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A Brief History of GCCA’s beginnings . . .  30
Years Ago . . . two men appeared on the doorsteps of Salisbury Manor, In
the course of conversation over several visits they discovered that the
proprietor’s background included careers in theatre and design. On a
subsequent visit they asked if the proprietor would like to start an
Arts Council. The response: “What’s an Arts Council?” was met with an
explanation, not entirely clear at the time, that included elements of
service and support for the arts and artists in all disciplines,
fostering and nurturing the growth of the arts, etc. And for these
government representatives a driving factor behind the need for an Arts
Council in Greene County was the discovery that 55 cents per capita of
our tax dollars was set aside for the arts and there were no
organizations in the county applying to get our money back. Aaah. Starting something to benefit the arts had a special appeal to the proprietor. As soon as she said “why not?” they asked if they could have the first meeting in her house. Aha! These two government guys had been very busy. In their respective capacities of promotion and development, they had traveled the county, documented our assets, and discovered a wealth of talent hidden in our valleys and hills. The first meeting was conducted in a foreign language, then unknown to the proprietor. But the people were very interesting. There were, of course, the government guys, Ed and Bill. There was a lawyer, a grant writer, and several other artists from throughout the county. They spoke in tongues about NYSCA, Erpf, NEA, CETA, CAPS, etc. Undaunted, the proprietor agreed to host several more meetings in her home. The group expanded to include several well known community leaders, who also happened to be artists, and a representative from the New York State Council on the Arts. Among those present at the initial meetings were Bill Cook and Ed White, the fellows who set everything in motion, John Wessel from the New York State Council on the Arts, Dena Crane who became our first Executive Director, a volunteer lawyer for the arts, Ruben Garcia, Nan Guterman, Claudia Lane, Jim Starr and Kay Stamer. We succeeded because we didn’t know we shouldn’t. We had the right mix of acronym speakers, grant writers, government reps, lawyers, visionaries, artists and community stalwarts. Guided by our NYSCA representative, we developed a strategy and took our show on the road to introduce our concept to the people of Greene County and seek their input. Through this public input, we honed our priorities and developed a plan for programs and services. As an added bonus, since the meetings were held in strategic locations throughout the county, we met new friends who became active in the development of the Arts Council. We created a mission, developed by-laws, formed a Board of Directors, and filed the requisite government papers. Our official address was Dena Crane’s post office box in Windham. We received our Charities Registration in January 1976 which requested that our annual report reflect activities from September 6, 1975. Our Certificate of Incorporation, filed on March 5, 1976, listed the following initial directors: Dena Crane, Julius Katz, Ed White, Kay Stamer. The Honorable George L. Cobb approved our Certificate on April 6, 1976. According to a letter from our attorney, Robert J. Kafin, our incorporation as a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3), corporation became official on May 3, 1976. We’ve come a long way, baby. >More about Salisbury Manor |
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