Arts and Cultural Heritage
Arts and Cultural Heritage
They will sponsor the Singing Hills Chorus, a choir for people living with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias and their care partners. Funds will be used for the two chorus sessions and concerts, in the fall of 2019 and the spring of 2020.
Steve Davis: member of the Mankato Symphony Orchestra and Minnesota State University/Community Orchestra, volunteer for Mankato Area Youth Symphony Orchestra and New Ulm Suzuki School of Music; Denice Evers: retired teacher and volunteer with the Springfield Community Theater; Kristie Gaalswyk-Pomerenke: Martin County 4-H Coordinator, former Education Coordinator at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts, and a board member for the Martin County Area Foundation and Fairmont Community Education; Teresa Konechne: interdisciplinary media artist, co-founder of Henderson CAN (Community. Art. Nature.) and founder of Wicked Questions, a non-profit about art and conversation on climate and change; Karen Krause: a visual artist, retired school counselor and art teacher, and a member and instructor at the Waseca Art Center; Margie Larson: a visual artist and retired coordinator in the International Students Office at Minnesota State University, Mankato; Charles Luedtke: retired college Professor of Music, New Ulm and member of the Sioux Trails Chapter, American Guild of Organists; April Malphurs: glass artist and art teacher for community art camps in St. Peter and the Minnetonka Center for the Arts; Randy Mediger: retired principal and teacher and charter member of LeSueur Community Theater; Liz Miller: a visual artist and college Professor of Art at Minnesota State University, Mankato; Rita Rassbach: recent interim Executive Director for the Mankato Ballet Company and past board member of Merely Players Community Theater and Creative Play Place; Dana Sikkila: a visual artist and the Executive Director of the 410 Project Gallery, Mankato; Carol Soma: retired Language Arts teacher and volunteer with the Kee Civic Theatre.
Steve Davis: member of the Mankato Symphony Orchestra and Minnesota State University/Community Orchestra, volunteer for Mankato Area Youth Symphony Orchestra and New Ulm Suzuki School of Music; Denice Evers: retired teacher and volunteer with the Springfield Community Theater; Kristie Gaalswyk-Pomerenke: Martin County 4-H Coordinator, former Education Coordinator at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts, and a board member for the Martin County Area Foundation and Fairmont Community Education; Teresa Konechne: interdisciplinary media artist, co-founder of Henderson CAN (Community. Art. Nature.) and founder of Wicked Questions, a non-profit about art and conversation on climate and change; Karen Krause: a visual artist, retired school counselor and art teacher, and a member and instructor at the Waseca Art Center; Margie Larson: a visual artist and retired coordinator in the International Students Office at Minnesota State University, Mankato; Charles Luedtke: retired college Professor of Music, New Ulm and member of the Sioux Trails Chapter, American Guild of Organists; April Malphurs: glass artist and art teacher for community art camps in St. Peter and the Minnetonka Center for the Arts; Randy Mediger: retired principal and teacher and charter member of LeSueur Community Theater; Liz Miller: a visual artist and college Professor of Art at Minnesota State University, Mankato; Rita Rassbach: recent interim Executive Director for the Mankato Ballet Company and past board member of Merely Players Community Theater and Creative Play Place; Dana Sikkila: a visual artist and the Executive Director of the 410 Project Gallery, Mankato; Carol Soma: retired Language Arts teacher and volunteer with the Kee Civic Theatre.
ACHF Arts Access
Real or perceived barriers to arts participation and arts access are identified and addressed. New relationships with members of groups that have traditionally been underserved by the arts or by the applicant organization are built. Surveys developed and used last year will continue to be used. These pre- and post-surveys were specifically designed for the three types of members in the chorus: People living with AD/OAD, care partners and volunteers. New and returning chorus members will be invited to participate in the on-going study, each session. We believe it is important to survey returning members to explore the experiences of chorus participants, including those with AD/OAD, which are progressive diseases. Chorus members will complete surveys at the beginning and ending of each 15-week chorus session. During survey data collection, the researchers will interview chorus participants and explore additional participant experiences by asking follow-up questions. In the coming year, we plan also to include questions about how the experience of choral participation has any, if at all, impact on participants’ lives outside of choral rehearsals. Findings from this study will be presented at local, regional, national, and international conferences.
We did not make changes to the evaluation method. The person assigned created the survey, distributed it and tabulated the results. The information helped the organization understand the participants' perspectives and will modify the program as needed in the future. Specifically we learned the importance of having the choir in the participants' lives. It is a must! Choir participants rated the choir and concert highly.
Other,local or private