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The Transformative Power of Art: Julie Leboeuf's Family Journey
Voicemail from Julie Leboeuf! Julie, a special education teacher and mother, shares how art has played a critical role in her family's life, especially after her husband and two of her children were diagnosed with myotonic dystrophy, a genetic neuromuscular disease. Julie shares her belief in the therapeutic and empowering aspects of art, recounting how creative expression has helped her family navigate the challenges of the disease, connect with their community through activities like paint nights for fundraising and awareness, and find personal empowerment and confidence. Julie emphasizes the universality and accessibility of art as a tool for self-expression, learning, and community engagement, encouraging listeners to embrace their inner artists. Thank you, Julie!
00:00 Welcome to Art Heals All Wounds
00:48 Julie Leboeuf's Journey with Art and Family
02:04 The Transformative Power of Art in Overcoming Challenges
02:41 Art as a Medium for Connection and Community Engagement
03:18 Empowering Lessons from Art
05:33 A Personal Invitation to Share Your Art Story
05:55 Supporting the Art Heals All Wounds Podcast
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[00:00:00] Pam Uzzell: Do you believe art can change the world? So do I! On this show, we meet artists whose work is doing just that. Welcome to Art Heals All Wounds. I'm your host, Pam Uzzell.
[00:00:48] Julie Perron-Leboeuf: Hi, my name is Julie Leboeuf and art holds a special place in my life. I'm not sure I would define myself as an artist. I think I prefer to say that I find joy in finding and appreciating beauty in the world that surrounds me, and I enjoy exploring new techniques, playing with color, and I like to express my inner child through creativity and an open mind.
[00:01:16] So I'm the mother of three young children, young adults, I should say, two of which have neuromuscular disease. I'm also a special education teacher and I have been for the last 25 years. I feel that I can say that I've witnessed firsthand the power of art. As a parent, our children were always encouraged to explore creative activities.
[00:01:38] You know, growing up with three children who loved dancing, they took music and singing lessons. Seems like we were always surrounded by coloring pencils, papers, glue, scissors. At that time, our children weren't scared to show off their artwork. Along the years, they diversified their way of expressing themselves through dance, through playing musical instruments.
[00:02:04] However, I would say that art took on a whole new importance after my husband and two of my three children were diagnosed with myotonic dystrophy, a genetic neuromuscular disease that progressively affects every system in the body. Art has become an important tool that has empowered us to overcome many hurdles as a family.
[00:02:28] At times, it's a therapeutic relief, a way to express emotions. We often bring out the paintbrushes to create cards, then gifting these to family and friends that support us on our journey. It's also a medium for us to communicate and connect with our community. We have also hosted paint nights, bringing our community together to fundraise and raise awareness around this rare disease.
[00:02:53] During these events, art has allowed us to navigate challenging conversations around this disease. As a teacher and mother, I strongly believe that we all have a lot to learn through exploring our creative energy. And that is why we should all take the time to nurture and awaken our inner artist. Art can boost confidence.
[00:03:21] Art can empower children by giving them a safe way to express themselves. Art can teach us we need to show ourselves some grace. Art can also teach us to be kind to ourselves and embrace our imperfections. Art can help us find our voices and teach us how to express ourselves freely. And by doing so, we are opening ourselves to meeting new and interesting people.
[00:03:52] Art is a tool for change and can help us become more engaged in the community and become more connected to others. From my personal experience, I would say, don't let others define you as an artist. Shush that inner critic. The power of art can look so vastly different from one person to the next. So encourage that inner child to come out, to get excited and to start exploring. The medicine it has to offer is powerful and limitless.
[00:04:29] Pam Uzzell: You're listening to Art Heals All Wounds.
[00:04:55] This voicemail from Julie Leboeuf is really special to me. [00:05:00] She's one of the first people I connected to in the myotonic dystrophy community. Knowing her has really helped me find my way through this diagnosis in our family. And we connected as well through our belief in the power of art and creativity as forms of expression and modes of dealing with being diagnosed with a rare disease. Thank you for sharing the role of art in yours and your family's life, Julie, and for the reminder of what a powerful healer it can be.
[00:05:33] Do you have a story about art and creativity in your life? I would love to share it on the show! You can go to my website, arthealsallwoundspodcast. com and look for the big giant button on the homepage saying Leave Pam a voicemail.
[00:05:51] If you share it with me, I'll share it on the show.
[00:05:55] If you feel like you're able to and you want to, I also accept donations. You can go to the button or the widget that says buy me a coffee. I have no sponsors. This is a purely independent podcast. So any little bit you add is an enormous help. Thanks for listening.
[00:06:15] The music you've heard in this podcast is by Ketsa and Lobo Loco.