A fundraising campaign to assist the local arts community has proven to be a big success.
On Monday, April 10 at 6 pm, at the Art Gallery of Sudbury, Sudbury and area arts organizations and businesses will celebrate their success in more than doubling the ArtsVest fall 2005 challenge. The challenge was to raise at least $50,000 in new sponsorships for the local arts community, thus receiving matching funds from ArtsVest.
Including ArtVest's matching dollars, a total of $113,000 was raised. Sudbury's business sector rallied together to raise almost $63,000.
Monday's event will feature nine Sudbury arts groups and 22 local business sponsors sharing stories about partnerships and highlights of innovative local projects.
ArtsVest is a pilot project of the Council for Business and the Arts in Canada (CBAC) and encourages new business sponsorships of the arts from within communities.
Many sponsors are supporting local artists for the first time, while others used the challenge to increase their support.
The funds generated with benefit a wide range of projects. They include in-kind sponsorship of railroad tracks from CN Rail to expand the Prescott Park exhibits and increase educational programming for the Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre.
Significant funding has also been generated for the Art Gallery of Sudbury, Northern Artist Gallery and Theatre Cambrian.
The francophone community will also benefit as funds will be dispersed to le Theatre du Nouvel-Ontario, la nuit sur l'etang, le Salon du livre, Carrefour francophone de Sudbury and le Galerie du Nouvel-Ontario.
Generous donors included B.T. Paving and Snowplowing, Sudbury Skin Clinic, Le Voyageur, Assante Capital Management, CTV Sudbury, SupperClub and Grand & Toy.
Greater Sudbury Mayor David Courtemanche will join guest speakers at Monday's event.
