“The Heritage Month” PIAG MUSEUM GIVE COLOR TO THE MIAMI POLICE DEPARTMENT

A Kinder, Gentler Cop…

Talking about police endeavors, I visited the Police Department’s downtown headquarters last week. Thankfully not in handcuffs, but as an observer, attending a painting class given by : William and Mireya Power of the PIAG Museum. The Powers have owned an art gallery in Coral Gables for many years. They are presently responsible for making some of our Magic City policemen and women less stressful. According to Noemi Lam Freedman (yes, of the Wilfredo Lam family of artists), stress is a big factor for our officers in uniform. Freedman was telling the Powers (her long time friends) about the stress problem when they came up with a novel idea: offer painting classes to the police department and maybe help calm their nerves down… a smidgen.

Freedman said, “I realized that there was a definite interest, so I asked the Powers to set up a painting class, free of charge and open it to any MPD employees.” More than 30 people attended the first session including Chief Gerald Darling and Major Noel Rojas. The Powers are planning to have an exhibition of the works created during their stress-free classes on October 30 at 11 a.m. in the lobby of the building. This particular class was part of the Hispanic Heritage Celebration and is offered by the Community Affairs Unit.

“Law enforcers are already in the planning stages and preparing for the upcoming Free Trade Area of the Americas Conference… and the demonstrations that will no doubt accompany the event, so the stress level is high and getting more intense,” Freedman said.

Miami Police are presently preparing to keep crowds under control and manifestations secured. The Hotel Intercontinental, where the campaign will reach its peak, will be surrounded by a protective fence and security will most definitely be tight. Over 100,000 protestors are expected to converge on downtown Miami to voice their opinions against globalization. Many businesses in the surrounding downtown vicinity will be closed while other companies plan to move to satellite offices elsewhere during the conference. Business owners say that they would rather stay but are concerned for their client’s welfare and potential conflicts that might arise.

View of all the participants of the art workshop

When I asked some of the art participants their views about their stressful jobs, they all agreed that the painting classes were extremely relaxing. Police Athletic League Executive Director Kathleen Walker said, “All this is very calming and lots of fun. I always had an appreciation for art and now I can actually try and paint.” Blanca Arenos of the records department said, “This is really nice. I’m happy that I can create something.” Vilma Diaz Neda of the planning and research department is a full time mother, full time worker and leads a very active life. She was delighted to just sit down and get her mind off of all her responsibilities for a couple of hours a month.

The FTAA campaign will be taking place in our community on November 19th and police are on high alert.

“We’re happy to be able to provide an outlet for the stress that they have to deal with on a daily basis,” Mireya Power said. “We enjoy teaching and we know that we are helping the community in a small way.”

Trust me on this one Mireya… on behalf of our South Florida citizens, we too are delighted in knowing that our police force has an outlet for their stress. More power to you! The Powers can be reached at 305-444-0479 for details about the upcoming police exhibition and other programs that they are involved in.