BROKEN ARROW, Okla. — Students with opportunity gaps at Arts @ 302, a free after-school arts program in Broken Arrow, created an art car designed to reflect the mental health struggles children face every day.
The car, named Hombre, was donated by the president of First National Bank, who requested the design include flames. Julian Delesdernier, director of Arts @ 302, added a stipulation: the flames had to connect to a mental health message.
The result layers words of negativity and hatred throughout the flames while raining down affirmations and positive words from a cloud above. The design represents the mental struggle people face and how they can beat themselves up — but also the idea that someone is always there to pick you up.
"They were writing stuff about simple things like homework but then other things like body image stuff like that. The kids even though their young their thinking about these things at a young age and its being engraved in them through different things like social media and peer pressure. In the flames you will see the words of negativity but from up top we have things like harmony, creativity, community, all the kinds of positive things that kids can think about to try and weigh out that negativity," Delesdernier said.
The project comes as data shows Oklahoma children are facing a growing mental health crisis. According to the Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, 60 percent of Oklahoma's children and youth experience high or moderate psychological distress. Almost 20 percent consider suicide, and almost 10 percent have tried at least once.
Hombre will be on display at the 95th Roosters Day Parade this weekend in Broken Arrow.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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