The Orillia and District Arts Council (ODAC) will be able to offer programming to vulnerable women thanks to a $5,000 grant.
The program is called Discovering the Artist Within: Arts Education for Vulnerable Women. It is supported by the federal government’s Emergency Community Support Fund as well as Community Foundations of Canada.
“It offers an opportunity to, first of all, help vulnerable women and, second of all, hire local artists at industry rates,” said Christine Hager, secretary-treasurer with ODAC.
Details about the program — the brainchild of ODAC president Lynn Fisher — are still being determined. ODAC has until next year to use the grant money.
“That gives us time to plan, and we want this to continue,” Hager said. “This is a first step.”
The goal is to offer the program in person, but that will depend on provincial rules and guidelines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Discovering the Artist Within is a new type of outreach for ODAC, which will be contacting organizations such as the Green Haven Shelter for Women and Couchiching Jubilee House to try to get people on board.
“This is very exciting for us. We are trying to get the community to realize we are a resource for them and that we are supporting all art. There’s something magical about art. It means a lot of different things. The artist within doesn’t necessarily mean learning how to paint,” Hager said, noting it could include writing, acting, music and performing arts.
Specific details about the program will be released when they are available.
