It’s four o’clock on a Thursday afternoon and art teacher Jean Diamond’s students are still leaning over easels. They concentrate on the details: gentle ripples in water, the subtle effect of sunlight. And their work is not for a grade. 

Every year, Whitman’s chapter of the National Art Honors Society teams up with Youth Art For Healing (YAFH), a nonprofit dedicated to bringing student artists’ works into healthcare environments to encourage patients’ physical, mental and emotional recovery.

“Youth Art For Healing creates works of art to provide a sense of comfort, inspiration and healing for patients and their loved ones and healthcare professionals,” said Jan Pairmeister, the YAFH executive director and Whitman parent. 

Students are currently working on pieces that will be donated to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and the Intensive Care Unit at Suburban Hospital.

“With the paintings going into hospitals, they have to be calm colors,” Diamond said. “No black, no red, no eyes staring at you. They are all very pastoral, very, very soft and very wonderful images.”

In the past, students have contributed paintings to MedStar Montgomery Medical Center and to Fisher House residences, where wounded veterans live with their families while receiving medical treatment. Students have also painted ceiling tiles for the pediatric center at Holy Cross Hospital.

Students complete YAFH projects outside of school time, said senior Alex Dwight, who is co-president of Whitman’s Art Honors Society. Students agree that donating their works to hospitals and Fisher Houses is a worthwhile commitment. 

“It’s nice to spend time working on something knowing that it’s going to help someone through a tough time,” junior Josh Steighner said. Steighner’s painting of a sailboat on the Chesapeake hangs at the Fisher House at Andrews Air Force Base.

 YAFH, which also teams up with other schools in the D.C. area, is currently working on 20 projects for nine facilities.

The organization has recently achieved national recognition. Early this December, U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) sponsored an exhibition of 25 YAFH works at the Capitol Rotunda. The pieces, on loan from various facilities, included nine by Whitman students.

In a written announcement for the exhibit, Leahy recognized the opportunities YAFH provides students “to share their talent, time and creativity in the spirit of helping others heal.” Steighner and seniors Alex Dwight and Cara Fried were among those whose artwork was selected for display. They were invited to a reception at the Capitol Dec. 2.

 Diamond is proud of her students, who got to take part in what she called a rare opportunity.

 “What an experience for the kids to go down to the Senate and be a part of that,” she said.