The Center Houston is an agency that treats those who have intellectual and developmental disabilities with innovative programs and compassionate care. Here, they promote the pursuit of choice, growth, and personal independence. There are currently 450 residents who are a part of The Center community. Being a non-profit, they rely heavily on community involvement, like the students of the University of Houston’s AIAS Freedom by Design program, for donations and volunteers.
Outside of the resident housing building is a great outdoor space including a garden, picnic areas, baseball field, and a basketball court. The paint on the basketball court was chipping away and fading to the point where you could not even see the boundary lines on the court. Our FBD project consisted of repainting the court with official lines, retouching the existing Center logo, and adding our own touch to the design of the new basketball court. Treating everyone with dignity and respect is one of The Center’s values and we wanted to embrace this wonderful message of equality and diversity. Therefore, at the head of the basketball court, we decided to paint stick figures of different sizes and color interlocking hands to reiterate what The Center stands for – “Every individual, regardless of disability or capability, possesses an inherent worth and innate potential that must be nurtured and allowed opportunities for choice, growth, and independence.”
With a lot of helping hands, blue tape, and sunshine to help dry the layers of paint, we were able to complete the project in one day! Throughout the day, many residents of The Center made sure to stop by to let us know how much the court will be utilized in the future.
