I joined the North Kingstown Arts Council in the Spring of 2025. After just a few months as a member, I’ve seen how the positive effect my work has on my community and it has enforced my belief that we all can benefit from giving back.
What Made Me Want to Join?
I’ve always been a civically minded person. From volunteering at my hometown’s senior center in high school, to organizing games of tag to get active during the pandemic summers, I love to be involved in the world around me. I had thought about getting involved in local politics before, but town governance can be pretty opaque, especially for someone with no experience. When I was living in Boston (okay, Brookline) I had started researching the steps to get involved in a committee there. But as soon as I was ready to hit send on an inquiry, I moved to Rhode Island.
One of my first impressions moving to North Kingstown was how artistic the community is. From the numerous artisan shops to the art association, there is art everywhere. I felt immediately that I could be a part of a something bigger. During the summer, there is a weekly free concert by the town beach. It’s the biggest series in the state and draws hundreds of attendees from near and far. It was one of the first things I learned about North Kingstown and I have enjoyed many warm summer evenings getting dinner from a food truck and listening to live music. These concerts, I learned, are organized and sponsored by the North Kingstown Arts Council.
How Did I Sign Up?
After a few months of settling into my new home, I started to look for ways to get connected with my neighbors. Luckily, some awesome folks, coincidentally my neighbors from a few streets away, started a community group called Gather NK. Their mission is a monthly meeting space to meet your neighbors and give back to the town. They host a potluck followed by a service/activity such as a trash pickup and hike or walk through town with the local historian. At one of the meetings, I met a current member of the Arts Council who encouraged me to join. Thankfully she followed up with an email connecting me to the chair of the council and a link to the application. And honestly, it was easy to join. I filled out an application with a little about myself and my interests. That got approved by the Town Council and I got that approval notarized at the library. All in all it took about 2 weeks.
What Do I Do With NKAC?
After joining, the main volunteering service is just attending the monthly meeting. We review and approve funds to creative projects, ranging from concerts to events at local museums to grants for artist installations. Once I got there, I realized I could contribute my design skills with social media management, flyer design, and website management. I knew I could improve their online presence and just 3 months in, I had grown the Facebook page by 150+ followers and 50k views and had launched their Instagram account and grown it by 100+ followers and 5k views.
It’s as simple as this: give what you can.
I know a lot of us feel hopeless right now. With so much out of our control, whether it’s national politics, climate change, or the cost of groceries, it’s easy to feel hopeless. But that’s exactly when you have to realize you are not powerless. Sure, you’re not going to fix the whole entire world, but what about thinking smaller? What about helping your community? Surely you have a couple hours a month or $20 bucks that you could donate to something that matters.
I recommend starting with something you know you can do. As an artist, I know art. And I care about art in my community. I want to see more art in my world. It’s not running for president, but it counts for something. The NKAC’s summer concerts provide an evening of free cultural enrichment for hundreds of my neighbors, our support allows for students to expand their access to cultural education, and our initiatives allow visual, musical, and performing arts to flourish in our town.
So think about what you care about. Food access, transit, environmental protection, senior services. Find something you know you can make better. Find a group of other people trying to do the same thing. Start showing up. Meet people. Build your community. Grow from there. You’d be surprised how satisfying it is and how easy it is to make a better world possible.
