Oct 11, 2009 5 min read

Pennsylvania acknowledged the importance of the arts Friday when it awarded more than $30,000 in grants to local art programs in Fayette, Greene and Washington counties. The ceremony took place in the newly renovated Edwin S. Porter Theatre, located in the Connellsville Community Center, and was sponsored by the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) on behalf of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA) Partners in the Arts Program. The CFFC is one of 16 PCA Partner agencies that assists in this re-granting program and administers grants for arts and cultural projects in these three counties.

This year’s grantees for the Project Stream program include the following agencies in Fayette County – Perryopolis Heritage Mural Project, National Road Heritage Corridor, Penn State Fayette, the Eberly Campus; Performing Arts Club of Conn Area Catholic, Uniontown Art Club, Ben Franklin School in Uniontown, Brownsville Area Revitalizaton Corporation, Uniontown Downtown Business Authority, Communities in Schools in Uniontown, Connellsville Cultural Trust, East End Community Center in Uniontown, The Pretty Good Theatre Company in Uniontown and Helen Marish for Brownsville. In Greene County, Nathanael Greene Historical Foundation in Greensboro received support, and in Washington County, grants were designated for: Washington and Jefferson College Summer Childrens’ Festival; Off the Wall Productions; Jordan Umbach and the Washington Jazz Society. Their projects must be carried out from Sept. 1, 2009 to Aug. 31, 2010.

Clara Pascoe, executive director for CFFC, said of these projects, “They’re all exceptional. It’s amazing to see what’s going on in the arts in these three counties.”

The projects are:

Fayette County – Ben Franklin School, introduces fourth to eighth-grade students to the fundamentals of theater with a free performance to the public; Brownville Area Revitalization Corp., offers a summer concert series called Music and Reading on the Mon that incorporates live music performances with arts and crafts activities; Communities in Schools, will bring the Pittsburgh Symphony Youth Orchstra to the State Theatre in Uniontown for a performance in April; Connellsville Culturual Trust, hosting the third annual Art on the Yough festival that features local art, artisans, musicians and foods as well as a Kid’s Creativity Zone; East End United Community Center, provides a variety of classes in art, crafts, dance and photography for youths ages 5 to 18; Helen Marish is a Brownsville native now living in the state of California who plans to provide a hands-on public art workshop called Building Brownsville that celebrates the borough’s rich aritectural gems.

National Road Heritage Corridor, will install life-size bronze statues by sculptor Alan Cottrill, depicting key figures related ot the Natioanl Road history at the Addison Tollhouse, Eberly Square in Uniontown, Searights Tollhouse in Menallen Township and Bradford House in Washington; Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, hosted the Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival that honors the culture labor and music of the region; Performing Arts Club of Conn Area Catholic School, which offers a full-length children’s musical theater production that’s open to the community; Perrypolis Heritage Mural Project, plans a mural in andticipation of the community’s bicentennial in 2014; The Pretty Good Theater Co., presents a known musical theater production with no admission cost to anyone 14 and under.

Uniontown Art Club, provides a showcase for regional artists and will mentor artistic youths in submitting their work for judging; and Uniontown Downtown District Authority, for the arts and heritage festival that is moving next year to May and will be held during the National Road Festival.

Greene County – Nathanael Green Historical Foundation for the Art Blast on the Mon in Greensboro, a celebration where attendees create art and artists demonstrate and teach their crafts.

Washington County – Jordan Umbach, a songwriter who will create, record and perform songs that reflect important themes of labor history and racial equality; Off the Wall Productions, for a theater production fo “The Little Dog Laughed;” Washington and Jefferson Summer Children’s Festival with features entertainment and educational workships; and Washington Jazz Society, a compliation of live perofrmances of local and regiaonal jazz musicians during the Third Annual Sunday Brunch Jazz Concert.

Representatives for the organizations shared information on their projects as well as offered thanks for the financial support.

The program awards amounts that vary up to $3,000.

Lori Omatick of Penn State Fayette talked about the recent Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival and noted, “Without support like this, we would not be able to have these things.”

Rebecca Gartley of Ben Franklin School said of the school play, “How excited thse kids have been to be a part of this and it’s exciting to see them blossom and grow through the arts.”

Nancy McChesney of the Uniontown Art Club commented, “We bring Fayette County to enlightenment through the arts. This is where the spirit lives.”

Aides to state representatives appeared to help distribute the awards, including Ron Makarun for Sen. Richard Kasunic, D-Dunbar; Jo Lofstead, Rep. William DeWeese D-Waynesburg, and Marsha Morrison and Jen Jeffries for Rep. Timothy Mahoney, D-South Union Twp., while Pascoe stepped in for Rep. Deberah Kula, D-North Union Twp., and Timothy Solobay of Washington County.

For more information on the program, contact Pascoe at the Community Foundation of Fayette County at 724-437-8600 or cpascoe@cffpa.org.