Non-profit using art to help veterans, first responders hosts ribbon cutting in Green Bay

Art is Medicine And Education Center, Inc (AIM) offers art and sound-based therapy programs and classes. Though the programs target veterans and first responders, anyone is welcome to join in, April 9th, 2026. PC: Fox 11 Online

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A non-profit aiming to promote mental health and well-being for veterans and first responders is now open in Green Bay.

Art Is Medicine And Education Center, Inc (AIM) offers art and sound-based therapy programs and classes. Though the programs target veterans and first responders, anyone is welcome to join in.

On the second Wednesday of each month, AIM offers a free drum circle and sound healing session. AIM calls sound healing a full-body experience. It says when combined with mindfulness techniques, sound healing generates therapeutic and restorative processes in the mind and body.

The non-profit also hosts a monthly art class or workshop. These workshops are free for veterans and first responders, but anyone who wants to partake in the class can do so for a small fee.

“What we really want to do is just get the community in here and to talk to one another,” said AIM Vice President and Co-founder Nathaniel Smith. “We don’t get out of the house enough. We work, we do all this, we’re busy, busy, busy and we sleep and we keep repeating it. So why don’t we actually stop and have fun?”

AIM is hosted at 119 South Chestnut Avenue in Green Bay. Smith runs Badgerland Badge and Sign Company, Badgerland Gallery, and Nathanarchy Art Studio out of the same location.

Smith remarked on the impact art has had on him as a veteran, “If it wasn’t for art I would have killed myself years ago. I know that and it’s very true. And to this day through therapy and peer training and learning about myself I also want to be a better person. And if I can be a better person I can help other people be better.”