ETX VIEW: Healing Art Project helps unhoused community foster connection, creativity

Published 5:00 am Saturday, July 5, 2025

A brightly colored painting of Jesus with arms wide open and the sun shining behind His head covers one of the walls at Newgate Mission in Longview. A few feet away, artists create their own masterpieces – and He’s in some of them, too.

Every Saturday morning, some of the people Newgate serves – those who are homeless or struggling with financial security – take a seat around a table inside the small building, pick up a paint brush and put on canvas the things, people, places and experiences that mean something to them.

For about a year and a half, attorney Mary Lou Tevebaugh and state judge Lauren Parish have led the Healing Arts Project at Newgate, giving clients a chance to express a part of themselves others might not see – and carrying on the legacy of a renowned, beloved Longview artist with a similar heart for helping those without a home to call their own.

The project began about 15 years ago when Anup Bhandari began offering art classes to Newgate clients and painting portraits of them. After Bhandari died in 2020, the program was dormant for a couple of years. One day, Tevebaugh was talking with Newgate’s executive director, who wanted the program to be “reinvigorated.”

“And I said: ‘I know just the person. That’s Lauren Parish,’” Tevebaugh said.

Tevebaugh and Parish wanted to see the program reignited once again as well. They believe art can do exactly what the program name implies: heal people’s mental and emotional wounds, relieve stress and more.

The two provide much of the supplies for artists to use. But they usually provide little instruction.

“We don’t teach them,” Parish said. “They want to do their own things. They ask for help. We try to help them. These guys are very creative.”

The artists draw inspiration from one another. They’ll comment on one another’s work, and sometimes, people who haven’t considered painting before will be intrigued enough to see the artists’ work to try their hand at the craft, Tevebaugh said.

Parish and Tevebaugh are looking for volunteers willing to help, and artistic talent isn’t a requirement. They need help setting up tables, organizing supplies and more.

“If there’s anybody that wants to help, they don’t have to be artists,” Parish said.

Joining one another around the table seems to foster friendship – both with other artists and with Tevebaugh and Parish.

“The painting seems to bring them joy. And some of them, it brings out their personalities. Some of them who are quiet and standoffish kind of open up,” Parish said.

On a Saturday in January, Sheila Hadaway and her grandson joined the painting crew. Hadaway has participated for several years.

“It gives me peace of mind,” Hadaway said.

Eduardo Garcia blended shades of blue, black and gold to create a low-rider. He’s got a penchant for painting similarly modified cars – the type he’d like to own someday. He doesn’t talk too much about his art, and he usually sits by himself. But one day in January, something changed.

“This past week, he just comes up and for no apparent reason, just gives me a hug,” Tevebaugh said.

Tevebaugh and Parish have learned more about the plight of the homeless community through their work. As a Newgate client said: Most people are only one paycheck away from homelessness.

“The people that are in the situation – it’s not a choice,” Tevebaugh said. “It’s something that happened in life. It could be any one of us. And I think you begin to see the human connection.”

The client’s work is sold at some ArtWalk Longview events, and those interested in purchasing it can contact Newgate by calling (903) 704-6761. Paintings usually sell for around $20 or $30, and the money goes directly to the clients. That’s a fair amount of money to them, Parish said.

In spite of the hardship Newgate clients have endured, many seem to cling to faith and show it in their artwork.

“I’ve seen a common theme in so many of the paintings, and it’s a religious thing,” Tevebaugh said. “It’s like, here we are, unhoused. Here we are, hungry at times, but we still have a strong belief.”

“There’s a lot with biblical scripture – paintings of Jesus, too,” Parish said.

Tevebaugh remembers the work of one particularly talented artist.

“This was a kind of a sad story, because he painted Jesus on the cross, and it was an excellent picture,” Tevebaugh said. “And we’d asked if he wanted to put it in ArtWalk or if he wanted to take it home. And he said, ‘It doesn’t matter.’ He said, ‘I don’t have a home to take it to.’ He was living on the street. But again, his painting was of Jesus on the cross.”

Joana Ordonez’s painting that Saturday in January was similar. It was her first day to join the program, which she’d learned about only by seeing the artists in action.

She painted an orange and yellow sun piercing a cloud of blue. Directly below the sun was a brown cross, outlined in red and surrounded by bright flames. Green grass and flowers covered the ground below.

“My father recently was paralyzed from his knees down, but he made it. The stroke – he made it. He got some medication and stuff, and he’s able to walk again,” she said.

“It’s a blessing. So, I love the Lord. I’ve always been through a lot my whole life. He got me through it, obviously. … I don’t know how He did it, but He done it.”