis believes art is a powerful cultural force. She said one of her favorite quotes from late singer Nina Simone says, “It’s an artist’s duty to reflect the times in which we live.”

Davis said when it became clear that school wouldn’t be in session for an extended period of time, she sought funding for art supplies that could be given to students, so they could continue to create at their Lexington homes.

She obtained a Keep Kids Learning grant through a program called Donors Choose, receiving $1,000 in Walmart gift cards.

“With that money, I was able to purchase paint, construction paper, markers, glue, felt, beads, popsicle sticks, oil pastels, and many other awesome art supplies,” she said.

Davis stayed up until 3 a.m. ordering the supplies the day she learned her students were awarded the grant.

“My heart was so full of excitement for my kids, I simply couldn’t sleep,” she said.

Students can use the supplies to create anything they wish or complete a project with Davis by following along on her YouTube channel or joining one of her live lessons on the online platform Zoom.

“I’m going to paint something with the water colors,” said one of the students, Allison Dominguez Sanchez, 10.

Porscha Coney is the mother mom of two of Davis’s students, London, 9, and Braxton 6.

“They weren’t expecting it,” Coney said. “They know they are not going back to physical school for the remainder of the year. They were super happy to receive art supplies from Mrs. Davis.”

“I loved that the teacher continued to think about the children even during this pandemic,” she said.

This story was originally published April 30, 2020 at 2:47 PM.