The Arts Center’s 60th Birthday Expressions of Community-themed year is off to an exciting start thanks to receipt of a transformative grant announced during the 60th Birthday Party Celebration, Saturday, January 21, 2023. 

Over the next ten years pledged grants to be received from The Bob and Kitty Bunn Family Fund of Oregon Community Foundation will total $1.2 million to support operations of The Arts Center. 

Grant funds received are already supporting The Arts Center’s new diversity initiative to expand equitable arts access and engagement through focused outreach and collaborative community programming. 

“We are thrilled to receive this needed boost of support from the family of founding members Bob and Kitty Bunn,” said Executive Director, Cynthia Spencer. “Kitty and our very first Director, Corrine Woodman honed their artistic skills together and urged each other to be boldly creative, at a time when most women stayed behind the scenes. They shared a deep friendship and mutual love of community arts that continues to drive our work today.

This funding comes at a time when The Arts Center, like all non-profits, is rebuilding from three pandemic years of rapidly evolving community needs and priorities. The Bob and Kitty Bunn Family Fund support is helping us build practices and programs to ensure a just, equitable future for our region’s cultural ecosystem. It will allow us to work more strategically with our wonderful current partner arts organizations and say YES to new programs and partnerships. We look forward to Dreaming Big as we co-create arts programming together for our community.”

The Arts Center’s 60th Birthday Expressions of Community year will continue with a number of opportunities for people to share ideas, input and support for making things happen.

These opportunities will be shared via The Arts Center’s website and monthly E:Newsletter, open to all who sign up to receive.