Follow Yo Art: Houston nonprofit healing through music, art and writing
Published · Mission-Driven
Follow Yo Art's About page opens with four words: "Second chances, made by hand." The Houston nonprofit works with people rebuilding after prison or abuse, and with young people at risk, and it uses music, art and writing as the way in. Its tagline sums up the pace of the work: "one story, one brushstroke, one beat at a time."
At a glance
- Who they are: Follow Yo Art, Inc., a Houston-based nonprofit founded in 2025 by Evie Ponder (Founder and Executive Director) and Marina Judkins (Co-Founder).
- What they do: A Music and Art Therapy Program and Writing Workshops, alongside work toward safe, affordable housing resources.
- Where: Houston, Texas.
- Who it's for: Formerly incarcerated individuals, at-risk youth, domestic-violence survivors, and creatives who need a safe space.
- Website: Follow Yo Art's site
Who they serve
The organization's focus is people coming home from incarceration. Its site says it helps formerly incarcerated individuals heal through music, art and writing while working toward safe, affordable housing resources. The same doors are open to at-risk youth, domestic-violence survivors, and creatives who need, in the site's words, "a safe space and a stable place to land."
That last phrase explains the whole approach. Creative work is the program. A stable place to land is the goal it is working toward. Both are needed, since it's hard to heal through art when you don't know where you're sleeping.
The Music and Art Therapy Program
This is the active program on Follow Yo Art's programs page. The site describes it as a safe and inspiring space to explore self-expression, emotional growth and community connection through music and art. It's open to participants working through reentry, at-risk youth, domestic-violence survivors, and creatives looking for a safe space.
The organization's logo, a flame rising out of a microphone, puts the creative side front and center. The program's stated aims are personal ones: self-expression, emotional growth and connection with other people.
Writing Workshops
The second program is a set of free and low-cost writing workshops. The goal is for participants to process, reflect and tell their own stories in their own words. The site calls it "a safe place to put it on the page."
Writing asks for less than music or painting. You need a pen and some quiet. For people whose stories have usually been told by others, in court records, reports and headlines, writing your own version is worth a lot.
How to take part
Both programs take requests through the site. Each one has its own page where you can tell the team a little about yourself and what you're looking for. Start with the Music and Art Therapy Program or the Writing Workshops.
If you work in reentry, run a shelter, or know someone coming home who could use a creative outlet, the site is a good place to send them. Follow Yo Art also has a CloserAccess page.