21 Organizations to Benefit from GC Cultural & Heritage Commission Grants

Deptford Twp.  – The Gloucester County Cultural & Heritage Commission at Gloucester County College received more than $50,000 in grant funding to cultivate thriving arts and educationally-rich programs within South Jersey.  

Awarded by the New Jersey Council on the Arts and New Jersey Historical Commission, the monies will support 21 organizations throughout 2014. Roughly $43,300 will be allocated for arts programming and $7,330 for historical projects. 

Most of the grants will afford creative learning opportunities for children. Such include the Woodbury Public Library after school art and literature program, West Deptford Public Library “Art Meets Science…Spark a Reaction” exhibit and Glassboro Child Development Center GIRLS initiative. GIRLS provides mother-daughter art workshops to 30 preschool and 70 K-6 students. The Gloucester County Children’s Choir, Center for Family Services and various community theaters are slated to receive funding. 

Making a return in 2014 will be the Music at Bunker Hill concert series and Gloucester County Community Chorus fall and spring performances thanks to the New Jersey Council on the Arts. The Gloucester County Italian Heritage Commission will hold its 11th annual festival in October. 

Celebrating African American history, the city of Woodbury plans to observe Juneteenth and host two presentations: “The Black Soldier in the Civil War” and “Emory’s Story.” Also supported are projects by the Swedesboro-Woolwich Township Historical Committee, Washington Township Historical Preservation Committee and West Deptford Library. 

For more information on arts and history programming, contact Diane Macris, administrator of the Gloucester County Cultural & Heritage Commission, at 856-464-5214 or dmacris@gccnj.edu. 

Gloucester County College’s 250-acre campus is located at 1400 Tanyard Road in Deptford, right off exit 56 of Route 55.