Purpose Prize

Marc Freedman Portrait

The Latest from CoGenerate

Lasting Impact

Lasting Impact

CoGenerate Co-CEO Marc Freedman’s most recent book, How to Live Forever, was published by Hachette/Public Affairs in 2018, generating a lot of great attention. And it’s not over yet! Every week, the New York Times Sunday Opinion section includes a print-only feature...

Check Out Our Signature Event On Cogenerational Activism!

Check Out Our Signature Event On Cogenerational Activism!

On May 22, more than 1,100 people registered to learn more about the important cogenerational work our 2023 Innovation Fellows are doing. These 15 leaders are bringing generations together to solve problems and bridge divides. And each one has a unique and inspiring...

*

Sue Crolick

Creatives for Causes/Art Buddies
Purpose Prize Fellow 2006

Pairing creative mentors from advertising and design with inner-city children

Hitting 50 was a turning point for Sue Crolick. A successful advertising art director in Minneapolis and principal of her own firm, she was hungry for a new challenge. In the early 90’s Crolick watched as schools slashed art budgets, affecting all kids, but particularly inner-city children with fewer resources. She began to imagine helping those children by tapping the enormous talent of creative people in her field. In 1994, Crolick founded Creatives for Causes and started a program called Art Buddies, which pairs creative mentors from advertising and design, one-on-one, with inner-city children. For the first time, creative professionals in the local advertising and design fields — including art directors, copywriters, TV producers, photographers, illustrators, graphic designers and architects — were tapped to work one-on-one with local kids. Today, each Art Buddies program pairs 50 creative mentors with 50 kids to meet once-a-week for six-week workshops. Mentors help each child create a fanciful and ambitious project – everything from a model of a dream city to a costume of his/her future self. To date, more than 1,000 mentors have nurtured the creative spirits of over 1,000 kids, helping them to believe in themselves and to expand their vision of who they can become. Crolick envisions bringing the Art Buddies model to cities across the country.