GLENDALE, AZ — Comic books have always provided a sense of wonder for Russ Kazmierczak — worlds with heroic characters saving the day in the name of good.
“The thought that if you have powers like that, a talent, an ability, to use that for good, and to help people with that skill, it’s a responsibility,” said Kazmierczak.
It’s a lesson the local comic book creator is inspired to live by. The art of storytelling is his power, his pencil as his weapon, wielded for change in our community.
“It’s critical for kids to feel not only a sense of wonder about the world but that that wonder is a potential in themselves,” said Kazmierczak.
Beginning Saturday at 1 p.m., you’ll find Kazmierczak behind the glass window at Drawn to Comics in Downtown Glendale.
He'll be using his talent to write and illustrate a comic book in 24 hours. It's a performative art show that is sure to spark the imagination of young visitors or those just passing by. Through the effort, Kazmierczak is raising donations for the local nonprofit Kids Need to Read.
“Roughly six out of 10 children in low-income communities have no access to books outside of the classroom,” said Executive Director Jessica Payne.
Payne says the Mesa nonprofit is changing that. Last year alone it delivered hundreds of thousands of books free of charge to children across the country.
“You have to have literacy, it is the way that we are able to educate ourselves and if you don’t have strong literacy skills it makes it much harder for you to expand your horizons and live out your dreams,” said Payne.
As a child, Kazmierczak's dreams were found in comics and on Saturday, he’ll get to become the hero of his own story.
“That’s what keeps me awake for 24 straight hours, that adrenaline that a kid's going to get a book in their hands, just like I had books in my hands as a kid, and maybe one day they’ll think to do something like this as well,” said Kazmierczak.
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June 24, 2023 at 09:19AM
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Comic artist raising money to provide children the power of reading - ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix
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