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Date: 3/23/2022
EAST LONGMEADOW – Cultural events often add to the sense of community in a town. For East Longmeadow, many of these events are made possible with grants from the East Longmeadow Cultural Council.
The East Longmeadow Cultural Council is part of a network of 329 local Cultural Councils serving 351 cities and towns in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,” said Jane Riley, a member of the council. The Mass. Cultural Council receives funding from the state each year, which is then allocated to each community.
Organizations, programs and others can apply for funding to the town’s Cultural Council. The grant applications are reviewed at the beginning of the calendar year and awardees are notified in February or early March.
“These grants support a variety of artistic projects, educational opportunities, activities and performances in our local library, the Pleasant View Senior Center, the East Longmeadow 4th of July Parade, Celebrate East Longmeadow 2022 and the East Longmeadow Concert Series. The goal is to provide programs for all age groups,” said Riley in a press release.
The East Longmeadow Cultural Council approves about a third of the applications it receives each year. This year, the organization approved 13 of the roughly 35 applications received. The main criterion for the grant is that the program or event benefits the community. “The organizations seeking funding don’t have to be based in East Longmeadow, but the programs must take place in town,” Riley added.
“We try to give them as much as they ask for,” Riley told Reminder Publishing, but the council will sometimes fund a portion of a project, instead of the whole.
From a watercolors program at the library to rotary concerts and the 4th of July parade, some programs apply each year. This June for the first time, the council will help fund an “Arts & Brews Festival.”
The 2022 recipients of East Longmeadow Cultural Council funding are:
New England Swing Orchestra Concert
Celebrate EL 2022
4th of July Parade
The Jellyfish: Hot to Pastel Paint
His Hop Dance Chair Exercise for Seniors!
It’s a Bugs Life
Jeff Gavioli and His Bad News Jazz and Blues Orchestra
Music & Education event
Boston University’s Model UN
Earth Rhythms: Songs for the Environment
Introducing Cultural Diversity Through Music - “Songs of Diversity”
Songs of World War II
2022 Summer Concert Series
For more information about performances visit https://www.eastlongmeadowma.gov/266/Cultural-Council.