28 | MAY 19 • 2022

L

ooking for the Light is
an art exhibition and
event series dedicated to
the destigmatization of mental
illness. In honor of Mental
Health Awareness Month
(May), the event’s mission
is to confront the issue of
mental illness in a celebratory,
informational and inspiring
way — eschewing the shame
and promoting help options.
Events run through the end
of the month and include art,
counsel, education and fun,
highlighting the unique spirit
of artists and focusing on all
aspects of mental health.
The event series is inspired
by the memory and collected
works of late Detroit artist
and musician Michael Francis
Miller and features Miller’s
— and other local artists’ —
works. The event takes place
at Midtown’s Galerie Camille
(4130 Cass Ave., Suite C).
“My brother was such
a beautiful, talented soul,

and his cruel disease really
wreaked havoc. As an artist,
Michael kept fighting the
disease, and in a sense, kept
fighting to paint,” says event
creator Dan John Miller,
brother of the late Michael
Francis Miller. “We knew we
needed to honor not only his
artistry, but also his advocacy,
so we decided to put together
a show of his work, with the
goal of taking away the shame
and fear of mental illness.
But the show really didn’t get
going until I talked to our
friend Gretchen, who grabbed
the bull by the horns and…”
“When Dan John called to
brainstorm ways to honor his
brother and his artwork, we
thought a gallery reception
and event series would be
an impactful way to get the
community involved,” says
co-creator Gretchen Gonzales
Davidson. “Mental health
impacts us all. We want to
shift awareness to remove its

stigma, bring light to useful
resources and help people feel
like they are not alone.”
Looking for the Light
will feature different events,
including a Michigan
Humane Society panel
focusing on the mental
health benefits of pets on
May 19, and a meaningful
caregiver panel at BasBlue,
presenting Dan John Miller
and the much-honored Rabbi
Daniel Syme, a beloved local
religious leader and well-
known suicide prevention
advocate on May 25. Both
Miller and Syme (both
named Daniel) lost brothers
(both named Michael) to
mental illness.
May 21, from 7-9 p.m. at
Midtown’s Galerie Camill,
it’s music night featuring
Seedsmen to the World and
Dan John Miller. Seedsmen to
the World is a collaboration
between the cascading
soundscapes of Detroit’s
Infinite River (Joey Mazzola,
Gretchen Gonzales and
Warren Defever) and folk
troubadour Ethan Daniel
Davidson, who will be
celebrating their debut record
release.

For a list of all Looking for the Light

events, visit https://galeriecamille.com/

upcoming-events.

Looking for the
Light Event Series

OUR COMMUNITY
Seedsmen to
the World

Detroit arts leaders team up with Galerie
Camille and local businesses for Mental
Health Awareness Month.

JN STAFF CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The COVID pandemic took many
things away from us but, in an effort
to bring some normalcy back into
our lives, Temple Kol Ami is bring-
ing back its popular Aces Chai event
on Saturday, May 21, at 7:30 p.m.
The high-energy casino night in
the West Bloomfield synagogue’s
Conrad Social Hall features craps,
blackjack, roulette and poker,
and the chips you win are later
exchanged for raffle tickets that you
put into boxes in front of items you
want to try and win at the end of
the evening. If you really want one
particular item, put all of your tick-
ets into that one item’s box; if you
want a chance to win multiple items,
spread them out and put tickets in
many boxes. You must be at least 21
years old to attend.
In addition to the fun, food and
casino games, a silent auction will
once again have items available to
bid on at the TKA page at this link:
https://tka.cbo.io. Items up for auc-
tion include a week at a fabulous
west Michigan vacation home, the
opportunity for WDIV meteorologist
and TKA past president Paul Gross
to visit a classroom of your choice
for a one-hour weather lesson, the
opportunity to talk sports over lunch
with 97.1 The Ticket’s Mike Stone
and great seats at a Detroit Tigers
game. The auction will open for
bidding a few days prior to the event,
and you don’t need to attend the
event to participate in the auction.
Cost for the evening of fun is $60
but, in keeping with past tradition,
those ages 21-36 only pay their age!
For more information, visit https://
tkolami.org or call (248) 661-
0040. Tickets can also be purchased
online at https://tkolami.org/dona-
tions.

Aces Chai
Returns!

WIKIPEDIA