If there’s a need for the Mount Vernon Area Arts Council at the moment, it is definitely increasing numbers of members.

Steve Maravetz, a longtime member who will be stepping down from the organization following the Mount Vernon Area Arts Council, said that was the organization’s biggest need now.

Marie DeVries, member of the council further elaborated that the council can have up to 14 members, according to their bylaws. Currently, the group has six members.

Maravetz said it would be nice to find people with ideas to tackle for new projects for the arts council.

“We have the money to fund ideas, we just need people who have those ideas,” Maravetz said.

“And be willing to work to implement those ideas,” DeVries said.

The group holds meetings via Zoom once a month for roughly an hour each meeting to discuss the different projects they are working towards.

Maravetz was the speaker for the organization Thursday, Sept. 19, at an adult speaker series event at Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center.

Coming up for the organization yet this fall is a 20th Anniversary Concert that will feature Phil Heywood performing scheduled for Friday, Nov. 8.

The speech was also held ahead of the Lincoln Highway Arts Festival, one of two festivals the arts council helps hold in the Mount Vernon area. The other is the Chalk the Walk festival, which they collaborate with Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Development Group and the City of Mount Vernon.

The most recent project the group has tackled has been the sculpture art trail, an ongoing project and collaboration between the Mount Vernon Parks and Recreation Commission.

One of the items that the council also does is support grants for art projects in the community, up to $500 each for a project that brings art to the community. Maravetz said over the 20 years, the organization has contributed more than $12,000 to those endeavors from that fund.

Both the poet laureate and artist in residence positions will be opening for applications this fall. Amelia Kibbie has been the poet laureate for a number of years for Mount Vernon and Lisbon, and as such responsible for an original poem at Memorial Day and trying to host one event to share poetry with the community. Sarah Fitzgerald, former art teacher at Washington Elementary, has had an exhibit at Cole Library and supported art activities in the community with her Creatives Connect series of meetings on Sundays.

Other events that have been sponsored include: the murals in uptown, help support the creation of Free Little Libraries, storytelling events at the former Mount Vernon Creates space and Farm to Fork Tales at First Street Community Center.

One of the big accomplishments that Maravetz has been proudest the organization accomplished was the creation of the Cultural and Entertainment District that extends from Cornell College to First Street Community Center.

“That district allows us to pull on larger grants from the Iowa Arts Council and supports the art and culture in this community,” Maravetz said. “It also puts us on tourism maps about what is happening in our communities people should see.”

When it comes to funding, a portion of funding each year comes from the City of Mount Vernon, which is reinvested in the Chalk the Walk and Lincoln Highway Arts Festivals.

They also receive grants from the state and annual support from private donors.

Maravetz said that the commission has plenty of members who had the idea 20 years ago to thank for the group’s creation.

“There are a lot of artists and creative people in Mount Vernon,” Maravetz said. “We are also a beneficiary of Cornell College being in our community, which raises the expectations of the students and families living here.”

DeVries commended the support of the Mount Vernon City Council as well, especially on the sculpture art trail. During questions, people asked why more hasn’t been done to include Lisbon in the events for the area arts council. DeVries said that they have hosted events at Lisbon Heritage Hall in the past, and would be open to doing more in the future.

If you are interested in joining the Mount Vernon Area Arts Council, contact any current board member or reach out to [email protected].