WILLIAMSBURG — The Cultural Council has awarded more than $5,000 in grants to projects that range from a play at Three Sisters Sanctuary in Goshen to a class for painting jellyfish in pastels.
Out of 27 applicants, 17 were awarded some of the $5,365 in state money the council was charged with disbursing this year.
“They give us money and we have to give it all away,” said Trish LaFreniere, a council member.
However, two of the awardees have chosen to turn down the money because they were given partial awards.
“We just need to wait for a little guidance from the state,” said LaFreniere, on what will be done with the remaining money.
LaFreniere said that the council was careful about who it chose to award money to and noted that the funded projects will benefit both children and adults.
“We have tried really hard to make it be just as diverse as we can possibly make it,” she said.
Some of the grant-funded projects are a program at Hampshire Regional High School on climate change, a program of 1960s folk music, the play “Grail Knight,” which is set to be put on at Three Sisters Sanctuary, and a caregiver and children’s music class.
The Cultural Council also still has funding for projects in 2020 and 2021 that were put on hold because of the pandemic and is hoping to distribute money for those projects this year.
The Village Church in Cummington was one of the recipients of the grants, receiving one for its Friday Night music cafe series.
“We’ve been doing the series for about eight years,” said Joshua Wachtel, one of the organizers. “It’s just a great series for the community.”
He said the series gets money from about eight communities and allows for musicians to be paid and the pavilion at Pettingill Park to be rented. Wachtel said the series will start on May 27 this year.
The Cummington Cultural District Ad-hoc Committee has sent out a request for proposals for its first ever public art initiative.
The initiative is called “Cummington Reflections” and will display six to eight pieces of art in the Cummington Village area for five months, with the hope being that it will open in June.
“We’re hoping for the higher end (of exhibits),” said Hunt Chase, director of community programs at the Hilltown CDC.
Chase said there are multiple different spaces that have been set aside for the exhibit on Main Street, including outside the Community House and Cummington Supply, and that the initiative is open to many different kinds of art. However, art that can survive outside for five months is an important consideration, Chase said.
The initiative is part of the committee’s effort to have the state designate a cultural district in Cummington, which is being supported by the Hilltown CDC.
“It’s in the Mass. Cultural Council’s hands,” Chase said.
Those interested in applying to Cummington Reflections can do so at cummingtonculture.art . Preference will be given to Cummington residents and those of adjacent towns, and one slot in the initiative will be reserved for a youth artist. The deadline to apply is March 25. Artists selected will receive at total of $1,000 and be eligible to have $600 of material costs reimbursed.
All Out Adventures and Hilltown Land Trust are hosting a series of free snowshoe walks for seniors in Goshen this month.
The hikes will take place at the DAR State Forest on March 9 and March 16. They will be free of charge, although a $5 to $20 donation to All Out Adventures is requested.
Snowshoeing gear will be provided at the event and hikes will be done on the property in the absence of proper snow cover. Masking, social distancing and passing a COVID-19 symptoms screening are all required for participation in the walk. Snowshoeing groups will leave at 10 a.m. and noon.
Karen Foster, executive director of All Out Adventures, said the COVID-19 pandemic has added an extra dose of gratitude and meaning to the organization’s senior programs. She also said that the land trust is wonderful to work with.
Those wishing to sign up for the program can reach out to All Out Adventures at info@alloutadventures.org or by calling 413-584-2052.
The Huntington Council On Aging will be offering St. Patrick’s Day corned beef and cabbage dinners on March 19, via curbside pickup at Stanton Hall on 26 Russell Road. All ages are welcome and volunteers will bring out meals from noon to 1 p.m.
The suggested donation for the meals is $5. Picking up the dinners requires pre-registration, which can be done by calling 413-512-5200 by Thursday, March 10. Reservations for the event are limited to 100.
Bera Dunau can be reached at bdunau@gazettenet.com.