Huronia Foundation for the Arts Newsletter

In The Good Ol' Summertime...
Welcome to the summer 2008 edition of your HFA newsletter. We have lots going on behind the scenes - our incorporation should be completed in a month or so, and we have our fingers crossed that we will have our charitable status in a few months. Once these things happen, we can begin applying for grants so we can start to develop some exciting new projects for you.

HFA Receives Grant
We are pleased to announce that on June 4, the HFA received a grant from the Huronia Communities Foundation to help cover costs of acquiring our incorporation and charitable status. We are very grateful to the Huronia Communities Foundation for this generous gift.

picture of couple dancing

Our Next Meet and Greet
Dust off your dancin' shoes, one and all!! We are working on our next get-together - a barbecue, date to be July 20, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., held at John French's farm in Tiny Township. All HFA members and a friend (spouse, etc.) will be invited. We'll let you know, either by e-mail, telephone or mail as details are still to be determined. Admission will be a salad or a $5 fee (to cover costs) or if you're feeling particularly adventurous, 5 minutes of entertainment. There will also likely be some spontaneous explosions of art and performances of various types. Purpose: having fun and meeting other members.

There are lots of new sections to the website and newsletter, and we will continue to expand on them (as long as your webmaster's strength holds out). We now have separate web pages for Workshops and Seminars; Auditions and Calls for Entry; and now sections for Grants, Scholarships, Bursaries and Funding Opportunities, as well as a Links and Resources page so you can find teachers, suppliers and even festivals outside our immediate area. The Links and Resources will continue to expand as we find out more about the opportunities available in Huronia. If you know of any other events, auditions or funding opportunities we haven't covered, please let us know, so we can pass on the information to our members.

Oh yes, one more thing... HELP!! picture of hand

We need volunteers to help us develop the projects you have asked us to do. If you are interested in helping out with any of these projects, give us a call at (705) 527-3644 or e-mail us at info@huroniaarts.ca. It's great fun and you get to hang out with other members (and everyone knows how crazy artists, musicians and performers can be). Here are a few of the job descriptions, to help you choose...

Dinner for Love of the Arts - We need lots of people to help with serving hors d'oeuvres and food, bussing dishes, setting tables and decoration, ticket sales, sponsorships/advertising and green room assistant. We'll need 2 shifts of approximately 5 hours each and will need about 8 in total. Volunteers report to team leads and event co-ordinator. For further information or to volunteer, call Gord McKay at (705) 526-7129.

Meet and Greets - We are aiming for monthly get-togethers and will need people to act as greeters and servers, work the membership table, and help with nibbles and drinks.

Membership Co-ordinator - Someone to keep track of our memberships and database. Must be a good speller and familiar with Word and Excel. Will be trained by current office manager.

Newsletter and Website - Someone to help the editor/webmaster by phoning various groups to get their updated events and news. Group contacts to be supplied by editor.

Office Administration - Someone who can help us receive mail and e-mail and direct it to the appropriate person. Someone to answer the phone and have the appropriate person resolve questions.

Telephone Co-ordinator - Someone to help us organise a telephone tree so that we can reach our members quickly. Not everyone has computers or e-mail, and we need a way to contact those members.

All of us are guilty of the well-known "They" Syndrome. You know the one..."why don't "They" do this, or that, or the other?" Your Board has some exciting plans and projects in the works, but we are too few to do them on our own. We need YOUR help to make them happen. Get involved and make them your projects, too.

See you soon,
Bev Hanna, Editor

A message from Gord McKay, Chair of the HFA.
It's summertime and the HFA is already six months young, and we have accomplished a lot – a new newsletter, a website, a brochure, two member events, and financially we are still in the black! A very good first step.

A few weeks ago, your Board got on the phone to speak with all members; to learn about your desires and yes, frustrations with the HFA. Thank you for those ideas and offers of assistance. We are now starting to plan new programs and benefits that we will tell you about in the days ahead. Remember, your Board is here to serve you. Please stay in touch. We can always be reached at info@huroniaarts.ca .

Don't forget to mark two important items on your calendar. The Second Annual Dinner for Love of the Arts will be taking place at the North Simcoe Sports and Recreation Centre on Saturday October the 4th, and our first Annual General Meeting will take place in November. More details on each of these events will follow.

Have a great summer.
Gord McKay, Chair

Report on our OAC Grants and Funding Opportunities Workshop, held May 1, 2008, Carriage House Gallery

Your Foundation invited Ms. Janice Lambrakos from the Ontario Arts Council to come to Midland on May 1st and inform us about this important source of funding.

The public meeting took place at the ever-inviting Carriage House Gallery (thank you Stuart and Carol) and was attended by some 15 interested artists. The meeting gave us all some good funding ideas and Janice was great at handling those tough questions about “why my grant application was unsuccessful”. Foundation members have a new ally at the OAC.

Some of the more interesting points from the meeting:

• The OAC invests about $20 million each year in Ontario arts and artists
• You can apply to the OAC and the to the Canada Council (federal) for the same project
• The OAC has 55 program categories. Find out more at: http://www.arts.on.ca
• Applicant success rate varies from 1 in 3 for visual art grants to near 100% in other categories.
• For operating grants you need a 2 year history, but you can apply for a project grant at any time and on your own.
• The OAC is looking for paid jurors. Contact them if you are interested.

This was a fun and very informative evening. Your Foundation will likely invite the OAC back this fall. If you have any other speakers or organizations you would like us to bring to the area, please drop us a line at info@huroniaarts.ca

The HFA is also considering a collaborative workshop/seminar series with some of the other Simcoe County Arts Councils to bring arts professionals to the area. We'll keep you posted.

Garfield Dunlop's Poster Competition

HFA Board member Marianne Braid arranged for the Carriage House Gallery to host the judging of the posters for Garfield Dunlop's "What Canada Day Means to Me" contest. On May 13, Marianne met with the jurors: Carol Currie and Stuart Leggett, co-owners of the gallery, Ingrid Saaliste, photographer and former owner of the Right Side Gallery and Luba Huzan, owner of the Coldwater Gallery.

Theirs was not an easy decision. The jurors had hoped there would be age categories which, in their view, would have made decisions easier. However, on looking back at the submissions that were laid out for viewing, it was not necessarily the older age groups which would have the best chance of having the winning entry. The competition was all about content: adhering to the topic - is it the correct message, colour, simple vs. complex - what works best for a poster. Our jurors were very pleased to be a part of this project.

Our winner is Rachel Mochulla from Monsignor Lee School. Her design has been made into a poster that will be displayed across North Simcoe/Huronia. The jurors would like to award honourable mention to Mallory Goldsmith and Taylor Seguin, also of Montsignor Lee School.