Howland graduate creates art for rehab center

Staff report

WARREN

A red-roofed, Dr. Seuss-style toy house decorated with a soft, bright-green rug on one wall, rough, blue sandpaper on another, and a metal panel dotted with alphabet magnets on a third, gets plenty of attention at the Children’s Rehabilitation Center of Warren.

That’s what Howland native Monica Kotyuk envisioned for the functional art piece, designed to help children with occupational therapy activities.

The piece is Kotyuk’s lasting gift to the CRC. It represents Kotyuk’s legacy of compassion and leadership, nurtured during her 12 years as a Girl Scout.

“I have always had a great affection toward both children and the power of art,” she said.

Kotyuk led the creation of the occupational art structure as part of an ambitious program to bring community awareness to the CRC and its good works.

Complete with a community art show – where drawings and paintings made by children at the center and from Howland Glen Elementary School were displayed last year – Kotyuk’s Creating Connections with CRC program helped her to earn Girl Scouts’ highest honor, a Gold Award.

Kotyuk, who was valedictorian of her Howland High School’s class of 2015, will be honored with a Leader of Tomorrow Scholarship by Girl Scouts of North East Ohio at its Women of Distinction & Advancing Women Awards luncheon Friday at The Union Club of Cleveland.

Kotyuk spent nine months developing and launching Creating Connections with CRC. Before the art show, she met with the young artists weekly to help them with their creations.

She also coordinated a cleaning-supplies collection drive for the center and rallied support from her high school’s art club members to help design and build the functional art piece.

The 18-year-old says her involvement in Girl Scouts opened opportunities for her to explore her interests and gain confidence as a leader capable of making a meaningful impact on her community.

“My goal of this entire project was to somehow unite the community with the wonderful facility we are so lucky to have,” Kotyuk said. “Along with this, I hoped that all of the students involved would be able to recognize their similarities while feeling special and unique through the display of their artwork.”

According to the Girl Scout Research Institute’s national studies, 75 percent of Girl Scouts say that, because of Girl Scouts, they’ve become leaders in their communities.

Kotyuk, a freshman at Ohio State University, plans to pursue a nursing degree.

She credits her longtime troop leader Mary Jeanine Pipino of Warren, her seven fellow troop members whom she calls sisters, and her family for helping her to realize her full potential as a Girl Scout.