Building community for veterans through art

November 26, 2024

The exhibit featured a variety of mediums and genres, including sculpture and woodworking.

By Ethan Chupp, UNC Gillings School Communications Fellow  

North Carolina’s Alamance County is building a healthier community for its veterans through art. This summer, the county’s arts council, Alamance Arts, exhibited A Salute to Alamance to feature art from veterans and active military members.

The Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina was involved in the work as part of the larger Building Veteran-Healthy Communities (BVHC) project. BVHC supports community efforts to become healthier places for veterans to live, in part by collaborating with local organizations to better understand veterans’ needs.

These three paintings were among the art exhibited at “A Salute to Alamance.”

In the United States, many veterans suffer from poor mental health. Feelings of isolation are common. Nearly 6,400 veterans died by suicide in 2021. With more than 700,000 veterans living in North Carolina — and approximately 18 million across the United States — this crisis has a profound impact on communities of all sizes. 

“It takes a whole community to support veterans, and I want people to know how powerful the arts can be for building community,” said Daniel Reyes, outreach coordinator for BVHC.

Daniel Reyes

The Alamance Arts exhibit was more than just a display of veteran artwork. It served as a platform for fostering vital community partnerships focused on veteran well-being. Art has long been recognized for its therapeutic qualities, particularly for  individuals swho are dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and moral injury. By bringing veterans together through creative expression, the exhibit helped to reduce feelings of isolation and opened the door for veterans to connect with each other and their larger community. 

Last summer, Master of Public Health student Olay Shekete completed his practicum in collaboration with Alamance Arts.   

Olay Shekete

“My part was working with Alamance Arts to see how local community organizations can come together to build a resource network for veterans in their county,” said Shekete. “We looked at how art has helped veterans and people with PTSD more broadly.”  

Organizers hope “A Salute to Alamance” will become an annual event.

The exhibit in Alamance County ran from July through September, and has proven to be an important initiative. Because of its success with both veterans and the community, Alamance Arts hopes to make the exhibit an annual event.

While art showcases like these are an effective tool for improving veterans’ sense of belonging to a community, they are just one component of much broader-ranging efforts to improve veteran well-being. As the BVHC project begins Phase 2 of its work, it will focus on developing stronger referral systems and developing interactive resources to address veterans’ unique needs.

Learn more about ongoing efforts at the BVHC website. 

Contact the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health communications team at [email protected].