Americans for the Arts and the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) has launched a series of three pilot Military & Veterans State Arts & Humanities Summits in 2019-2020, made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor. The convenings are part of the collaborative Military & Veterans State Arts initiative signed by the NLGA and Americans for the Arts in 2017. The Initiative was designed to increase visibility, understanding, and support for the role the arts & humanities can play in the health and wellness of our service members, veterans, their families and caregivers.

The Louisiana Military & Veterans Arts & Humanities Summit, first in the series, was hosted by Louisiana Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser at the New Orleans Jazz Museum on October 8, 2019. The Summit brought key stakeholders together to learn about programs and services offered by military/veteran agencies, as well as programs offered through arts and humanities organizations in Louisiana.

The program was a testimonial to the grassroots nature of the arts & humanities movement serving the military and veteran populations of Louisiana. Performances included a memorable and emotional performance by Songs of Survivors, a Veteran Songwriting Workshop of the Baton Rouge Music Studios, featuring David St. Romain, Doug Gay, and Sarah Burke. The New Orleans chapter of Warrior Writers provided the stand up comedy and personal poetry of Veteran-Artists Ray Facundo and Jeff Key. The veteran performers shared their art and personal stories of how the arts and humanities benefit themselves and their fellow veterans.

Brigadier General Mike Cushman, ANG RET, Louisiana Military Veteran Advisor, and Brigadier General Nolen Bivens USA RET, Americans for the Arts Senior Policy Fellow, gave the opening remarks. They were joined by Alex Juan, Communications Director for Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs in a panel and discussion that continued the conversation about the conditions, needs, and challenges of Louisiana 's military and veteran communities.

Americans for the Arts' Marete Wester, Senior Director of Arts Policy, National Initiative for Arts & Health in the Military, and Creative Forces: NEA  Military Healing Arts Network, spoke about programs and advocacy happening at the national level, including the work being done with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense. Speaking for Louisiana Arts & Humanities were Danny Belanger, Director of Accessibility at the LA Division of the Arts and Miranda Restovic, President/Executive Director of the LA Endowment for the Humanities.

Gen. Bivens observed that the "arts and readiness, as well as arts and resiliency, are important issues when discussing the effects of trauma and terror on a community, whether from war or recent public events." The following panel featured a sample of Arts/Humanities Healing Programs that included Sara Lowenburg, Manager of Education at LA State Museum and Gala True, Photo Voice and Arts/Humanities Healing Practitioner at the New Orleans VA. Jeremy Brewer, LCSW, spoke about Bastion: Community of Resilience in New Orleans. It is the first intentional community where wounded, ill, or injured veterans live alongside retired military and civilian volunteers. Ray Facundo—co-founder of NOLA Warrior Writers, VA New Orleans, and veteran advocate—spoke for veteran artists in the community and shared his poetry, demonstrating the value of art.

The event was live streamed on the New Orleans Jazz Museum Facebook page for those who were unable to attend. The next NLGA Summit is planned in Delaware for late Fall 2019, and the final pilot Military & Veterans Arts & Humanities Summit will be held in South Dakota in the Spring of 2020. For more information, please visit Americans for the Arts' National Initiative for Arts & Health in the Military (NIAHM) at www.ArtsAcrosstheMilitary.org. Join our closed NIAHM Facebook Group to connect with others and discover national arts & military events, exhibits, and news.