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Arts could benefit from Give to the Max day Tuesday, Nov. 16 in Fergus
Published 11:23am Monday, November 15, 2010You’ve probably been hearing a lot about Give to the Max Day. This is the second year that the GiveMN group has hosted such an event.
There are many non-profit groups taking part and this is a great way to give to your favorite organization(s) all on one day. It’s easy, too. Last year I took part and gave to three or four of my favorite Minnesota Non-Profits – including A Center for the Arts.
All you have to do is go on-line and log on to GiveMN.org Once you’re there type in your non-profit’s name and “voila!” the rest is fairly easy. (you can also access this by going to A Center for the Arts’ website at www.fergusarts.org and clicking on the GiveMN button).
I also chose to give monthly to the Kaddatz Galleries which happens automatically every month and you can do this on-line at the GiveMN.org site as well.
Here in Fergus Falls we are “very philanthropic!” Our community is so supportive of the many non-profit groups that have become an important part of our eco-system. A Center for the Arts is just one of many organizations that contribute to our quality of life in Rural Minnesota.
So, when IS Give to the Max Day? It’s all day long this Tuesday, Nov. 16. So for 24 hours the website will be up and running —even at 2 a.m.
The whole day is organized around state wide giving. Many are raising matching dollars, including A Center for the Arts.
We are challenging ourselves to match a couple of gifts from individuals on a 3 to 1 match. Our goal is $20,000 before the end of the year. This is a way to match the generous gift and support from Charles Ario at our annual Talk of the Town fund raiser.
Charles bid on and paid for the beautiful Jeff Zachmann Kinetic Sculpture.
Not only did he buy the sculpture and donate his financial contribution to A Center for the Arts, but he also donated the sculpture to A Center for the Arts so that now it is a part of our lobby and our permanent collection. Help us honor Charles’ gift on Give to the Max Day.
Also, GiveMN.org will be making two contributions to Greater Minnesota based on their success during the day. One will receive $20,000 and the other $10,000. And throughout the day every hour they will be choosing one donor’s gift to receive $1,000 to the non-profit of their choice.
There are so many ways that people give! And this is the time of year to be thankful for all of that. We are so thankful for our volunteers who give of their time and their talents.
We are thankful for the people of Minnesota who have supported the arts for many years.
We are especially thankful for the arts funding that has been put into action through the Legacy Amendment. We are thankful for the inviduals, businesses and foundations supporting our work.
Two examples of this happened this weekend. On Saturday, thanks to the Adams’ Family Foundation, we were able to host a charming and educational program we called ‘The Magnificence of the Voice,’ which featured one of our Children’s Choirs (sponsored by Otter Risers Kiwanis and the Adams’ Family Foundation) along with vocalists, Everett Jacobson, Amanda Bopp, Joni Wasberg and hosted by Ned Eerdmans. (We are also eternally thankful for the talent we have here in our community.)
Thanks to the support of the Adams Family Foundation we can offer these programs affordably and, in this case, sometimes free.
We anticipate more educational opportunities around the arts as our board moves in the direction of offering more “arts 101” programs.
The second example is Sunday’s screening of the film “Woven from the Land,” with the film’s creator and producer, Teresa Koenichne as part of the event.
Her work was funded in part by a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature.
It is a beautiful film that weaves together stories of 18 rural Native American and non-Native women who speak about connection to land, the prairie, why they left, land loss and how this landscape shaped them.
This is part of our Sunday Cinema at the Center Series and is free and open to the public at 4 and 7 p.m. Goodies will be served, there will be a panel discussion around 5:15 between the screenings and a free will donation will be taken for those who want to further support such projects.
Thank you all for your support of the arts in Fergus Falls.
Rebecca Petersen is the director of A Center for the Arts.
