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September 17, 2008 COMMUNITY FOUNDATION’S “PICTURING COMMUNITY” EXHIBIT OPENS AT THE CENTER FOR HISTORY It’s a well-worn phrase, but a true one: A picture can be
worth a thousand words. Powerful images stay anchored in our minds
for years, shaping the way we think and feel. But since so few
nonprofit organizations have adequate marketing and public relations
budgets, professional photography can be a “luxury” that
many nonprofits simply can’t afford—especially in difficult
economic times. In response to this, the Community Foundation of
St. Joseph County—working through its ArtsEverywhere
Fund—created
the Picturing Community Project. During the summer, the Picturing Community Project connected 15
of our best local nonprofit agencies with some of the area’s
most talented photographers, resulting in literally hundreds of
remarkable images that illustrate how these organizations improve
and strengthen our community. These photos will become key elements
of the future communications efforts of these nonprofits, helping
to “picture” their good work in annual reports and
brochures, on Web sites, and elsewhere. Come see the best of these photos yourself. To celebrate the work
of these nonprofit agencies and the artists who photographed them,
the Community Foundation will host the Picturing Community Exhibit
in the Carroll Gallery of South Bend’s Center for History.
The exhibit opens to the public on Wednesday, September 17, and
runs through October 31. Agencies that participated in the Picturing Community Project
include Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Joseph County, Center for
History, Center for the Homeless, Head Start, Hope Ministries:
Hope4Kids, LOGAN, Public Education Foundation, REAL Services, Reins
of Life, South Bend Civic Theatre, South Bend Heritage Foundation,
South Bend Museum of Art, Southold Dance Theater, YMCA of Michiana,
and YWCA of St. Joseph County. Photographers include Scott Bourdon,
Shayna Breslin, Matt Cashore, Marty Eby, Santiago Flores, Janet
Graham, Art Hansen, Chris Minnick, Jim Rider, Peter Ringenberg,
and Marcus Snowden. Launched in the fall of 2004, the Community Foundation’s ArtsEverywhere Initiative began with a $3-million challenge grant from local philanthropist Judd Leighton of the Leighton-Oare Foundation. In order to maximize the potential of the grant, the Community Foundation needed to raise $3 million to match it—and, with the help of arts supporters from throughout the community, succeeded in the spring of 2008. Some of the ArtsEverywhere dollars were made available immediately to support the arts, while others were reserved to build and strengthen the permanent ArtsEverywhere endowment. The ArtsEverywhere Initiative has three major facets: the ArtsEverywhere.com Web site, an online arts events calendar that also includes artist profiles, ticket discounts, and listings for classes and workshops; the ArtsEverywhere magazine, a quarterly published in partnership with the South Bend Tribune; and a grant-making component that returned more than $330,000 to local arts organizations in 2007. |
