Cultural Coalition of Washington County awards $47,000 in grants to art groups

The Times, Jul 29, 2010

Chase Allgood / Pamplin Media Group

Native American dancer Mary Bodine of Garden Home’s Painted Sky, Inc., performs at Tuesday’s event.

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The Cultural Coalition of Washington County recently awarded grants totaling $46,792 to 25 county organizations for cultural projects to be conducted between July 2010 and June 2011. Recipients included a number of Tigard, Tualatin and Sherwood organizations.

To celebrate the achievements of those organizations and the importance of cultural programming to the economic, civic, and educational vibrancy of the county, Community Newspapers, in partnership with the Westside Economic Alliance and Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District, hosted a reception to honor the work of the 2010-11 grant recipients and the coalition on Tuesday at the Jenkins Estate.

“Of all the counties in Oregon we get the most money, because we (donors) give the most money,” said Barbara Mason, coalition chairwoman. “The coalition made a special effort to reach out to the community, and we were very pleased that 10 grants went to first-time applicants.”

Scott Palmer, the artistic director of Hillsboro’s Bag & Baggage Productions said the grant it received from the coalition was a large part of the reason they had received a couple of other larger grants.

“Any amount of success we have had has come from two places,” Palmer added. “It’s come from the partnerships and the supportive organizations and individuals in the county, but I also can say that it has also come from the contribution of the coalition and the continued support of the county, which has really been the key that has allowed us to grow and develop the kind of reputation and the profile we need to attract significantly larger funding.”

Grants were distributed through a competitive process to address goals of the Washington County Cultural Plan in amounts up to $1,000 or $2,000.

Thirty-three applications were received from a variety of large and small arts, heritage and humanities organizations from across the county. Grants will support projects including music, theater, dance, community cultural events, heritage and art experiences from Beaverton to North Plains, Hillsboro to Tualatin, and Forest Grove to Sherwood.

Recipients of 2010-11 Washington County Community Cultural Participation Grants included:

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