About
Heart Ink Arts Community offers Heart Ink (FREE) classes that combine a ten-minute interactive Bible story with an art lesson, with the Bible story unfolding chronologically over a two-year period. The program also offers Art Exploration Classes, Friday Free Expression classes, Friday FUN Days Painting Classes, Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes, Parent Paint Nights, and First Aid Arts workshops and seminars that use music, dance, body movement, writing, and drawing for emotional self-regulation.
• Ages: 3–18 years old
• Schedule: Options include weekday afternoon Art Exploration Classes during the school year, Friday Painting Classes over 5 Fridays, and Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes over 5 days (Mon–Fri) for 1–2 weeks in June–August.
• Price: Heart Ink (FREE) classes; Friday Free Expression classes require a fee; Friday FUN Days Painting Classes are $155 for 5 Fridays for grades 3rd–8th; Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes are $155 for 5 days for grades 3rd–8th; Parent Paint Nights are often free.
Art Exploration Classes meet on Tuesdays for children from 3 years old through 1st grade and on Thursdays for 2nd–6th grade from 3:15–5:00 pm. Friday FUN Days Painting Classes meet for 5 Fridays from 3:30–5:00 pm. The Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes run for 5 days (Monday–Friday) for 1–2 weeks in June–August.
Heart Ink Arts Community includes First Aid Arts workshops that focus on exploring personal life stories and learning to heal from traumas using the arts, using science and research based, trauma informed materials created by therapists and used internationally. The program offers training for organizations, adults, and children on how to use the arts for emotional self-regulation. Friday Free Expression days are geared to provide more individual development and instruction, and Parent Paint Nights often include step-by-step directed instruction or free-flowing art tables with fellowship and food.
The vision of Heart Ink Arts Community is “To be a heart-beat of love into our local community, using the visual arts to share God’s love with His greatest masterpiece ever, humanity.” The program values the arts for the process and personal growth rather than just the end product and offers both free and paid classes and workshops for emotional self-regulation for kids and adults. A quarterly newsletter shares class schedules, volunteer trainings, and summer special events.
Heart Ink Arts Community is led by Melanie Joy (also referenced as Melanie Reimer as the business name for charter schools), who works for the non-profit organization InFaith in partnership with Calvary/El Calvario Church to provide Heart Ink classes and First Aid Arts workshops to the local community funded by personal donations. Melanie Joy is a credentialed teacher with an M.A. in Education from Biola University and has lived in the Whittier community for over a decade. Staff and volunteers include Alicia Fregoso, who is getting her Master’s in Education, and Noemi Solano, who is getting her Master’s in Curriculum and Early Childhood Development, along with volunteers Kimberly Diaz, Liane Villa, Ashley Picasso, Hannah, Francine Bascardi, and others.
Heart Ink and First Aid Arts services are funded through personal donations through InFaith, a non-profit mission, and in partnership with Calvary/El Calvario Church, and the program relies on volunteers to keep Heart Ink operating. The volunteer program requires a 5-week commitment, an application process, background check and Live Scan, and two short trainings. Francine Bascardi is described as a senior servant to the community from her many years as office administrator with the Whittier Literacy Program and now works with kids at Heart Ink Arts.
Last updated August 8, 2026.
• Ages: 3–18 years old
• Schedule: Options include weekday afternoon Art Exploration Classes during the school year, Friday Painting Classes over 5 Fridays, and Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes over 5 days (Mon–Fri) for 1–2 weeks in June–August.
• Price: Heart Ink (FREE) classes; Friday Free Expression classes require a fee; Friday FUN Days Painting Classes are $155 for 5 Fridays for grades 3rd–8th; Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes are $155 for 5 days for grades 3rd–8th; Parent Paint Nights are often free.
Art Exploration Classes meet on Tuesdays for children from 3 years old through 1st grade and on Thursdays for 2nd–6th grade from 3:15–5:00 pm. Friday FUN Days Painting Classes meet for 5 Fridays from 3:30–5:00 pm. The Summer ART Class Intensive Drawing Classes run for 5 days (Monday–Friday) for 1–2 weeks in June–August.
Heart Ink Arts Community includes First Aid Arts workshops that focus on exploring personal life stories and learning to heal from traumas using the arts, using science and research based, trauma informed materials created by therapists and used internationally. The program offers training for organizations, adults, and children on how to use the arts for emotional self-regulation. Friday Free Expression days are geared to provide more individual development and instruction, and Parent Paint Nights often include step-by-step directed instruction or free-flowing art tables with fellowship and food.
The vision of Heart Ink Arts Community is “To be a heart-beat of love into our local community, using the visual arts to share God’s love with His greatest masterpiece ever, humanity.” The program values the arts for the process and personal growth rather than just the end product and offers both free and paid classes and workshops for emotional self-regulation for kids and adults. A quarterly newsletter shares class schedules, volunteer trainings, and summer special events.
Heart Ink Arts Community is led by Melanie Joy (also referenced as Melanie Reimer as the business name for charter schools), who works for the non-profit organization InFaith in partnership with Calvary/El Calvario Church to provide Heart Ink classes and First Aid Arts workshops to the local community funded by personal donations. Melanie Joy is a credentialed teacher with an M.A. in Education from Biola University and has lived in the Whittier community for over a decade. Staff and volunteers include Alicia Fregoso, who is getting her Master’s in Education, and Noemi Solano, who is getting her Master’s in Curriculum and Early Childhood Development, along with volunteers Kimberly Diaz, Liane Villa, Ashley Picasso, Hannah, Francine Bascardi, and others.
Heart Ink and First Aid Arts services are funded through personal donations through InFaith, a non-profit mission, and in partnership with Calvary/El Calvario Church, and the program relies on volunteers to keep Heart Ink operating. The volunteer program requires a 5-week commitment, an application process, background check and Live Scan, and two short trainings. Francine Bascardi is described as a senior servant to the community from her many years as office administrator with the Whittier Literacy Program and now works with kids at Heart Ink Arts.
Last updated August 8, 2026.
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