Staff
The “Friends of the Fort Frances Museum” is looking for visual artists, performing artists, crafters, and artisans to submit proposals for workshops or activities to conduct for young people this summer.
The group, active for more than a year, and has been fundraising—and receiving donations—in order to provide community programming.
School will be out in late June, and youth undoubtedly will be in search of things to do, so the “Friends of the Museum” want to use some of those funds to provide creative, hands-on activities for them this summer.
But what they need right now is proposals from local artists and/or crafters interested in leading such activities in either July or August.
The workshops could focus on any number of activities, ranging from making crafts, painting, or sculpting to needlepoint, wood carving, or dancing.
“The sky’s the limit,” said “Friends” president Duane Hicks. “The more fun it is, the better.
“The goal is the youth are engaged creatively and learn a new skill, or are exposed to a new art form, a new experience,” he added.
If the activities tie into the museum or heritage sites, such as the lookout tower and Hallett, then all the better, said Hicks.
The bottom line is to provide education and enrichment in an art or craft.
The activities could be geared to youth of any age, whatever is appropriate for the activity.
“Friends” are looking to provide about a week of activities. However, activities proposed don’t have to take place over five days.
An activity can be planned for a half-day, a whole day, or over several days.
Depending on the proposals received, this means an individual could lead a week of activities, or five different individuals could lead a different workshop each day of the week.
Individuals who plan and lead the workshops will be paid, so proposals must include expenses (i.e., materials, hourly rate for individual conducting the activity, etc.)
Given the talent in the community, and the desire to offer enrichment activities for children, this summer programming will allow for those talented individuals to share their knowledge with youth, noted “Friends” board member Debbie Ballard.
The activities will be provided to youth at a nominal fee, she added.
“This is why we fundraise—to be able to pay artists to offer these programs at a fraction of the cost to participants,” Ballard explained.
“Friends” would love to be able to hold enrichment programming every summer, but this will depend on continued support from the public, especially at the group’s fall wine-and-cheese gala set for Nov. 7.
Proposals must be submitted in writing. It must state what the activity is, and why the organizer thinks it would be fun or beneficial for youth.
It also should outline how long the activity will take (i.e., half-day, full day, more than one day), what materials are needed to do the activity, and how much it will cost taking into account the materials and payment to the person(s) conducting the activity.
The deadline to submit proposals is May 31.
After that date, the “Friends” board will review the proposals to determine the next course of action.
Anyone interested in submitting a proposal, or getting more information, can e-mail museum curator Sherry George at sgeorge@fort-frances.com
