Empowering children to find joy and authentic self-expression through the arts. The Arts Bus is a traveling pop-up theater, music & dance stage, ceramic/paint/textile studio, library & creative safe space. Its creation responded to the challenge parents in rural towns face attempting to transport children to educational and cultural activities at distant sites by bringing the visual, performing and literary arts to kids where they live. The impact from its work is 1) consistent integration of & improvement in the quality art programming provided to children; 2) emphasizing public commitment to the priority of art; 3) affirming the value of the region’s many excellent artists and cultural institutions as EncourageMentors and resources; and (4) connecting art to the heart & hands.