VSArt - working with the elderly. Photo: Borya

American opera singer Amelia Feuer describes how she became involved with VSArt in Grenoble, a large French volunteer association that brings cultural opportunities to disadvantaged and elderly people.

by Amelia Feuer

I was sitting in a café with my computer, searching the web for something, ANYTHING, to do with my free time in Grenoble. Being paid was not even a consideration of mine at this point. I just wanted to finally belong to my new city. This is when I stumbled across a recruiting announcement for VSArt (Volontariat et Soutien par l’Art), a large French volunteer association with a very active chapter here in Grenoble. The objective of VSArt is to bring cultural opportunities to establishments that are not always privileged to include such cultural resources. Since I am a musician, this seemed like a great way to get involved and still practice my craft. But when I called the woman in charge of the VSArt chapter in Grenoble, Meredith Charreyron, I realized that I might be a luckier down-and-out Anglophone than I previously thought.

Meredith Charreyron, I learned, is a fellow American. She works hard to run VSArt, while forever providing inspiration to us English speakers as she switches between English and French effortlessly. Meredith began the Grenoble chapter (antenne) of VSArt in 2003. Since then, she has recruited a wide range of volunteers, totaling over 60 to aid with various VSArt projects. The range of volunteers is multicultural and varies in age.  Included are university exchange students from the United States, as well as Austrians, Japanese, and, believe it or not, real French people too!

VSArt mainly focuses on creative and artistic projects. Over her five years directing the chapter, Meredith has inspired the creation of workshops including jewelry making, floral design, music education, and musical concerts. She and the other volunteers work within local hospitals, nursing homes, social centers, schools in disadvantaged neighborhoods, and centers for the handicapped and SDFs (sans domicile fixe). The VSArt group collaborates regularly with Café Nicodome, a volunteer-based café in downtown Grenoble.

Amelia Feuer - VSArt volunteer

The atmosphere of VSArt workshops is always upbeat and positive. Essential to VSArt activities is facilitating an artistic exchange, where both the volunteers and participants feel involved and fulfilled in their project. Each volunteer works one-on-one with participants. Musical animations are fortified with short explanations, educating the listeners on the pieces being performed and their composers. In all VSArt activities, the purpose is not just to fill the lives of the participants, but also to enrich them.

My experience since I first called Meredith has been fantastic. Last week I participated in a workshop at a nursing home in Moirans. We brought in freshly cut flowers and pots, and assisted the residents in creating floral arrangements that would decorate their bedrooms. Both the volunteers and the participants had high standards for the task at hand, not finishing until the floral pieces were perfectly arranged. I found myself working with a charming woman, Madame de Bernard, whose caustic wit kept me laughing, perhaps a bit too loudly, for the whole afternoon. Speaking French with Madame was good practice, yet I knew that if I had a major communication problem, Meredith would happily assist.

My newest project with VSArt is that of organizing, rehearsing and performing a concert at the end of the month at l’Hôpital Sud. Meredith, a consummate flutist, will also perform, accompanied by an excellent pianist who also offers her time and talent to VSArt. Being an opera singer by profession, I will have a chance to perform one or two of my favorite arias. Non-musicians in VSArt can help to arrange the recital programs and write up performance notes. Everyone VSArt volunteer is as involved as he or she would like to be, or as his/her free time permits.

I would recommend VSArt to anyone who feels the smallest amount of creative energy burning inside of them and wants to make a difference in the lives of Grenoble’s citizens. The volunteers come from all over the world, and work with people from varying backgrounds and cultures. Despite our differences at VSArt, I never feel alone. I have been introduced to a community of people that have allowed me to call Grenoble my new home.

For more information, call/write
06 74 50 67 40
Meredith.Charreyron (at) gmail (dot) com
Or consult :  www.vsart.org (“implantation Grenoble”)

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