Marion Community Foundation

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2019 Community Grants: Arts & Culture

With Marion County’s bicentennial quickly approaching, community programs that address “Arts, History, and Culture” are receiving a substantial nod from Marion Community Foundation’s grants committee. Of the $586,000 awarded in the 2019 Community Grants Program, $172,000 is earmarked for this category.

Among the organizations receiving grants from the Foundation is the Harding Presidential Site, currently under construction. The Foundation’s Board of Directors awarded $31,250 from the Wopat Community Fund for the third year in a row. The Harding 2020 project includes remodeling the Harding Home, building the Harding Presidential Center, and creating an endowment fund for the on-going support of the project.

“The Harding Presidential Site is significant for Marion,” said Dean Jacob, President and CEO of Marion Community Foundation. “Our Board has chosen to support this massive and uniquely Marion project in a big way.

“We are working to create a $1 million endowment for the Harding Presidential Site to support its maintenance and upkeep in perpetuity. We have set up a donation portal on our website to allow anyone in Marion to contribute and be a part of our community’s history. And, we encourage all residents to contribute to at least some amount — up to and including setting up their own named endowment fund to support the Presidential Center in a significant way.”

The Marion County Historical Society figured prominently in this year’s grant awards. They will receive two awards — $7,600 for Homecoming 2020 and a $13,000 matching grant for the Mary Ellen Withrow Story. In 2020, not only will the Harding Presidential Site open, but Marion County will celebrate its bicentennial. The Historical Society has a year of special events planned around the theme of “Celebrating Our Communities: Homecoming 2020.” The bicentennial events will, according to director Brandi Wilson, encourage connection and engagement for both current and returning Marion residents.

Wilson was thrilled to learn of the Mary Ellen Withrow and history grant awards. The Historical Society will leverage this matching grant from the A. Merle Hamilton and Conway Family Charitable funds to hire an oral history specialist to capture Withrow’s story, as wife, mother, school board member, and the only person to hold the position of treasurer at all three levels of government – local, state, and national. The story will be used to create unique interactive displays for her career-spanning collection of memorabilia.

With this matching grant, Marion Community Foundation will match dollar-for-dollar up to $13,000 the Historical Society’s fund raising efforts for the Withrow project. A donation form specific to this effort is available upon request from the Marion County Historical Society by calling 740-387-4255 and online.

Another grant related to history is a $2,000 award to Downtown Marion, Inc. from the Foundation’s Forever Remembered and anonymous funds to install one of 20 planned bronze plaques on historically significant buildings in Marion’s downtown district. These historic markers will be installed to identify significant buildings in Marion’s downtown district. These plaques, which will be engraved with historical information about each building, as well as an etched photo, will include a scannable QR code to allow individuals to connect to more information about the building, its business, and businesses in the downtown area.

This year’s largest award is $95,000 to the Palace Cultural Arts Association from the Wopat Community Fund to assist with replacing the grand theatre’s roof. Additional fund raising is being planned by the Palace, according to executive director Bev Ford, for this major capital improvement project.

“As one of our community’s gems, we feel the importance of supporting the Marion Palace Theatre both physically and through their programs and performances,” said Jacob. In addition to this grant, Marion Community Foundation is sponsoring the upcoming John Michael Montgomery concert on November 1.

Marion’s literacy initiative, Let’s Read 20, will bring bestselling children’s author Chris Grabenstein to Marion in April of 2020 for two shows at the Palace. This is assisted by an $11,000 award from the Janis & Greg Swepston Family Fund and Wopat Community Fund. It will be a special opportunity for all of Marion County’s students in grades 3-5 to meet the author and be inspired to read.

2019 Arts, History & Culture grants also include awards to the:

  • Peace and Freedom Committee, $6,000 from the Founders Fund and Chester & Mildred Roberts Fund in support of their annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast and Central Ohio Regional Oratorical/Art/ Poetry/Essay Contest;
  • Mid-Ohio Fine Art Society, $3,000 from the Paul & Susan Ludwig and Chester & Mildred Roberts funds in continued support of their youth art outreach to the Boys and Girls Club of Marion County;
  • Marion Concert Band, $3,000 from the Rick & Nancie Poorman Fund and Chester & Mildred Roberts Fund in support of their 2020 performance season; and,
  • Palace Cultural Arts Association, $2,254 from the Kathleen E. O’Shea Fund for the Palace’s Academy of the Arts.

Overall, Marion Community Foundation’s 2019-2020 Community Grants Program awards are supporting 32 local programs and nonprofit organizations. In addition to the ‘Arts, History, and Culture’ category, awards have been made to address ‘Health & Wellness,’ ‘Food, Shelter & Support,’ ‘Children, Families & Seniors,’ ‘Community Development,’ and ‘Education.” Additional information is available by clicking HERE.

Marion Community Foundation is located at 504 S. State St. in Marion. Information is available by calling 740-387-9704.