Since its opening in 2024, L.A. Care and Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plans’ Community Resource Center in West Los Angeles has provided a welcoming space for health and well-being for members and the community. Now, every Thursday, it also serves as a place for healing through art and music.
Launched in November, the free, weekly series is led by Daniel Shad, founder of A Beautiful You, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit rooted in harm reduction, trauma-informed care, and creative expression. The program guides participants through a creative process that engages the brain’s emotional center, helping them access healing “before the resistance of logic kicks in,” said Shad.
Shad brings both professional expertise and lived experience to the work. After nearly two decades in nonprofit leadership — and time navigating housing instability and substance use on Skid Row — he created A Beautiful You to remove barriers he saw in traditional recovery systems built on what he calls outdated assumptions. His open classes at the Center emphasize trust, creativity, and connection, allowing participants to heal on their own terms.
“We didn’t create something radical, we removed something harmful and replaced it with trust first,” said Shad. “When you take away barriers and shame, and the sense that you have to earn your place, people show up.” A Beautiful You reports a 94% intent-to-return rate among participants previously labeled ‘hard to reach.’ “They were never hard to reach,” he said.
Classes are pressure-free and rooted in compassion, spirituality, psychology, and lived experience. Art sessions encourage exploration of color and creativity without rules or expectations — participants are never asked to explain or perform. Music sessions focus on listening and reflecting on lyrics, with sharing always optional if participants feel comfortable. Each class creates space for expression without pressure, allowing healing to unfold in a way that feels safe and self-directed.
Curtis, a recent participant living in nearby transitional housing, said the art class helped him express “the happiness and the pain that was going on inside of me that no one knew about,” while the music classes "opened his heart to his feelings." Attending the sessions the past few months has helped him “trust mankind” again and begin rebuilding relationships with his family.
“It’s incredibly inspiring to see the healing and belonging Daniel Shad has helped create for the West Los Angeles community,” said Jennifer Schirmer, vice president of growth and community engagement for Blue Shield Promise. “Blue Shield Promise and L.A. Care Health Plan are proud to support programs like this as we work to remove barriers to care while addressing the social drivers of health in our communities, reinforcing our commitment to whole-person health and community-centered solutions.”
Shad was recently featured in the University of Southern California (USC) student documentary “Color Theory of a City,” which explores homelessness in Los Angeles County and his healing journey. The documentary premiered May 5 at an on-campus showcase.
"Soundtrack to Self" (10 to 10:45 a.m.) and "Paint with Pride" (11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.) classes are held Thursdays at the Community Resource Center in West Los Angeles, at 11173 W. Pico Blvd.
To find your nearest Community Resource Center or view upcoming classes and events, click here.
To learn more about Blue Shield Promise, click here or to find information about Blue Shield Promise’s behavioral health resources, here.
For more information on A Beautiful You, click here.