Redemption Town Partners receives grant for Pictures of Hope

Clarion Top News

Wednesday, 08 September 2021 11:11

Redemption Town Partners is pleased to announce that it has received a grant of $7,500 from the Alabama State Council on the Arts (ASCA), the state arts agency.
Redemption Town Partners supports, promotes, inspires, cheers, encourages, sustains, motivates, and furthers the goals and aims of the recovery community in Jackson County, Alabama, including Drug Court and Family Wellness Court. Redemption Town Partners works to identify needs in the recovery community and meet those needs. Arts education is a vital part of every community, especially in the recovery community. Art programs provide a positive form of self-expression, relieve stress, build confidence, and provide a creative outlet to participants.

Redemption Town Partners identified a need for an arts education program within the recovery community and established Pictures of Hope in May 2017, with the help of local artist, Sonya Clemons. Originally, Pictures of Hope offered art classes to children whose parents are a part of the Jackson County Drug Court or Family Wellness Court Program. Pictures of Hope has grown and now offers adult art classes and family art classes to the participants of both Jackson County Drug Court and Family Wellness Court, and members of the recovery community. The Alabama State Council on the Arts grant will allow 225 individuals to participate in Pictures of Hope art education classes. Overall, approximately 750 people will be impacted by the Alabama State Council on the Arts grant.

ASCA grants are awarded through a multi-faceted competitive review process. This grant signifies that Redemption Town Partners provides programs of artistic quality, serves the needs of the community and demonstrates high-level administrative standards, as well as enhancing education of students at all levels.

This grant awarded by the Alabama State Council on the Arts is made possible through funding from an annual appropriation from the Alabama State Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts. This public support enables Redemption Town Partners to reach new audiences, foster community development, provide the highest quality programming, and demonstrate the importance of arts as a component for quality of life in Alabama.

The Alabama State Council on the Arts is the official state arts agency of Alabama. The staff of the Council, directed by Al Head, administers the grants program and provides financial assistance in arts education and programming. The Council receives its supports through an annual appropriation from the Alabama Legislatures and funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.