‘You Find Your Voice’: One Veteran’s Transformative Journey with the Performing Arts

It was no surprise to Clarke’s family that she grew up and joined the Air Force. And after leaving the service, she went straight back to VA, where she got a job at the same clinic she visited as a child.  

30 years later, VA is in her DNA, and she’s incredibly passionate about helping other Veterans get connected to services that can help heal and support them. “I love outreach, it’s who I am,” she said. “It’s woven into my entire life.” 

Now, Clarke’s passion for Veteran outreach has expanded into a whole new area: the creative arts. This past May, she won a gold medal at the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival for her solo hula – and she wants other Veterans to know how transformative the arts can be for them, too.    

“You might be surprised what you find out about yourself by tapping into your creative juices,” she said. “Everyone is creative; be open to the possibilities.”

Journey to the Stage

While Clarke has been studying and performing hula for 16 years, she never thought of it as a creative art. Hula is a traditional Hawaiian dance and form of storytelling. It expresses chant or song through fluid movements and gestures and has deep cultural significance. 

A few years ago, Clarke danced her hula in the lobby of Building 500 at West Los Angeles VA Medical Center for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. 

The performance drew a lot of people’s attention, with strangers later coming up and telling Clarke how much they were moved by it. “I never knew my hula could touch people that way,” she said. 

The team who manages the annual Veterans Creative Arts Festival at West LA VA also took notice, and last year, they asked Clarke to join them at their annual July event. The festival gathers Veteran artists, writers, and performers to showcase their work and compete to be entered into the national festival. 

Clarke agreed – thought she didn’t realize it was a competition.

“It was a big deal being on stage by myself; I’ve never danced solo before,” she said. “Everyone was so gracious and kind.”

Click here to watch a video of Clarke performing her hula. 

Fast forward to December, and Clarke received an email: she’d won first place in the festival and was being submitted to the national committee. In January, another email: she’d won first place at national, and was invited to Indiana for the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival, which brings winning Veterans together from across the country. 

‘You Have to Go’

When Clarke told her supervisor and friend Stacey Baylor about the festival, Baylor was thrilled. “I told her you have to participate, you have to do your thing – this is you,” said Baylor.

The two have known each other for 15 years and have a remarkable – and fun – working relationship, Baylor said. “Mickey is your best friend, your sister, your cousin, your daughter, she’s everything. And she’s fantastic!” said Baylor.

So, on May 11, Clarke packed her bags and headed to the Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolis. 

“From the day I showed up, I was treated like a VIP,” said Clarke. The weeklong festival was packed with workshops, art classes, social gatherings, meals, and much more, with many opportunities for Veterans to bond. “I didn’t want it to end,” she said.

There, Clarke performed her hula for the national audience. Because the hula is danced to Hawaiian-language songs that many may not understand, it’s important to not only execute technically correct moves but also to convey emotions in a way that speaks to everyone, said Clarke. 

“Some people had probably never seen a hula before in person, but to share your culture and have an exchange with another person who got it – that’s what’s life-changing,” said Clarke.

The experience helped her to find her voice, she said. And she saw many other Veterans do the same.  

“For me it’s through dance, but to express yourself when you can’t always find the words or identify the feeling, but you feel something ... that’s incredible,” she said. “I think especially as a women Veteran, because we’re not always seen and heard.”

Hope and Healing 

Many of the Veterans she met at the festival are thriving, said Clarke. “They’re using song, music, dance, expressive arts, to heal themselves. No medication can do that, no rehab therapy can do that, it’s from the desire to be creative.”

The festival was transformative for her too, she said, and gave her the chance to truly be herself. “I’m a wife, mother, auntie, but I’ve never celebrated being me. This is the first time I’ve ever done that.”

Baylor said she’s seen a shift in Clarke since she returned from the festival. “When she got back it was like she was a whole different person, like she found herself,” she said. “I think this experience has been very transformative for her. I honestly believe it’s where she belongs.”

After her experience, Clarke is eager to let other Veterans know that there’s room for them, too, even if they don’t think they’re artistic or creative. 

Whether it’s exploring music appreciation through Recreation Therapy, going to a Resilient Rhythms drum circle on the West LA VA campus, or taking an Expressive Arts class – there are so many ways Veterans can express themselves at VA, said Clarke. 

And the Veterans Creative Arts Festival is a wonderful way to share that expression with others. 

“Know that there’s space for you because VA makes space,” she said. “You might not have your voice in the beginning, but you find yourself in the end.”