by Robin Milligan
There are places in small towns that don’t announce themselves loudly. They don’t feel like institutions. They feel more like secrets passed hand to hand. The kind of place someone tells you about quietly and says, “You should go see this.” CREATE is one of those places. Tucked in one block from the middle school on 4th Street in Newport. It is not just a building or a schedule of classes. It is a vibrant community space that exists because people cared enough to build it and continue to sustain it and keep showing up for it.
CREATE, which stands for Community Resource Emphasis on Arts Through Education, is a community center for the arts. It provides a wide variety of programs for all ages, including classes, events, activities, and concerts. CREATE works with other nonprofit organizations in the community to expand the variety of information and experiences available to the public. They attribute a lot of their success to the contributions of the Kalispel Tribe of Indians and donations from the public.
One thing that is easy to miss but essential to understand about CREATE is that it is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization. From the very beginning, this space was built and sustained by community members who believed in the importance of accessible arts education. As this ambitious idea was getting off the ground, with hundreds of supporters contributing in large and small ways, it was affectionately referred to as, “The Create Place,” a name that still hangs on the sign over the front door.
Volunteers have helped in innumerable ways, from construction and repair to cleaning, organizing, and sealing envelopes. CREATE has faced many challenges. However, the people involved believe deeply in its value to the community and continue working to maintain and enhance what it can provide.
CREATE partners with the Newport Creative District, the Kalispel Tribe, Selkirk Alliance for Science, Responsible Growth Northeast Washington, the Pend Oreille County Library District, the Pend Oreille County Conservation District, WSU Pend Oreille County Extension Master Gardeners, the Newport Farmers Market, the Evergreen Artist Association, and others. These collaborations enable CREATE to broaden its reach and deepen its impact.
During the summer, Joyce Weir, board chair of CREATE, can be found under a nine-foot umbrella at the Newport Farmers Market with an ironing board beside her and her six-year-old garlic chives growing in the same container they’ve shared since they were planted there. She teaches people how to grow greens in containers year-round, shares community information, and talks easily with passersby. That approachable, hands-on energy carries through everything CREATE does.
Back at the CREATE building, a wide variety of classes and gatherings take place. There are belly dancing classes on Tuesday evenings, fiber arts gatherings, hand stitching and sewing, watercolor painting classes, Tai Chi classes, basket and wire art instruction, playdates for children and adults, and even craft sessions designed specifically for toddlers. Girl Scout groups meet there. There are pottery classes for kids and opportunities for people to write their own poetry books, exploring two or three different poetry styles. Youth classes are supported by the Kalispel Tribe of Indians.
CREATE hosts diverse classes for a wide range of ages, and people regularly come from Sandpoint, Spokane, and surrounding areas to attend. Membership is not required, though preregistration is appreciated so organizers can gauge how full classes will be. Joyce says they try to be as flexible as possible to make programs accessible to as many people as they can, but that preregistration is essential to making sure the classes can happen.
Joyce says that not a month goes by without someone saying, “I had no idea this was here.” Getting the word out continues to be a challenge. They provide press releases and pass out flyers to the community and communicate with the schools, hoping to increase visibility.
“This whole thing began because there were a few of us who were frustrated by arts programs being pushed out of schools and we wanted to do something about it,” Joyce told me. One of the early group members was an artist, and together they would go into classrooms to help with art projects. Kate, the artist, would come up with projects and the group would help bring them to life. It went over very well, and the kids loved it.
“There are some real smart women in this town,” Joyce said, with a smile in her voice.
Momentum grew, and eventually the group began searching for a location. Joyce said that at the time, there were more state-supported arts programs. The group found a building one block from the middle school that had previously been a church. Soon after, a handicap accessibility grant allowed them to build a ramp and create a handicap-accessible bathroom, reinforcing their commitment to inclusion. This was to be a space for the enrichment of everyone.
Randy Haa, a fused glass artist from Diamond Lake, helped diversify the program from primarily visual art to include more types of classes and entertainment. CREATE brought musicians and entertainers into schools, expanding the exposure of students in Newport and the county to a broader range of creative disciplines.
“It’s so important for communities to have a variety of education, concerts, and events,” Joyce said. “We like to be available.”
All concerts at CREATE are free to students. Live jazz and classical music are part of the offerings, but they try to include many genres and styles. Coffee in the Garden has become a beloved event when the weather is nice, drawing people together with music, art, and conversation in a lovely outdoor garden setting. “The largest Coffee in the Garden event was this last year, bringing about 25 people together for a live music drumming demonstration and for connection,” Joyce said.
Joyce feels CREATE has a strong board and also that the organization continues to need more volunteers, especially as the demonstration garden is reopened. Proceeds from their silent auction and grant funding was recently secured for a new watering system, and, she says, the coming year will be a transition toward a more effective watering setup.
“My favorite part of what I do with CREATE is making connections in the community,” Joyce said. “The community is supportive, but it can be a challenge to reach everyone because of how spread out people are. I love connecting with teachers to provide new classes, reaching new people who want to be involved but don’t know about us yet, and encouraging people to participate in something for themselves.”
From listening to Joyce, CREATE isn’t just an arts center. It is a shared community investment. It exists because people volunteer, donate, teach, clean, repair, organize, and believe. It grows through word of mouth. Someone bringing a friend to a class, parents telling other parents, students inviting classmates, and neighbors walking in, out of curiosity, and leaving feeling like they have found something rare.
CREATE is open to the public during classes and events, as well as Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Joyce says she is sometimes there until 5 p.m., and if you see someone inside, you are welcome to come in, see what’s happening, and get involved.
CREATE Art and Community Center, 900 W. 4th, Newport, WA 99156, 509-447-9277, createarts.org.