"Joe's offers a tremendous variety of programs, with students of a all backgrounds, in my community. It doesn't matter whether you are six or 60 years old, African American, Hispanic...Joe's is a welcoming place that reflects the diversity of our community."
-Pat E. Williams, Mt. Rainier resident
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The Need
Joe's has outgrown the current space. Our success means that Joe's simply cannot serve everyone who wants to participate and can host only limited events at the current facility.

Our community needs the new Joe's to respond quickly to emerging needs and interests. The artists, teachers, and activists of Joe's Movemetn Emporium cannot achieve our vision without this secure new building, which will be renovated to match our distinctive goals and activities.

Most of the children and youth who participate in programs at Joe's face significant academic, social, and economic challenges. Continually under-funded, the three local elementary schools experience a high turnover of staff and students. Joe's uses arts education as a way to overcome these problems, opening up possibilities, building self-esdteem, and providing outlets for creativity and expression. Many people who discover Joe's Movement Emporium have never before had the opportunity to experience contemporary dance or traditional cultural performance traditions. Our philosophy and practice of inclusion works to make every visitor--or rather ever "Joe"--feel like a performer and valued community member.

Currently, Joe's draws a core audience that feeds other businesses in the arts distrct. With the new studio facility, the organization will have the capacity to rent more office and rehearsal space, attract larger audiences to weekly performances in the new theatre, provide larger venues for other non-profit organizations and civic groups, and support more arts education programs for local youth. Joe's offers programs with rich artistic merit that are fused with a deep commitment to the local community. In a county with very few arts organizations, parents, children, and all local residents will benefit from expanded access to the arts especially exposure to multicultural traditions.

The Girls
photo taken by Marketa Ebert


Hip Hop Class
photo taken by Marketa Ebert

Afro Cuban Class
 photo taken by Maura Friedman
 
 

The Goals
The Campaign for a New Joe's will allow us to expand our creative and community revitalization activities and better meet the emerging meeds of dace artists and racially and culturally diverse residents. Creating a permanent home for Joe's will:

  • promote a thriving arts audience and philanthropic culture
  • stimulate a professional performing arts industry
  • empower neighborhood youth to be expressive and successful
  • create a livable community with authentic linkages across racial ethnic, and socio economic lines

Joe's Movement Emporium has been an anchor in a revitalization strategy with arts as the center of community development. Guided by a commitment to use the arts as a tool for building communities, the staff, teachers, and artists of Joe's work to provide social opportunities for children, teach life skills for local youth, and promote family involvement in neighborhood restoration.

By attracting small businesses, visitors, artists, and new residents, Joe's can continue to play a pivotal role in helping create a wroking model of successful arts driven strategy achieving regional economic recovery.
Gamelan Orchestra