ithin My Reach! is an ARTreach Art & Enterprise Life Skills Program that provides children and adults with special needs an opportunity to create their own line of pottery, ceramics, expressive art, silk screening and handmade furniture.  

“The curriculum was developed to support the individual student’s cognitive abilities, fine and gross motor skills and language development,” says Terri Bieber, executive director of ARTreach. “But we want to spark the entrepreneurial spirit as well, and each workshop is run by a professional artist who works and teaches in their field. The program is individualized and students often discover talents and new abilities that are difficult to uncover in a traditional setting. ”

Within My Reach! supports important life skills through creative art and business enterprise practices. As emerging artists, the student ’s self esteem and confidence in their work is boosted by private receptions and exhibitions at the ARTreach Gallery located inside Serendipity Hap ’ez at 535 Pin Oak Road in Katy. Artwork sold benefits the students and the program.

ARTreach is a nonprofit outreach organization that works within the school districts, hospitals, social service agencies and assisted living communities to provide engaging programs for children and adults with special needs. The programs support education and enrichment through the fine art disciplines including dance and choreography, drumming, and a number of theater and visual arts workshops and residencies that incorporate staged presentations, exhibitions and awards ceremonies for the

Within My Reach! is available to individuals and support groups in the Greater Houston and the tri-county areas. ARTreach Programs like this are made possible through a grant from Houston Endowment and other foundations, as well as donations from businesses and individuals who recognize the impact the arts can have a person ’s quality of life, health and well being.

Within My Reach! Programs can be scheduled as a camp, series of field trips to the ARTreach Studio in Katy, or delivered on-site to intermediate care facilities and home- and community-based organizations.

ARTreach needs donations to support up to 1,200 individuals annually through special presentations, group workshops and private lessons held weekly at the ARTreach Studio and directly through a list of partnering agencies and support groups. Those partners include Katy ISD Life Skills Program at CRHS, Brookwood, Carrie ’s Heart, Autism Support Group of Katy and the Down Syndrome Association with new outreach efforts supporting Vita Living in West Houston, Arc of Fort Bend and the Richmond State School.  

Volunteers and community members also benefit through a variety of music and cultural arts presentations held publicly at the ARTreach Gallery and through “Within My Reach” exhibitions and staged presentations.

To learn more, go to www.artreachonline.org. To participate in or sponsor this ARTreach Program, e-mail info@artreachonline or call 281-392-2021.