Kids artwork helps Glennon hospital patients

Artwork by 15 St. Louis area kids will help raise funds to help youngsters hospitalized at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital. The artwork provides designs for Glennon's 2005 Cards for Kids holiday greetings cards.

Supporters of Cardinal Glennon Hospital buy the cards to send as holiday greetings. Sale proceeds go to the hospital's Children's Fund to provide care for infants and young kids.

(If your family would like to purchase cards, call (314) 577-5605 or 1-800-269-0552. Or you can order online at www.glennon.org.)

(For a list of all of the 2005 card design winners,
see sidebar below.)

"Snow People"

Fourteen-year-old Jessica Kettler of Fenton got an early look at the card made from her "Snow People" artwork. Her father, Michael, is a salesman for the Garlich Printing Co. of Fenton, which was printing the cards.

Jessica Kettler

 

"I got a sneak preview copy in August," said the 8th grader at St. Paul Catholic School in Fenton. Jessica has submitted artwork to the Glennon card competition for four years. This was her first winning entry.

For 13-year-old Mike Pavlison of Sunset Hills and 9-year-old David Lovelace of Manchester, they were winners on the first time they'd ever entered.

"Madonna"

Mike goes to St. Justin the Martyr and last school year was his first chance to enter. Only 6th, 7th and 8th graders submit entries from that school. Mike was a 6th grader last year.

At David's school, Christ Prince of Peace School, it's the 4th graders who get to enter the Glennon competition. David's winning entry, "Madonna," also ad been picked earlier in the year for display in the school hallway.

David Lovelace

Jessica's "Snow People" design depicts a family of three snowmen. A father, mother and one kid. "But, it wasn't my family," she added.

Most of the entries were painted. But, Jessica did something different.

She started with a background of blue construction paper. Then, she cut her snow figures and snowflakes from white construction paper. She used colored pencils to finish the details of the snowmen.

Jessica said she hasn't had any formal art training. But, she said a lot of her school artwork is hanging in her father's office. "It's called the Kettler Kid's Museum," she said.

She said the holiday card design was probably her favorite artwork. Although she said she also liked a paper mache sculpture she did recently.

"Presents"

Mike Pavlison said he was "very definitely surprised" that his artwork was selected in the Cards for Kids competition. He said, "I'm certainly not the best artist in my school."

But, his simple "Presents" design got the attention of the Cards for Kids judges.

Mike Pavlison

He said the design represented "wishful thinking" about his own holiday presents. He admitted that he considered the largest present to be his. But, he didn't say what was in any of the packages.

Mike said he didn't consider the Cards for Kids artwork to be his favorite.

He said his favorite school art project was a wooden statue of "a creature." He said it represented a mythical "kangeroose," which was half kangaroo and half goose.

He said the art teacher had students select pieces from a wide variety of wooden shapes and try to make an artwork. The kids used super-glue to hold the design together and then painted it. He painted his "kangeroose" purple, green, yellow and blue.

David Lovelace's art teacher assigned all her 4th grade kids to paint or draw a Madonna figure as their entries in the Cards for Kids competition.

He has art classes twice a week in school. Most of the artwork is realistic. But, he said his favorite piece of art was a tree, painted in an impressionistic style. "Our teacher told us to paint like Picasso," he said.

David said he'd like to pursue art as a career. But, he admits his judgment is colored by his recent success in the Cards for Kids competition. Most of the time, he says he thinks about working in a zoo with wild animals.

Mike Pavlisin said he likes sports and thinks he'd like to have a career in sports medicine. "Maybe an orthopedic surgeon," he said.

He plays volleyball, basketball, soccer and baseball "and golf with my dad."

Jessica Kettler said she's been thinking recently about a career as a chef. "Maybe I'd start a 'bread and breakfast' inn and be the chef," she said.

She cooks at home and her favorite is an Italian meal of salad, spaghetti and meatballs and individual-sized cheesecake.