WE RISE 2022: BY US, FOR US is a series of community-led events that support health and healing across Los Angeles County.

Self Help Graphics & Art is returning as a WE RISE partner as part of Mental Health Awareness Month in May, offering free art and wellness programs and workshops all month, centered around a plant-filled outdoor garden installation created by the artists Martha Carrillo, Monica Perez, and Joan Zeta!

Use the hashtags #WHYWERISE #WERISELA #WERISESHG to share your photos with us! Learn more about WE RISE here.

#WHYWERISE #WERISELA #WERISESHG

In the spirit of health and healing, our friends at The People’s Yoga are offering free yoga on Saturdays May 7, May 18 and May 21 as part of our WE RISE month events. Please bring your own mat or towel to participate. Register for our free yoga classes on Eventbrite here.

We’ll begin with Rooted and Rising led by Lauren Quan-Madrid, Co-Founder of People’s Yoga, on Saturday, May 7 from 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Lauren will share the nourishment and healing that she has found on her personal yoga journey. This session is all about finding a solid connection with the earth through bringing awareness into your body.

On Saturday, May 14 Yoga and Master Reiki instructor, Larios, will lead our bilingual Family Yoga class from 10:00 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. This yoga session will be use playful and creative movement, mindfulness, and meditation for the entire family to enjoy together! The session will begin with a warm welcome followed by a variety of activities including story time, stretching, learning postures, and more. RSVP here.

On Saturday, May 21 from 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m., join us on the mat for Body Love with Yoga instructor Carly, intended to support your beautiful and whole body. The session will begin with a warm-up, then flow into fun and invigorating poses with smooth transitions that link your movement with your breath. Gentle reminders to love your body will be sprinkled all over you!

Sign up for our upcoming Soil Time! Soil to Stomach: Growing & Foraging Food on Saturday, May 7, from 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. In this workshop we’ll explore what it takes to get your favorite food on your plate. Come see what we’re cooking up! All materials will be provided. This workshop is free for all ages. Space is limited, RSVP on Eventbrite here.

Participants will enjoy food by local caterers and learn from experts from public health, from foraging and food justice. Bat Varde of Women Forage SoCal will discuss local foraging; Jocelyn Ramirez of Todo Verde will provide a plant-based food demonstration; Public Health Educator, Mireya Arizmendi will share information on organic gardening; and Alberto Tlatoani of South Central Farm will explore how to grow your own food!

As part of the ongoing Soil Time! series, raised beds will be installed, and different treatments will be applied and controlled as part of lead-reducing research. This project addresses the contaminated land surrounding the now-defunct Exide Industries. This battery recycling plant introduced lead and arsenic into East Los Angeles, Boyle Heights, Vernon, Commerce, Maywood, Huntington Park, and Bell.

Join us for a Family Wellness Day on May 14, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.! We will begin with family yoga at 10:00 am, then have a short music therapy class demo with Stepping Tones at 11:30 a.m., especially for kids 0-6yrs old; followed by a stuffed doll-making class at 1:30 p.m.

Alongside all these activities, we will have vendors sharing wellness products, and organizations that work with the community on mental health and other services. There will be free wellness kits for all attendees and a food vendor!

We’ll have wellness resources from The Wellness Center, Psyches of Color, Stepping Tones and Nutrición Bilingue con Ana; as well as wellness vendors and products such as Ixoq Arte, The Garden LA, and Yerberia Mayahuel. Register today!

The SHG Youth Committee invites you to its WE RISE: Wellness Wednesday workshop, May 18 from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. with Dr. Elena Esparza. An herbalist, chiropractor, activist, and healer, Dr. Elena will teach you how to use herbs commonly found in our kitchens and gardens and how to practice self-care. This workshop is free and recommend for ages 15+.

Join Self Help Graphics & Art in a Garden Concert as a closing celebration of the WE RISE initiative on Thursday, May 26, 2022, from 6:00 p.m. -8:30 p.m.

Listen to poetry by Alison M. De La Cruz, féi hernandez, and others, and musical performances by SHG’s youth committee members and Eddika Organista; as well as a dance performance by the vibrant Contra-Tiempo. Bring your friends and family to enjoy the garden art installation, churros, and coffee and spend time in community!