City of Peoria issued the following announcement on Aug. 14.
Help us make history with a historic building. In 2018, ART,Inc purchased the former Greely School with plans to transform it into a community arts center. Offering FREE after-school art programs to youth in the community, Art, Inc. will be a Non-Profit co-op/incubator and provide affordable studio space for artists to create and share their work. In the age of STEAM based education, community centers as this are a valuable asset to accompany education.
From thousands of applicants, Art, Inc. is now eligible for $25,000 through a contest from State Farm Neighborhood Assist in a national contest and needs the public’s help in making this dream a reality. The $25,000 grant will assist with repair costs and help meet our objective of providing productive, fun, and creative activities for young people who otherwise could not afford them, in a safe environment.
Starting Thursday, August 15 at 12:01am ET, U.S. residents who are 18 and older with a valid email address can vote up to ten times daily for ART, Inc’s cause at bit.ly/vote4peoria
Voting closes on Friday, August 24, 2018 at 11:59pm ETOn September 25, the top 40 vote-receiving causes will be announced at www.neighborhoodassist.com and a $25,000 grant will be awarded to each of the affiliated nonprofits.
ART, Inc’s founders Jonathon Romain-renowned visual artist and speaker and Nikki Romain-performing artist and writer, note that this is a community-wide initiative. Between the two of them they have a rich history within the world of art, spanning several decades crossing over multiple disciplines. Mrs. Romain stated, “This is a unique opportunity for all of Peoria to join together and create a community art center that has the potential to not only assist children and artists, but the entire community.”
Mr. Romain’s unique life experiences in teaching young people have positioned him in a critical position to influence others. He frequently shares his story with others as society seeks ways to redirect youth towards positive and productive outlets. His Bradley University Psychology degree distinguished him, but was quickly overshadowed by poor choices, which ultimately led to a fifteen-year prison sentence. But as commitment and spirit would have it, this setback has been surpassed. Mr. Romain is noted through his incredible accomplishments as a professional artist, motivational speaker, and entrepreneur.
“Our ultimate goal is to be the art component for other organizations and have a sustained impact on our community’s youth”, stated founder Jonathon Romain.
State Farm Neighborhood Assist is a crowd-sourced philanthropic initiative that empowers communities to identify issues in their neighborhoods The State Farm Review Committee selected the top 200 finalists from 2,000 submissions.
ART, Inc: To inspire and empower the community throught the arts.
www.artincpeoria.org FB: @artincpeoria
Original source can be found here.
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