Monkey Brain Art
Art, meditation, and mindfulness to help calm the Warrior's unsettled mind.
Mission
To use art creation, meditation and mindfulness to calm the unsettled minds of Warriors (veterans, first responders, and nurses who have PTSD) and their caregivers.
Ruling year
2021
Founder/Executive Director/Warrior Art Instructor
Gary Walker
Co-Founder/Director Meditation & Mindfulness/Yogi
Trish Walker
Main address
1601 SW Jefferson St.
Lee's Summit, MO 6081 USA
EIN
86-3424598
NTEE code
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose (A20)
IRS filing requirement
This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990-N.
Communication
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our country sent an entire generation off to the Middle East during the last 20 years, and because of their experiences, we now have citizens with moral injury, PTSD, and drug dependencies. Someone needs to step up to help these hurting warriors. Every day, 22 veterans – some with PTSD - commit suicide. Further, about 37% of first responders have contemplated suicide - ten times the rate of all Americans. More distressing, every day, 31 commit suicide. Some of these, too, suffered from PTSD. Without our (and other veterans) programs, this tragic loss will not slow. Our founders have also traveled down the path of depression/PTSD and learned to calm their minds. It is now their goal to welcome their brothers and sisters home, welcome veterans, first responders and their caretakers to our art courses, and be there to listen and help them all heal.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Visual Art Courses
MBA’s 9-week art course and its 4-week photography course, averaging 12 - 15 students/course, are offered free of charge for veterans, first responders, and nurses with PTSD as well as for “caregivers” (the VA’s term for spouses and other supporters). This course, funded in part by the Kansas City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, is designed as a follow-up to participants’ care after they have completed treatment for PTSD with other veterans’ organizations, and serves to help them develop tools to stay on track with their healing.
Course Participants: On average, 60% of MBA course students are minorities and 50% are low income. Around half are male; half, female. All have been diagnosed with PTSD and all have been designated by the VA as disabled, either physically or mentally, to one extent or another. In 2022, MBA partnered with the Veterans Community Project (VCP), the organization that builds “tiny homes,” to include homeless veterans in their courses.
KC United Art Festival
MBA presented this festival for the first time on October 9, 2021. The festival featured 40 local artists booths (20 of those dedicated, at no charge, to the Warrior Artists that attended our course), a DJ, food trucks, a kids’ project area, a community art project, and musical headliner and Nashville recording artist Drew Six and the Soul Plains Drifters. This festival will become an annual event.
During the 2021 inaugural festival, Warrior Artists sold 23 pieces of original art for a total of $8,000. For many, this was their first time showing their art and their first sale. Two of the artists also received commissions for future art creations. 100% of the sales stay with the Warrior Artist to help fund their next project, and/or to help with bills at home. The sales and commissions give the warriors a great sense of pride and enhanced their self-esteem.
Where we work
External reviews
Photos
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Monkey Brain Art
Board of directorsas of 01/20/2023
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 07/01/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
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