August 25, 2018
By: Dwayne Page
Members of the “Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour” held their annual “Art for Kids Day” Saturday at the DeKalb Farmers Market in support of the School System’s Back Pack Program to help feed hungry children.
Claudia Lee, local artisan, said all the artwork for this annual event is donated and all the money raised from sales goes to the Back Pack Program.
IMG_0622 from dwayne page on Vimeo.
“One hundred percent of the money from the sales goes to help fund the Back Pack program which provides supplemental food for kids in DeKalb County who are not getting fed regularly at home. We are one of the organizations that does fund raising for this program,” added Lee.
“The art work is donated by area artists as well as artists from the Appalachian Center for Crafts, and Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour. We do it once a year. It is almost always in August. We collect art work all year long and people look forward to it. They get some great deals. The prices are amazing,” said Lee.
According to Elise Driver of the Coordinated School Health Program, About 6% of the DeKalb County School student population goes hungry on a regular basis with meals provided at schools being their main source of food. “Coordinated School Health began sending bags of food home to children ten years ago. We began with long weekends and holidays and now we feed them every week during the school year. Funding is not always consistent and we are continuously seeking donations of food and or money to maintain our program, to improve the nutritional value of the food products given to students, and to promote healthy eating habits,” said Driver.
To make a donation, contact Driver at the Board of Education Central Office known as the Ernest Ray Education Center at 615-597-4084.
Meanwhile, the 19th annual “Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour” is scheduled for October 26-28.
Every fall, on the last full weekend in October, when the color is breathtaking and there is a certain crispness in the air, the artists of Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour in DeKalb and Cannon Counties open their studios for a free three day open studio event. Celebrating its 19th year, the tour has grown to include 15 stops with 30 participating artists. Artists will be demonstrating their craft mediums and offering handcrafted shopping opportunities at every stop on the tour. This is a perfect family outing or weekend getaway.
To learn more visit
http://offthebeatenpathtour.com/