Jane Simpson receives Vereen Service Award

Published 2:30 pm Monday, May 29, 2023

MOULTRIE — The Arts Center of Moultrie recently held its annual State of the Arts meeting, which featured the Evelyn King Vereen Service Award, recognition of the retirement of a longtime employee and reports from organizations that support the Arts Center.

Vereen Award

Lisa Vereen Zeanah presented the Evelyn King Vereen Service Award to Jane Cagle Simpson.

Simpson served the Arts Center as curator, program director and executive director for a total of more than 30 years. After her retirement, she came back to teach art classes, serve on the acquisition committee and serve as a historical recourse for staff over the past seven years. The award recognizes her for the work she contributed after her retirement.

Recognitions

Board President Josh Lovett recognized Mary Ann Robinson on her retirement as finance director.

Robinson presented the annual budget, which was approved by the membership.

Lovett also recognized board members who are retiring, returning or new to the board.

Moultrie Service League

Members of the Arts Center received reports from the Moultrie Service League’s past president, Carrie Lasseter, and new president, Alicia Sims.

Lasseter highlighted the MSL’s activities in support of the Arts Center over the past year:

• The MSL hosted three exhibit openings and provided volunteers for Arts Center events, including fall and spring Pop Up Art in the Parks and ArtFest Road Races and Music & Craft Beer Festival.
• In addition to scheduled member workdays, the group paid for a lawn care service to maintain the garden area and made donations to the Arts Center for marketing and its general fund.
• The League expanded its school outreach. Kathy Nelson continued her work as Kaleidoscope director, leading full-day field trips at the Arts Center for all Colquitt County second and fourth graders. The League funded this project and supported it with volunteer man-hours as members served as art docents.
• They hosted a carnival-themed dance in the ballroom for Colquitt County students with moderate to severe and profound disabilities. Additionally, they paid for the Program for Exceptional Children to bring special education students from each school on a field trip to the Arts Center to paint bowls.
• The MSL held art nights at Funston and Doerun Elementary schools, led a full-day art event for the students at Cox Elementary, made a donation to the Colquitt County High School Tempo Club, and awarded a scholarship to a graduating senior.
• The League launched Masterpieces: An Interactive Traveling Exhibition of Famous Artwork. These two collections of artwork, complete with standards-based instructional resources, rotated through each local elementary school, providing additional art exposure to every elementary student in the county.
• The League gave money to support Art in the Afternoon, which provides after-school arts instruction at Moultrie YMCA Primetime locations.
• Members hung banners downtown to promote Youth Art Month. They provided free art projects and displayed Artie the Art Bug coloring contest winners at the League’s Art Arcade at Downtown Moultrie’s Spring Fling. Artie the Art Bug also made special appearances at many events throughout the year.
• Fundraisers in support of these activities included the annual Charleston Wrap, Santa Stroll ‘n Roll, and Casino Night as well as the sale of “Moultrie Masterpieces: A Local Art Collective,” a 276-page coffee table book showcasing 84 local artists and their works. Seven hundred books were printed after 500 were pre-sold. Proceeds from sales of the book are earmarked for capital improvements at the Arts Center.

“The funds we raised are enabling us to complete projects beyond our original budget for the year,” Lasseter said. “We are adding to the ballroom floor maintenance fund, replacing the downtown youth art month banners, and providing seed money for community outreach to the Farm Worker Family Health Program for ’23-24. Most noteworthy, we are thrilled to be able to assist with significant capital improvements to the Arts Center. At our May meeting, we voted to commit $35,000 to renovate the remaining classrooms in the education wing. Additionally, we reached the $92,000 needed to build and install a new, interactive children’s museum at the Arts Center. Securing funding for this project began in 15-16 under then president, Ashley Goss. For the next seven League years, presidents Karen Carver, Rebecca Mobley, Jessica Huffman, Beth Bates, Katie Harrison, Beth Cannon, and I contributed excess funds to the growing pool, hoping to eventually provide this incredible resource for our community.”

Sims gave a preview of her plans for 2023-24:

• The League will continue to provide educational opportunities to the children of the community. All second and fourth graders will have the opportunity to receive a full day of art education in the Kaleidoscope Museum.
• The League will host four gallery openings for upcoming exhibits, including one for Jean Gay on July 13.
• Members will continue to integrate art into parent and curriculum nights. “Masterpieces: An Interactive Traveling Exhibition of Famous Artwork” will continue to tour Colquitt County elementary schools.
• New this year, members will provide art kits to the Colquitt County School System’s Migrant Summer School, where 400 students will have art instruction by Ty Sutz.
• The League will continue its support for the Program for Exceptional Children and Art in the Afternoon, and it will continue to support the Arts Center by providing volunteers at this year’s Art Fest Race, the Pop Up Art in the Park events this fall and spring, and at the Forgotten Initiative Christmas Dinner at The Arts Center.
• Artie the Art Bug will continue to appear at the Arts Center and at events around town. The Artie the Art Bug Coloring Contest will continue in the schools, and the MSL will host the Art Arcade at Moultrie’s annual Spring Fling.
• The League will also provide a scholarship to a graduating senior planning on pursuing a degree in the arts and support the choral program’s Tempo Club with a sponsorship.

“To accomplish all our goals, projects, and programs, we will kick off our fundraising year with Charleston Wrap sales this July,” Sims said. “Our next fundraising event will be the 12th annual Santa Stroll n’ Roll on December 2nd downtown under the beautiful canopy of lights. This fun run has become a beloved holiday tradition for our community.”

Casino Night will be March 22, 2024, and a limited number of “Moultrie Masterpieces” are still available for purchase.

Other reports

Marie Brown reported on the success of the Volunteer Arts Alliance Art of the Hunt week. A children’s event was added in 2023 and will be built on for future years. VAA was able to provide $50,000 in organizational support to the Arts Center through the week’s events, which also included Field and Vine for the ladies, Whiskey and Wildlife for the gentlemen, and the annual Hunt Dinner with the silent and live auction.

Brown also reported on the progress of the renovations of the facility, which are taking place in phases. Four new music studios are ready for occupancy and the next phase of work will be creating the Children’s Interactive Art Gallery.

Connie Fritz, executive director of the Arts Center, highlighted several of the year’s community events, programs and concerts. She challenged every patron to invite someone to join at their current patron level and thereby doubling the patron support of the organization.