About the Tweed & Area Arts Council

The Tweed & Area Arts Council is an entirely volunteer organization.
The annual general meeting is held each September in Tweed, Ontario.

| 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |

2006	The Beginning

A group of enthusiastic, community-minded artisans and others, of Tweed and Area, met and saw there was a need TO ENRICH THE CULTURAL LIFE OF THE COMMUNITY. Thus the Tweed & Area Arts Council (T&AAC) was born.

The Tweed & Area Arts Council was founded on the belief that the arts are for everyone.
The Vision Statement of the Tweed & Area Arts Council is:

to enrich the cultural life of the community by promoting awareness of and appreciation for the arts in the entire Tweed and area community.

The suggested mission statement for the newly created organization is:

- To encourage, foster, develop, promote and sustain the cultural life of our local and area communities, thus enabling it to achieve its creative, social and economic potential
- To help build a stronger community and enrich personal experience Culture can act as the economic engine that drives municipalities toward growth and prosperity.
- To encourage creation and interaction thus celebrating the richness of creative expression and human endeavor
- To advocate support and services not only to artists and organizations within our community but individuals and tourists alike
- To promote education and history

The Arts to be included in T&AAC are: Dance, Inter-related Arts, Media Arts, Music, Theatre,
Visual Arts, Writing and Publishing.

Members of the first Board: 2006 - 07
L. to R.: Mitch LeSage, Don Herbertson (Vice Chair), Sheila-Marie Youmansdonatella,
Wanita DeVries, Roely DeVries (Chair), Meriel Child Carol Snell, Jack Vance
Absent: – Adrianne Marusinec (Treasurer)

The first edition of the T&AAC Newsletters was issued in the spring of 2006 with Gill Sparrow as Editor.

Thank you to the Young Family for their benefit concert on April 7th. at the Legion in Tweed.
It was a great success and $535.00 was raised for the Tweed & Area Arts Council

The T&AAC Logo

An official logo for T&AAC was chosen through a contest.
The winner was Lidka Schuch selected from 23 entries. Lidka is a graphic artist who spends time in Tweed. She is president of Studio L – writer and illustrator for Graphic Exchange Magazine – author of “Lidka’s Tips” series of booklets and “Moving from QuarkXPress to Adobe In Design” guide – regular Adobe software tester.

Thank you to all those who submitted entries, especially the youngsters for their imaginative logos.
The three runners-up were Liz Van Dyk, Shirley Ivison and Susan Rightmyer.

The First Scarecrow Contest was held in the fall of 2006

2007	The Proposal

At the March Session of Tweed Council, Roely DeVries (Chair) and Don Herbertson (Vice Chair) made a presentation to request the Council look at two proposals from the Tweed & Area Arts Council to help us acquire the Actinolite Church for the purpose of establishing a Community Arts Centre.

The photo is a link to the first tour of the church

T&AAC Gains Charitable Status.

We have officially received our “Letters of Patent” and the Tweed & Area Arts Council is now officially incorporated as a charitable organization. We are awaiting confirmation that we have been approved as a charitable organization with the ability to give tax receipts for donations.

Our Goals:
· To encourage, foster, develop, promote and sustain the cultural life of our citizens and local communities.
· To develop a closer relationship between artists and the community by promoting education and heritage.
· To act as advocates for the arts and organizations supporting the arts.
· To promote effective communication within the Arts Council, with all levels of government, and with the communities at large.
· To establish a centre for the arts.
· To encourage coordination of the arts and cultural activities.
· To act as a long range planning body for the arts.
· To collaborate closely with the Municipality of Tweed.
· To encourage youth participation in the arts.

Our First Major Fundraising Activity

“ A Christmas Carol” – was a huge success. Over 200 tickets were sold and $2,000.00 was raised. Everyone who attended this performance would agree that it was a fun-filled evening and a great way to start celebrating Christmas! We will keep you informed for our plans for next year.

MPP Leona Dombrowsky has added her support regarding the acquisition of the church.
TNT has a building fund and, in principle, will work with T&AAC in the purchase of a building.
We held our first Writers Competition this year.

2008	Purchase of the Marble Church

On Thursday, Feb. 15, 2008, legal papers were signed and the marble church in Actinolite owned by the United Church became the property of the Tweed & Area Arts Council. The hamlet of Actinolite lies a few kilometers north of the Village of Tweed on Hwy. 37.	The Signing of the Purchase
A plaque on the lawn explains the long, proud history of the church.	The Historic Plaque
The historic beauty of the building will be maintained throughout; where possible, materials and equipment will be purchased from area suppliers; and the work to be done will be carried out by area tradespeople and contractors. No work will be done until the money is on hand to carry it out.
If all goes according to plan, the Marble Church Arts Centre will open 145 years after construction on the building began.
Grants Update
Grants of $20,000 have been received or committed -- $10,000 from the John M. Parrott Foundation and $10,000 from Community Futures

Our First Loan Repayment
	T&AAC presented a $10,000 cheque to the Tweed Municipal Council as the first repayment on loan.

Our First "Jack Vance Golf Classic" Tournament
	Held on Sunday, July 13, 2008 at Poplars Golf Club, the Jack Vance Golf Classic raised approximately $5,500 through registration, donations and hole sponsorships.

Our Own Website

Two Loyalist College students are offering their skills in the arts and communications to the Tweed & Area Arts Council.
The Tweed & Area Arts Council is currently working on establishing its own website.

