{"id":7852,"date":"2025-06-29T20:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-29T20:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=7852"},"modified":"2025-06-29T20:30:00","modified_gmt":"2025-06-29T20:30:00","slug":"national-creative-arts-festival-empowers-veterans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=7852","title":{"rendered":"National Creative Arts Festival empowers Veterans"},"content":{"rendered":"

Originally published:<\/strong> 2025-06-29T20:30:00+00:00. Historical source article: benefits, rules, amounts and deadlines may have changed. Check the official source for current information.<\/p>\n

The 2025 National Creative Arts Festival took place May 11-18 at the Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center<\/a> in Indianapolis, Indiana.<\/p>\n

Co-hosted annually by VA and the American Legion Auxiliary, the event provides a stage for Veterans from diverse backgrounds to showcase their artistic talents and bond over shared experiences.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about staying connected with ourselves and each other,\u201d said Miranda Blakeslee, a creative arts music therapist at Tucson VA<\/a>. \u201cSeeing Veterans express themselves, being heard and understood, and sharing joy\u2014it\u2019s why I love my job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Every year, local VA facilities organize competitions, with winners advancing to the national festival. This year saw nearly 4,000 Veterans submitting over 6,500 works to the national competition.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s about making connections\u2019<\/h2>\n

Air Force Veteran Robert Gadsden triumphed in the inspirational poetry drama category with his original poem, \u201cYEHBUTZ.\u201d Gadsden called the festival a transformative experience and talked about the therapeutic benefits of creative expression in coping with trauma and PTSD.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an outlet,\u201d he said, \u201ca way to redirect frustrations into inspiration and positive energy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gadsden recalled a conversation with another Veteran that led to a profound connection and mutual healing: \u201cIt\u2019s about making connections and dealing with past issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Just go for it\u2019<\/h2>\n

\u201cI was very grateful to be there,\u201d said Army Veteran Serena \u201cAngeline\u201d Hernandez. \u201cI\u2019m starting to write music again because of it.\u201d Hernandez emphasized the lasting connections she made during the event. \u201cI met a lot of great people\u2014people who are still texting me today. I did not want to leave. I met good friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter what your talent level is,\u201d Gadsden added. \u201cEven a slight interest is enough\u2014just go for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Learn more about the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n

Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs<\/a>. Its Veterans is an independent publication and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The National Creative Arts Festival provides a stage for Veterans from diverse backgrounds to showcase their artistic talents and connect over shared experiences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":318,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-veterans-news"],"yoast_head":"\nNational Creative Arts Festival empowers Veterans - Its Veterans<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The National Creative Arts Festival provides a stage for Veterans from diverse backgrounds to showcase their artistic talents and connect over shared experiences.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=7852\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"National Creative Arts Festival empowers Veterans - 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