ELY- The board of the Donald G. Gardner Humanities Trust voted to award $8,000 to local artists, art organizations, and fine arts events at its Oct. 11 board meeting.
“The Gardner Humanities Trust had significantly fewer applications this fall than in the spring,” stated Peter Schamber, executive director for the trust. “As such, the trust was pleased to be able to fund all applications from individual artists.
“Unfortunately,” Schamber added, “we had several applications from organizations that didn’t align with the mission of the trust, which resulted in disqualification. However, the trust was pleased to award full amounts to the remaining organizations. We even had a small surplus, which the trust reallocated to the production of “Frozen” at the high school. We were not able to fully fund their request in the spring, and the board felt this was a perfect opportunity to show our support.”
Individual artist grants are awarded for unique, short-term opportunities that will impact an artist’s career. Sally Koski was awarded $1,000 to pursue two courses: one in natural dye production and use, another in spinning fibers. Tricia Flake was awarded a $1,000 scholarship to complete her masters degree in library and information science at the University of Denver.
The trust’s project grant program supports activities in the fine arts and is intended to make possible presentations or productions. Project grants were awarded this year to the following organizations:
 Ely Folk School was awarded $3,600 to continue their very successful community dance series. They plan to host four more dances for their 2023-24 season.
 Ely Area Television was awarded $1,250 to produce their fourth annual holiday concert. This year the concert will grow to include live performances.
 Frozen/Boundary Waters Choral Festival was awarded an additional $1,150 for the Ely Memorial High School production of “Disney’s Frozen—The Broadway Musical.”
Additionally, the trust allocated $3,000 at the start of the year for use by the Ely Public Library, which provided the entire library staff the opportunity to attend the Association of Rural and Small Libraries annual conference this past September.
The trust will have a spring grant round with applications due by the end of March. More information will be published in local newspapers as well as on the website. The 2023 Donald G. Gardner Humanities Trust board members are: Jill Swanson, Angela Campbell, David O’Donnell, Vince O’Connor, Sara Skelton, Scott King, and Irene Hartfield.
Any questions about the grant programs, the trust or ways to support the arts in Ely can be directed to Peter Schamber, executive director at 218-365-2639 or at info@gardnertrust.org.
The purpose of the trust is for the enhancement, growth and improvement of the Ely Public Library; the arts and artisans of Ely and surrounding area, including the performing arts, the visual arts and literature; the creation and funding of scholarships, educational and artistic grants; and the cultural and aesthetic environment of the City of Ely and its surrounding area.