The Mendel Center at Lake Michigan College has been awarded a $21,000 grant from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA). The Mendel Center is using the grant to support the presentation of its 2021-2022 season including the following events:
· Aureum: An Aerial & Acrobatic Adventure Tale – October 16, 2021
· Colin Mochrie & Brad Sherwood: Scared Scriptless – October 23, 2021
· National Geographic Live: Filipe DeAndrade – November 23, 2021
· National Geographic Live: Steve Winter – January 11, 2022
· Cirque Mechanics presents Birdhouse Factory – February 19, 2022
· Winter Delights Festival – February 26, 2022
· National Geographic Live: Kara Cooney – March 24, 2022
The grant was awarded through a peer review process. The Mendel Center was one of six Berrien County arts organizations to be awarded funding. Organizations receiving an MCACA grant are required to match those funds with other public and private dollars.
“The importance of this grant from the Michigan Council for Arts & Community Affairs cannot be overstated. It is critical to helping us return to presenting in-person performances and events following more than a year of our doors being closed due to the pandemic,” states Mendel Center Director Grace Kelmer. “We thank MCACA and our elected government officials for recognizing the importance of the arts and the value they bring to the quality of life in southwest Michigan.”
The MCACA peer review process allows for each grant application to be competitively considered by a panel of in-state and out-of-state arts and cultural professionals. This ensures the taxpayers, who support this project through legislative appropriations, and all other visitors and residents in Michigan will have access to the highest quality arts and cultural experiences.
