Ten Weston Cultural Programs Receive Grants

The information below was provided by the Weston Cultural Council.

Representative Alice Peisch and Audrey Pepper, chair of the Weston Cultural Council, have announced the award of ten grants totaling $3,870 for cultural programs in Weston.

Several of the Grantees are responding to Weston’s 300th Anniversary and celebrating our long history. A complete list of recipients and grant amounts can be found below.

The Weston Cultural Council is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils serving all 351 cities and towns in the Commonwealth. The LCC Program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences and humanities every year. The state legislature provides an annual appropriation to the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, which then allocates funds to each community.

Decisions about which activities to support are made at the community level by a board of municipally appointed volunteers. The members of the Weston Cultural Council are Laura Lamere, Alisa Taylor-Kapoor, Diana Chaplin, Susan Kuhr, Nancy McFarland, Inge Thorn Engler, Cheryl Alpert, Melissa Price, Andrea Levinson, Carmenelisa Perez-Kudzma, Marna Kennedy, Fang Liu and Audrey Pepper.

“I applaud the Massachusetts Cultural Council for recognizing the important role the arts and sciences play in Weston,” said Rep. Alice Peisch (D-Wellesley). “Thanks to this generous investment, Weston residents will have greater access to a wide range of cultural opportunities in the upcoming year.”

Statewide, more than $2.34 million will be distributed by local cultural councils in 2013. Grants will support an enormous range of grass-roots activities: concerts, exhibitions, radio and video productions, field trips for schoolchildren, after-school youth programs, writing workshops, historical preservation efforts, lectures, First Night celebrations, nature and science education programs for families and town festivals. Nearly half of LCC funds support educational activities for young people.

The Weston Cultural Council will seek applications again in the fall. Information and grant application forms are available online at www.massculturalcouncil.org. Applications must be postmarked by Oct. 15.

By calendar date, the FY13 Weston Cultural Council Grantees include:

Weston Historical Society
“Weston Historical Society Tercentennial Exhibition”
1/5/13 – 1/29/13 at the Weston Public Library
The exhibit will travel to other local venues thru 6/13. They include: Weston High School, Weston Middle School, Weston Town Hall, Weston Community Center
Awarded $400
Council contact: Diana Chaplin

Weston Media Center
“The Weston Historical Society-50th Anniversary”
12/12-4/13
Awarded $300
Council contact: Laura Lamere

Weston High School Chorus/Community Chorus
“Performance of POULENC’S GLORIA”
2/6/13
Regis College
Awarded $400
Council contact: Inge Thorn Engler

Bostonia Players
“Valentine Potpourri”
2/3/13
Weston Public Library
Awarded $400
Council contact: Susan Kuhr

Spellman Museum of Stamps & Postal History
“On the Boston Post Road”
4/26/13-12/31/13
Awarded $500
Council contact: Fang Liu

LearnQuest Academy of Music
“LearnQuest Music Conference 2013”
3/27/13-3/31/13
Regis College
Awarded $400
Council contact: Audrey Pepper

Weston Middle School Theatre/MA Educational Theater Guild
“Massachusetts Middle School Drama Festival”
4/27/13
Awarded $400
Council contact: Cheryl Alpert 

MetroWest Opera
“MetroWest Opera Presents Bizet’s Carmen”
5/16/13-5/19/13
Weston Town Hall
Awarded $400
Council contact: Alisa Taylor-Kapoor

Weston Public Schools
“Hearing Impaired Education and Awareness”
2012-2013 academic year
Awarded $400
Council contact: Marna Kennedy

Davis Bates
“Summer Reading Song and Story Celebration”
Summer 2013
Weston Public Library
Awarded $277
Council contact: Melissa Price