At first, it’s a quiet morning in the studio space at the Library Arts Center in downtown Newport.
A gray light streams softly through the windows at 9 a.m. and Christmas music is playing. Lisa Labbe, of Sunapee, sits at a table, meticulously painting a glass globe ornament. Then more people start to trickle in and the quiet morning turns joyous.
There are Christmas gifts to finish and wrap during this Friday at the “Art class for differently abled adults.” The drop-in class meets each week during the school year. The $6 cost per session covers each differently abled adult and a mentor or caregiver. Scholarships are also available.
Rebecca Bense, a watercolorist who lives in Bradford, N.H., started the class about four years ago. Attendance was low at first — with around four people attending — but as word spread, the class grew.
“I thought it was something the community could use,” Bense said.
While Bense had initially envisioned a watercolor class, that vision expanded to include different painting techniques and a decent variety of crafts.
“It’s self-driven here,” said Bense, who is in her 50s. “I usually come with an idea and folks make it their own.”
In addition to Labbe, Tom Lathrop and his mentor, Rebecka Mazzola, were there from the start. When they arrives, Bense greeted them and pulled out a candleholder that Lathrop had worked on previously.
“I think we should treat the top some way,” Bense suggested.
Then, the glitter came out. Lathrop, of Claremont, chose green and red, which Mazzola spread out on a piece of paper before the pair painted glue around the candleholder’s edges and Tom rolled it in the glitter.
“All right, now we have to let it dry,” said Mazzola, 36. “That’s nice, Tom.”
After Lathrop selects wooden ornaments to paint, he and Mazzola sit down at the table and get to work.
“I’m always looking for things for Tom to do,” said Mazzola, of Charlestown.
The pair regularly go to the gym and get together with other mentor/mentee pairs, but the weekly art class provides another avenue of socialization.
“It gets these guys together,” Mazzola said. “They have fun.”
In addition to class participants catching up with each other, mentors and caregivers also have the opportunity to discuss ideas for activities and make plans.
As more people trickle in, Bense greets them by name. She remembers the projects they had been working on and whom they were making them for.
“I’m an artist,” Labbe, 32, said as she worked on painting Christmas ornaments for her family.
In addition to painting, Labbe also loves to draw. She is a fan of Disney princesses — “I like all of them,” she said when asked her favorite — and led a spirited group discussion of Frozen II. Football, particularly the Patriots, was also a popular conversation topic.
“They call me Buddy for short because I love making friends,” Anthony Boardman said upon introducing himself.
Boardman, of Claremont, got to work making ornaments for his family, his friends and his mentor (the latter of which he was trying to keep a secret from).
“Mostly, I like to visit my friends,” Boardman said about what he likes about art class. “I love to paint and sometimes I like to make Disney characters.” Mickey and Minnie Mouse are his favorites.
Richard Coulter, of Newport, took breaks throughout the morning to walk around the room singing Jingle Bells. Sporting an elf hat, he stopped to talk to each participant.
“Christmas is late this year,” Coulter joked. “The 25th.”
His fellow participants laughed.
“He’s the instigator,” joked Coulter’s mentor, Pebble Sillars, of Sutton, N.H.
The pair, both 55, have been coming to class for a little more than a year, in largely because of the crowd it draws.
“They’re social. They’re creative,” she said.
Painting is Kyle McIntyre’s favorite activity during the weekly class.
“Yes, I look forward to it,” said McIntyre, 29, of Newport. He attends with his mentor. 26-year-old Kirsten Radford, also of Newport. “Yes, I enjoy Becky (Bense) as an art teacher.”
“I like having you as a student,” Bense responded.
Toward the end of class, Labbe was working on creating an intricate design by applying gold paint to a white ornament, getting closer to her finished project. The class was ending about a half-hour earlier that day, as the group was going caroling afterward.
“It’s a great bunch of people,” Bense said. “We have such a great time.”
Editor’s note: For more information about the art class or to find out if it’s a good fit for you, call 603-863-3040.
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
