Welcome to the Beautiful Summer Days of July!
Things are heating up at ArtsAltoona planning our big fundraiser Art Jive Two and trying to keep up with everything else going on!
ART JIVE TWO
The plans are firming up for our upcoming big fundraiser thanks to Angie Yasulitis and Kim Irwin (Mrs. Pat Irwin) our event co-chairs and their great committee of volunteers. The date is Sunday, August 18th from 5 to 9pm at Heritage Plaza and on Eleventh Avenue, the same location as last year. A single ticket is $85 and a pair of tickets is $150. We are working with our friends Candy Holliday at the Altoona Mirror’s 301 Events and Amy Hanna-Eckenrode at www.CentralPATickets.com for assistance with the event and for the tickets sales and promotions through the Altoona Mirror.
The theme is Paint the Town so wear your most colorful outfit and come to enjoy the food, drinks, entertainment and art. If you would like to help with the event, please reach out to me and I will put you in touch with Angie and Kim.
We are very pleased that the Altoona Brass Collective will be entertaining us during the social/dinner part of the event, followed by Tommy Wareham and the Intrigues, who were wonderful last year!
New beverage partners this year are DellaVino Imports who will be providing the Sommelier experience with their wines – we are excited to be working with Deb Dellaposta, Dawn McClellan and Chris McClellan on this. Check them out at www.dellavino.com so you have an idea what to expect.
Also in the beverage department, we are pleased to announce that Bill Sell’s Bold has created three “colorful cocktails” especially for our “Paint the Town!” event. I, for one, am looking forward to sampling these concoctions (hoping there is no Gin involved)! The Furrer Beverage Beer truck will be joining us again this year.
We are still in the process of confirming the food vendors and the menu, so watch our website and Facebook page for that information as it becomes available. Chelsea Kerr will be creating floral arrangements for us again this year, the ASAP youth created some artwork for the tables and the committee is planning some colorful decor to go with the theme! You will also have the opportunity to paint on the mural that was created for us by ArtsAltoona board member/Altoona Symphony Orchestra Executive Director Pam Snyder-Etters and started last year.
We are reaching out to some local artists to ask for donations of their work for a Silent Auction and a “Meet the Artist” aspect of the evening. If you are a visual artist and would like to participate, please give me a call (or text) at 814 932 2629 or email me at dgority@artsaltoona.org.
Please get your tickets now available at CentralPATickets. There are fees added for the ticket processing, but, even with those added, the ticket price is still less than last year. Please invite your circle of friends to join you! (Please note that the “pair of tickets” discount is available for friends as well as “couples.”) We want everyone to join us for a great experience! We also have sponsorship packages available at the $1000, $500 and $250 levels. They all include multiple tickets to the event and publicity. Please give me a call if you are interested in supporting us in this way. Thanks for your consideration.
ASAP – After School Arts Program
Our latest ASAP just wrapped up. It was a summer camp type format with Jenn Binus as the instructor. The kids at Evergreen Manors said they had a great time and wished it were available all summer! Shannon Moyer, the Service Coordinator was wonderful to work with and she was very pleased with the program. We will most likely be back there with class sessions later in the year.
We have begun developing Mission and Vision statements specifically for our ASAP along with policies, procedures and methods of evaluation to formalize the process for the future. Thanks to Annie Bickel our volunteer Director of Curriculum and Program Director Peter Frantz for taking the lead on this.
We are hoping to implement five ASAP sessions at various locations with a variety of instructors throughout this fall and again in the spring. We have applied for a number of grants to support this programming. We are also seeking sponsors for the program – if you are interested in being a sponsor or if you can suggest someone we can approach about sponsorships, please let me know.
We have been awarded an AmeriCorps position to do Community Education Outreach for ASAP and to serve as site coordinator for the sessions. We need to fill this position soon. If you have any interest or know someone who may be interested please contact us right away!
Media Outreach
Thanks to Doug Herendeen at WRTA radio (1240AM/98.5 FM) for sharing an hour of his show, The Eleventh Hour, with ArtsAltoona each month! This month we will be interviewing local visual artist Dee Hartman. Kim Aboud will also be joining us to promote Art Jive Two. Give us a listen on Wednesday, July 31st from 11am to noon. If you can’t listen live, check out our ArtsAltoona Facebook page for a link to the podcast version once Doug has it completed.
Enjoy your summer and make ArtsAltoona Art Jive Two a part of your plans!
Donna Gority
President
ArtsAltoona Board