Humanitarian Clowning in Guatemala 2014 with Patch Adams Hello, My name is Guy Giard; I am a French Canadian artist living in Montréal, Québec. I believe Care Clowning in India would just be amazing! More than a dream come true, it would be the culmination of my life's transformation. Last March I volunteered for my first Humanitarian Clown mission in Guatemala with Patch Adams and fell in love with all the children and my fellow clowns. It's hard for me to describe just how much my life has changed since then. My heart has opened up and everyone I've come across has given me so much in return. I still can feel this exchanging of love, laughter, tears, hugs, and twinkle in the eyes vibrating in me. Since finishing college 35 years ago, I've devoted myself to the arts and music. As a child I've always asked myself: 'How is it possible that we send people to the moon while half the planet is starving?' These feelings became the foundation for my artworks on the plights of the underprivileged, on sexual abuse, the ancestral rights of Indigenous peoples and the history of slavery through the ages. Professionally speaking, for the last 20 years I've been teaching fine arts to children, adults, elderly, Alzheimer patients and individuals with special needs. I've always used humor to stimulate and inspire creativity, and with this in mind I completed a clown workshop and became a Certified Laughter Yoga Leader. This was a turning point in my life. I am now a member of the Association for Applied Therapeutic Humor's (AATH) Humor Academy and was awarded the Lenny Ravich ''Shalom'' Scholarship to attend their 2014 annual conference. This scholarship is awarded to someone whose work in humor and laughter has clearly and tangibly demonstrated a commitment to world peace. Being playful, I also teach music improvisation and multi-language sing-along Sea Shanties. I play in a traditional Balinese Gamelan ensemble, sing in a Romanian choir, and I've learned Dutch while studying in Amsterdam. I feel as one with all the nations of the world. I've started to study the Tamil language to be able to create deeper bonds with the Indian Clowns and the different communities of Tamil Nadu. I hope to change lives, and for this I will offer all of my creativity, playfulness, joyfulness, deep love and caring during my stay. I am at a pivotal period of my life and this clowning mission will be its culmination point as I will be celebrating my 55th birthday in India (November 4th). This is very symbolic as I've now chosen to dedicate the rest of my journey on this earth to giving love through humor and Care Clowning. I also wish to inspire everyone to live out their passion and show that it is possible to change your life at any age. Upon my return to Canada, I will pay forward your scholarship by promoting Humanitarian Clowning through lectures and publications, as well as by giving a workshop at the next 2015 AATH conference. I would be honored to have Fairy Shannon and the Humanitarian Clowns Inc organisation as part of my journey making it, together, our journey. இந்த அத்புடமான வாய்ப்புக்கு நன்றி. (Thank you for this amazing opportunity!) Best Regards, Guy Giard You can visit my website at www.guygiard.com and Facebook page. Here are some YouTube links for some of my activities Some Caring Clowning from last march in Guatemala http://youtu.be/4Jw-S5TyhBs Giving a playful workshop to schoolchildren about the history of music http://youtu.be/cuNfc28UlbY Leading a Laughter Yoga session for the Alzheimer Society of Montréal http://youtu.be/r3KedUhfTzs Music improvisation with kids http://youtu.be/t7H61Ldmgpw Leading a Sea Shanty sing-along http://youtu.be/VCFamXPBW9c http://youtu.be/vrKJSBjFDhE Excerpts from our concert Giri Kedaton Traditional Balinese Gamelan music: http://youtu.be/b_Gw1kR-RNI Excerpts of the Rumanian Choir La Muse concert http://youtu.be/1HNP-aNLfjo?t=17m45s Music Improvisation #3 25 mars 2010 dite '' La Poubelle '' http://youtu.be/B-r3RfQduVs Overview of 4 art installations on relationships within the family http://youtu.be/vXtyGOImgDs and on Facebook here are some of the links to the photos of the mission to Guatemala 4 mars AM - Psiquiatrico Zona 13 - Guatemala Jour/Day 3 https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152369665893714.1073741924.619088713&type;=1&l;=992fa26a1b 5 Mars 2014 AM/PM , Valle de Los Angeles, Guatemala Jour/Day 4 https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152371475368714.1073741927.619088713&type;=1&l;=a5d65209a4 6 mars AM - UNICAR - Guatemala Jour/Day 5 https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152387833308714.1073741936.619088713&type;=1&l;=53234ff388 6 mars PM - Miguel Magone - Guatemala Jour/Day 5 https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152387895178714.1073741937.619088713&type;=1&l;=312722f805

• published: 29 Apr 2014
• views: 46