Pike County Arts and Crafts
Pike County Arts & Crafts (PCAC), headquartered in Milford, Pennsylvania, is the oldest (established 1950) and largest (200 members) arts education organization in northeastern Pennsylvania. Headquartered in the Milford Boro Hall, the group holds regularly scheduled classes as well as seminars taught by master artists and crafters.
PCAC was recently chosen by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts as winner of the 2007 Pennsylvania State "Creative Community Award" .
The goals of PCAC are to encourage and inspire local artists to create the best art they can and to help the larger community to see this art, value it, and learn from it. Its mission is:
(1) to help artists of all ages to learn, teach, and exhibit their work;
(2) to encourage young artists in particular;
(3) to enhance the image of Pike County as an arts community.
Membership and Support
A nonprofit organization, PCAC is supported by member dues, donations, and grants from the Pocono Arts Council of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Pike County Commissioners.
The Board of Directors meets on the third Thursday of each month. The executive director is Elizabeth Murphy. Associate Director is Tauni Ruvolis. Show directors are James Campistrous and Ellen Cabaniss Bawcom.
About two-thirds of PCAC's artist-members earn their livelihoods as professional artists or crafters. Non-artist members join the group as "friends of the arts," "arts associates," or "community sponsors."
History
Over fifty years ago (around 1950) the Pike County Arts and Crafts Exhibition, once an adjunct of the Milford Garden Club's Flower Show, became a separate entity. It was felt that the formation of an Art Group was warranted to exhibit paintings, sculptures and crafts. The original committee included Carrie Depuy, Ada Rasario Cecere, Gaetano Cecere, Telly Bruce(correct spelling Brice)and Georgie Kiger.
Through the 1950s the committee met and put on the show. In the mid 1960s Harriett Cotterill and Matilda Grech joined the original committee along with Cynthia Van Lierde. It was decided to become officially chartered in 1971. From that year on, they met as a Board of Directors at the homes of Ada and Gaetano Cecere, Georgie Kiger and Telly Brice. [1]
From 1971 to 1990 it continued to meet and put on a show. In the early 1990s it lost (deceased) most of the original committee members. Georgi Kiger (the remaining original member) continued to chair the show along with Harriet and Matilda. New members were added in the 1990s: Tom and Judy Neugebauer, Ben Van Steinburgh, Valerie Meyer, Michele Jaffee, and Robert Mendoza.
Georgi Kiger died in December 1995; her son Bill Kiger donated $500.00 the following year to start the "Georgiana Kiger Award for Excellence in the Arts"; he continued to donate each succeeding year.
In the new 21st Century Susan Pisarri greatly expanded PCAC to include many more committees and school activities. Her vision has continued to be carried on with new members: Tom and Elizabeth Murphy, Victoria Mayer-Connolly, Tauni Ruvolis, John Logenderfer, Elizabeth Cotterill, Jane Koech, Charles and Sylvia Squires, Ellen Bawcom, Carol Ann Dronke and James Campistrous. [History written by Matilda Grech]
References
- ↑ During the 1960's The Cecere's had assistance from Rose Cioffi and her husband Al Cioffi, son Robert Cioffi, sculptor and mentored by Gaetano known as "Guy" retired professor from Univ. of Virginia, Mary Washington College. Robert Cioffi continued sculpting in his college days and to the present, 2012.