By ESTHER LAKES
Guest Columnist
There is a certain kind of work that doesn’t make headlines. It doesn’t shout. It doesn’t draw attention to itself. It simply shows up, day after day, in gyms, therapy rooms, school offices, and family court hallways. It’s the sort of work that makes communities whole, even if few ever see it.
Spotlight on Art was born to shine a light on that quiet, life-changing work.
When we launched the first event a few years ago, our hope was simple: bring people together around beautiful art and use the proceeds to help children in need. I imagined an evening of wine and conversation, of paintings and laughter, and maybe – just maybe – a few dollars raised for local nonprofits doing good work. What I never imagined was the way this idea would take on a life of its own.
Since that first night, Spotlight on Art has raised over $150,000 to support three extraordinary organizations: the Boys & Girls Club of Noblesville, Prevail, Inc., and the Children’s TherAplay Foundation. These are not faceless charities. They are local heroes – neighbors, therapists, mentors – who walk with our children through some of the most challenging moments of their lives.
A safe place to belong
It would be easy, I suppose, to describe the Boys & Girls Club as an after-school program. But that would be like calling the Church a building – it misses the point.
For many children in our community, the Club is the one consistent place where they are known by name, offered a meal, given help with homework, and mentored by someone who believes their life matters. It’s where they discover talents they didn’t know they had, where they laugh, where they belong.
I think of a Boys & Girls Club kiddo, whose father – a gifted artist – passed away from cancer. When her drawing was chosen to be part of Spotlight on Art, her mother told us that “she knew her dad was with us.” That’s what this is about: creating spaces where children feel seen, celebrated, and connected.
In a time when many families are stretched thin and too many young people are pulled toward isolation or risk, this kind of rooted, local care isn’t a luxury. It’s necessary.
The hidden work of healing
Then there is Prevail. Their work is more hidden by nature – because it has to be. They sit with survivors of abuse, walk with families through crisis, and provide a safe place for children to speak the unspeakable. There is nothing romantic or easy about it. It is hard, quiet, slow work – built on trust, built on hope.
Supporting Prevail means we are not turning away from the hard things. It means we are choosing to stand with those whose stories are often pushed to the margins.
Thanks to fundraisers like Spotlight on Art, Prevail is able to provide its services free of charge in a confidential environment that empowers and strengthens the children they serve. As their executive director told me recently, “Spotlight on Art has assisted in raising essential funds to support Prevail’s mission of advocating for victims of crime and abuse, including children. We are deeply grateful for the generous support of the community, which ensures that every child has access to the support and hope they deserve on their healing journey.”
These are not abstract words. They are lifelines.
Hope in motion
And then, beyond the noise, there’s a child on a horse.
At Children’s TherAplay, physical and occupational therapy doesn’t look like what you’d expect. It looks like joy. It looks like possibility. For children with developmental delays or special needs, that therapy – offered through the gentle movement of horseback riding – is often the first place where progress is seen, where confidence is built, where a breakthrough finally comes.
It’s therapy, yes – but more than that, it’s hope in motion.
As their director put it, “TherAplay is so honored to be part of Spotlight on Art, because it allows three local nonprofits an opportunity to join forces and lift up central Indiana children who face a wide range of challenges.”
Art as a catalyst for change
When people ask why we do Spotlight on Art, my answer is always the same: because art changes things.
Art makes people slow down. It opens hearts. It sparks generosity. And in our case, it builds bridges between beauty and justice, between creativity and compassion.
On the surface, the event is elegant: award-winning artists, children’s artwork, wine, and hors d’oeuvres at the Ritz Charles in Carmel, Ind. Guests stroll through gallery displays, talk with artists, and buy. Yet what moves me most is what happens after.
Because when you purchase a painting at Spotlight on Art, you are doing more than filling a wall – you are filling a need. You are showing up for the next generation.
That painting becomes, somehow, a child’s safe place, a family’s turning point, a therapist’s quiet victory. That is the real power of Spotlight on Art – not what happens during the event, but what happens long after the lights go out and the art finds a new home.
A community that shows up
Every year, I am humbled by the generosity of this community.
Our artists donate their time and talent. Our sponsors underwrite the costs so that half of every art sale can go directly to our nonprofit partners. Our volunteers show up early and stay late, transforming a blank ballroom into a celebration of color and hope. And our guests – neighbors, teachers, parents, business owners – come not just to admire art, but to invest in children.
Their presence sends a message: you matter. Your future matters.
As one parent said after seeing her son’s artwork displayed, “We’re so used to attending events for his older brother – sports, school stuff. I can’t express how exciting it was to share something with him that focused on HIM (other than his therapies)! I was also seriously impressed by the event too.”
Moments like that remind me why we do this. Because every child deserves to be celebrated simply for who they are.
Looking ahead
This Nov. 6, Spotlight on Art will return for its fourth year, bigger and better than ever. We’ve moved to a larger venue to welcome more artists and guests, expanded the variety of artwork to include more jewelry and pottery, and invited even more local children to contribute pieces of their own.
It will be a night to remember.
But more than that, it will be a chance to write the next chapter in this story—a story where art is more than decoration, where generosity is more than a feeling, and where every child is given the chance to thrive.
If you are reading this, I hope you will join us. Purchase a sponsorship. Buy a painting. Applaud a child’s first brushstroke. Help us show the children of Hamilton County that their lives are worth investing in.
Because at the end of the day, Spotlight on Art isn’t really about art at all.
It’s about love.
And love, like art, can change the world of a child.
Tickets to Spotlight on Art can be purchased at prevailart.home.qtego.us.
Esther Lakes is the founder of Spotlight on Art Benefiting Children.