Chandri & Athena Barat: From Humble Beginnings in Cardboard and Glue
In this sincere and passionate talk, recently awarded Garden State Women of the year mother daughter team, Chandri and Athena Barat, tell the story of how they came to produce an Art and Peace Parade in Newark NJ and develop an educational model that transforms young lives through creative collaboration and public art. When father and husband, Gary Barat, discovered he was HIV positive the Barats’ life changed forever. After loosing nearly all they had, Gary and Chandri returned to their hearts calling. Their unique paths and unwavering passion for art, education and healing brought them to Newark, NJ where the family now runs the Barat Foundation, a non profit organization. A miracle of modern science, Gary Barat is still alive and kickin, his doctors attribute much to his passion for creativity. Coupling with her family’s passion for art and education, daughter Athena added a public art and civic engagement aspect to the work and suggested an art parade to uplift the community and engage young people in the city’s art scene. Now the Barat Foundation has built an educational model that as Mayor Cory Booker says “Is making history in educational reform as we invite the ‘village’ back into the raising of our children and collaborate for art in education, peace and our future.”