Feature Article November 20, 2003
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Blues Skies in the Community short listed for Trillium Honour
Blue Skies in the Community, which supports music and arts in rural Frontenac County, is one of five finalists in the arts and culture category for an Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) Great Grants Award, to be handed out at a special dinner in Toronto on November 20
OTF grants help outstanding organizations like Blue Skies in the Community achieve great results, said OTF Board Chair, Robert G. Power. OTF, through Great Grants Awards, applauds the commitment of countless volunteers in Ontario and thanks them for the lasting results they are achieving in our communities.
Blue
Skies in the Community (BSIC) has north
Frontenac, north Lennox & Addington, and Lanark counties stepping
to the sound of their music. Through its Community fiddle Orchestra,
an all-ages group of 20 musicians from throughout the region, Blue
Skies in the Community has rekindled the rich fiddling tradition of
the region. The Trillium grant received by BSIC has given the
organisation the resources to enhance its support of the Orchestra.
This year, Orchestra members raised the necessary funds to fly out to Cape Breton and bring the eastern Ontario fiddling tradition to the Canadian east coast. Blue Skies in the community also promotes live music and performing arts in the region throughout the year and sponsors cultural events and activities to benefit the 6,000 residents of the area in and around Sharbot Lake.
The Trillium grant has allowed us to extend our programs to the rural communities who need them the most. said Carolyn Stewart, Chair of the Blue Skies in the Community Committee.
Blue Skies in the Community is the outreach arm of the highly successful Blue Skies Music Festival, which each Civic Holiday weekend attracts over 2,000 music lovers from across Ontario and beyond to the hamlet of Clarendon Station. Blue Skies in the Community runs two performing fiddle orchestras, teaches fiddle music to community members of all ages, offers a music camp for 25 area children, and provides music and cultural workshops in schools and the community.
The Great Grants Awards honour organizations across Ontario that demonstrate strong leadership and remarkable vision for their communities. Blue Skies in the Community is among 16 exceptional initiatives selected across the four sectors funded by OTF.
Since April 1999, the Ontario Trillium Foundation has made more than 6,900 grants totaling over $424 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations in Ontario. They are designed to foster arts and culture, sports and recreation, environment, and human and social services.
