Artists from The Epicenter created a unique piece to honor the CEO of Orchard's Childrens Services, Mr. Williams. Over the last 20 years, Mr. Williams has guided Orchard's Childrens Services in being one of the largest child welfare agencies in the state of Michigan. His dedication and commitment to the children of Michigan is inspiring. It was a gift to create a piece of art that reflected the extraordinary contributions of Mr. Williams to the community.

A few examples of the light portraits created by students who attended our Illuminated Self program at the Momentum Center in Grand Haven, MI. Special thanks to the Momentum Center for hosting the event and to everyone who came and participated! 

Our Illuminated Self program, coming to the Momentum Center in Grand Haven on 2/22, was featured on the evening news! 

The Epicenter's work was recently featured on the Stop Telling and Start Listening podcast hosted by Dave Cooke. From the notes: Like everyone else, children want and need to be heard. The challenge is that sometimes they don’t know how to share what they see, hear, or experience, or know who to share with. Whether it is a matter of knowing how to express how they feel or knowing they have permission to express their truth, children need to learn how to share and know they can. Today’s episode explores how we help children know they have voice and how we encourage and educate parents on how to listen to these voices. This includes helping children to be connected to their experiences and find the confidence to vocalize them in productive and powerful ways.

​Check out the full interview with The Epicenter's founder Allison Paradise.

Today is the first day of our winter sessions in Michigan! Thanks to the generosity of the Outdoor Discovery Center (ODC) in Holland, we're able to host our sessions both indoors and outdoors through the beginning of May. To learn more about each session and to register, check out our Current Sessions page.

Allison Paradise, Founder and CEO of The Epicenter, was interviewed this morning on Good Morning Monterey Bay on KSCO Santa Cruz. She shares her thoughts on the importance of connecting with ourselves and our limitless potential as well as stories from her personal journey to creating The Epicenter. To listen to her joyful conversation with host Rosie Chalmers, visit the KSCO website and locate the program from June 30th. The interview begins at 1:16.

We are honored that the Grand Rapids Business Journal has featured our upcoming summer sessions in Grand Haven. The article speaks to the philosophy of The Epicenter, our vision for the summer sessions, and our plan for continued work in Michigan. We're excited to share our work with the community of Grand Haven this summer as we create a safe, open, free space for children and adults to explore and express themselves.

We recently heard an exceptional interview with Abram Katz, founder of the Heartisan Foundation on Jefferson Public Radio (JPR), in which Abram beautifully articulates the need for children to have free, open spaces in which to explore and express themselves. The full interview can be heard on JPR's website.

The Epicenter founder, Allison Paradise, has been featured in Growing Up in Santa Cruz's May edition. In the article she talks about how The Epicenter came to be and what drives her each day. The article can be accessed on Growing Up in Santa Cruz's website.