Grants Update

To date, grants of $87,252 have been received by or committed to the Tweed & Area Arts Council.
Special thanks are extended to Don Herbertson for his perseverance and dedication in pursuing these funds.

Open Houses

TAAC hosted two open houses at the Marble Church Arts Centre. Both were very well attended and the members thank the community for the obvious support that was shown for the project.
This event raised $1300. Thank you for all your donations!

Grants Update

$42,252 (Rural Development Grant) from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

$1,000 from the Tweed Branch of the CIBC.

Hastings County Economic Development Fund - $20,500

Bayshore Credit Union - $2,500

TD Canada Trust Madoc - $2,000

Donations

The Board acknowledges and appreciates the generous donation from the Lions Club and two donors who wish to remain anonymous

Archivist

We are pleased to announce that Judith Best has accepted the position of Archivist for the Tweed & Area Arts Council. Welcome Judith!

2009

Grants Update

- AON Inc. - $2,500 this year and another $2,500 in 2010.

Grants received or committed to date - $93,252 (as of June 2009).

Reception at the Marble Church Arts Center

Honoured Guests
left to right - Wayne Kay, (business advisor); Jim Flieler, (Tweed Council);
Leona Dombrowsky, (MPP); Don Herbertson, (Chair, T&AAC);
Joanne Albert, (Reeve, Municipality of Tweed);
Justin Bray, (Tweed Council);
Dorothy Shaw, (Chapman Women's Institute - made a donation to us);
Joe Kurek, (Studio 737 - donated a painting to the Arts Centre and T&AAC).

Another Loan Repayment

photo of Tweed Municipal Council and TAAC Members

T&AAC presented a $8,000 cheque to the Tweed Municipal Council.

Trillium Foundation Grant

December 15, 2009

The Tweed & Area Arts Council t has received a grant of $54,500 from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, which is an agency of the Ontario Government.

We are extremely grateful to the Ontario Trillium Foundation and especially to Elizabeth Churcher, the OTF regional advisor and assessor. Without her belief in and outstanding support of the Marble Church Arts Centre project, this grant would not have been made.

The money will allow us to continue the renovation and upgrade work and bring the opening day even closer. We will be able to complete interior and exterior repairs and restore the beautiful windows. The members will make draperies from special material treated with flame retardant and we will install magnetic windows, which are much more effective than double glazed windows in retaining heat in the winter. Much of the necessary electrical work will also be completed with this grant. 2010 is going to be a very busy and productive year for the T&AAC. The first installment of $30,000 has been received and the final installment of $24,500 will come in June of 2010.

Don Herbertson, Chair

2010	Board Members 2010

	Board of Directors 2010: left to right sitting front - Richard Rashotte, Maril Swan, Meriel Child, Jane Szilvassy, Jack Vance. Sitting behind front - Roely DeVries, Bonnie Marentette Standing - Wayne Kay, Don Herbertson
Government of Canada’s Enabling Accessibility Fund Program Grant
February 10, 2010 Grant for Marble Church Arts Centre will make it more accessible. The Tweed & Area Arts Council is very pleased to announce that it has received $18,362 from the Government of Canada’s Enabling Accessibility Fund Program. Don Herbertson, Chair of the Arts Council said, "This money will allow us to make the Marble Church Arts Centre completely accessible to everyone. A barrier-free washroom is now completed. Exterior work on a wheelchair ramp and drop-off area will begin as soon as warmer weather permits. Since acquiring the Marble Church Arts Centre in 2008, the Tweed & Area Arts Council has been working very hard to renovate and upgrade this beautiful, historic building. With the support of individuals, groups and corporations as well as municipal, provincial and federal governments, the Marble Church Arts Centre is being transformed into an exciting and vibrant community arts centre. This most recent grant from the Enabling Accessibility Fund takes us one step closer to our goal of offering inclusive facilities for all the arts in the Municipality of Tweed." For further information contact Don Herbertson, 613-478-2747, or by email: don.herbertson@iistweed.ca
First Performance in the Marble Church Arts Centre
May 8, 2010 The first performance at the Marble Church Arts Centre featured The Young Family with a capacity crowd enjoying the music. The Alberta Young Memorial Jamboree not only had the Young Family (Gary,Brad and Jeff) playing but also featured many talented local artists helping to raise money for a new sound system for the Marble Church Arts Centre. Once the sound system is installed at the centre it will have an insignia in memory of Alberta Young. For full report on the first performance, as supplied by The Tweed News, Click here
Community Futures Development Corporation of North & Central Hastings and South Algonquin Grant
June, 2010 We have been granted $7,000 from Community Futures Development Corporation of North & Central Hastings and South Algonquin. The funds will be used toward the purchase of basic stage lighting (now in place), a lap top computer, projector and screen. The projection equipment and lap top will make us capable of showing films in the Marble Church Arts Centre - classic films which are in the public domain that you can't see anywhere else, as well as first run films once we have sufficient funds to purchase the necessary licence. Don Herbertson, Chair of T&AAC said, "We hope to begin showing movies this fall. And along with each feature movie, there will always be a classic cartoon or a short subject. Detailed information of the schedule will be coming soon. Watch for it!"
Tweed & Area Arts Council, P.O. Box 359, Tweed, ON Canada K0K 3J0