The
BOTTLE CAP:
a connector
DEE KIMBRELL
In February of 2014, I was in the throes of near burnout. I was participating
in what I call “internet therapy” (getting lost in the hypnotic pull of the
internet) when I stumbled upon a teacher’s blog and a gorgeous mural that
had been created from recycled plastic bottle caps.
I was mesmerized and excited about the ramifications of the type of
learning that could take place with this scale of endeavor. That was it! I was
doing this!
The next day, I approached Susan Supercynsky, the Director of Operations
at Children Are People (CAP), a school I had worked with in the past, and
told her about my vision. CAP is an afterschool facility in Gallatin,
Tennessee that serves at-risk K-12 students. These students receive a hot
meal and homework assistance every day at CAP, but more importantly
they receive life lessons. Mr. Fred Bailey, the Founder and Director, had
recently voiced that he wanted to involve the students in a project where
they could give back to their community.
Together we decided it was just what the students of Children Are People
(CAP) needed. This began an 8-month STEAM project called Caps for
CAP to create a mural for the outside wall of their building.