Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE) presented $75,000 to the Port Discovery Children’s Museum, a three-year commitment, providing a safe, creative learning environment where children can express themselves through visual arts activities. BGE and the Museum teamed up to unveil the new BGE Studio Workshop and the room was alive with activities and a safety demonstration from BGE personnel with children from the Beaver Creek Child Care Center in Anne Arundel County. As Port Discovery’s artistic learning laboratory, the BGE Studio Workshop provides opportunities for children to express themselves through visual arts activities that help develop creative thinking skills, imagination, and the confidence and desire to innovate.
“Since our founding nearly 200 years ago, BGE has played an integral role in working with Maryland communities to address education initiatives, public safety, economic development, civic issues and other initiatives that help improve the quality of life for our customers and their families,” said Carim Khouzami, Exelon’s Chief Integration Officer and Port Discovery Children’s Museum board member. “I have had the privilege of serving as a board member for the Museum since 2011 and I have witnessed first-hand the tremendous impact that Port Discovery has on the thousands of children, parents and teachers who visit each year. As an educational resource for the community, Port Discovery promotes art, STEM education, physical health and healthy lifestyles, early childhood development, and literacy. At BGE, we recognize the importance of art and culture programs to the health and vitality of the community, and we are proud to sponsor the new BGE Studio Workshop, the artistic center of the Museum.”
The mission of Port Discovery Children’s Museum is to connect purposeful play and learning. The Museum provides play-to-learn experiences that ignite imagination and nurture growth.
“As a children’s museum and a trusted community resource, we are committed to providing early learners the opportunity to exercise their creativity through the arts,” says Bryn Parchman, President and CEO of Port Discovery Children’s Museum. “We are grateful to BGE for its support of our Studio Workshop exhibit which engages thousands of children to a variety of quality art programs every month.”
In the BGE Studio Workshop, children have the opportunity to interact with and create pieces alongside professional artists from the community. They are introduced to new art techniques and vocabulary, and to the use of traditional and non-traditional art materials. Port Discovery’s visual arts programs: promote and inspire creative processes; expand children’s abilities to examine, analyze, and discuss art and the world around them; inspire appreciation for the arts; and foster confidence in artistic endeavors. The BGE Studio Workshop is an inclusive environment, and activities are universally designed for children of all abilities.
Each year, Port Discovery serves approximately 265,000 visitors, comprised of children from birth to age 10 and their families, caregivers, and teachers. Emphasis is placed on children and families from underserved communities, children with disabilities, and supporting the adults in children’s lives by sharing information on childhood development, parenting, and teaching through play. Port Discovery provides a safe, invigorating, nurturing, and playful environment where children and families learn together.
In 2013, BGE contributed more than $3.5 million to more than 250 non-profit organizations and is on track to contribute nearly $4 million to charitable organizations throughout the BGE central Maryland service area this year. BGE employees volunteer in a wide-range of youth-focused opportunities, from mentoring and tutoring children, to teaching students about electric safety, energy efficiency, visual arts and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educational initiatives. For more information on BGE’s commitment to volunteerism and charitable giving, visit: bge.com/giving.