Frontline Foundations' Hooked on Art Festival brought the community together for a day of live music, art, and beautiful weather for the fifth consecutive year.
Frontline Foundations has been offering outpatient addiction treatment to members of the Northwest Indiana for the past ten years. Their work has impacted about 1,500 patients, ranging from 18-35 years old. Events such as the Hooked on Art Festival have allowed their impact on the community to grow.
“When you know that you can do something to make a difference, you just should,” said Amber Hicks, Executive Director and Founder. “Part of how [Hooked on Art] started was asking how we can do programs that are relevant. The majority of our clients are court-ordered. When we can get them to want to come out to the program and see that it’s relevant, that’s great.”
Frontline’s Chesterton office has client artwork from floor to ceiling, all of which came from their free art program.
“We have found that as the young clients have gone through our program, they are amazingly artistic,” said Board President Joe Hicks. “Once you strip away the addiction, what you’re seeing is what God put in their souls. The art program grew out of what we saw from natural talent.”
Frontline used to host annual art shows to showcase their client’s work; however, a friend suggested they open up the event to local artists as well. From there, Hooked on Art has become a fall tradition for community members.
Artist Elaina Nichols has been showing her work at the show for the past four years. This year’s piece was based off the five senses with graffiti-style art.
“[Hooked on Art] is definitely all about the people,” said Nichols. “I’ve met so many great artists here that are so supportive. They’ll follow you on Facebook and compliment your work. They’ll be very generous here during the day as well.”
What makes Hooked on Art so meaningful to the community is not just the work displayed, but the impact all the proceeds make.
“All the proceeds go to helping young people get through our program as inexpensively as possible,” said Hicks. “It’s all about scholarships and saving lives. All the partners here, all the people here, have one goal in mind: be a source of hope for young men and women in our region.
Roughly 20 corporate sponsors made up the majority of the funds. Calvary Church, Chesterton United Methodist Church, The Ogden Dunes Community Church, and Open Door Fellowship also joined together to prepare food for the event that was sold solely for Frontline’s benefit.
Two Fat Tire bikes were raffled off by Chesterton Bike Shop as another way to benefit Frontline.
Frontline’s volunteers played a huge role in the day. Sandy Armstrong has been volunteering for Frontline for 2 and ½ years.
Armstrong said, “I volunteer because it is very personal to me. I have a son who is in prison for 25 years due to his drug addiction. My goal for working with Frontline is to spread the word. We need to talk about it. We don’t need to hide it. By me being with them, I get to talk about it. We had almost 200 volunteers lined up. People came in and everyone wanted to help. It’s a wonderful organization. Being a volunteer, I just think that’s something you have to do. The more you give back, the better the place is to live.”
Though the monetary success is certainly easy to cite, it is important to remember the overall goal of Frontline Foundations.
Allen Wright, Director of Community Outreach, said, “Yes, we want to make money today so that we can give people treatment, but at the end of the day, if our community is more invested and supportive, then we are going to get the people in our doors that need help.”
For more information on Frontline Foundations' programs and services, click here.