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Published: 7/10/2012 | Updated: 5/25/2013
By ANNALISE FRANK
Herald-Whig Staff Writer
The Quincy Society of Fine Arts held its 65th annual meeting Tuesday in the Oakley-Lindsay Center. While the board of directors meets every other month, QSFA's annual meeting gives the 65 member organizations -- including the Quincy Community Theater, Quincy Art Center and Civic Music Association -- a chance to speak, question decisions the board makes and advertise for special events their organization will be hosting throughout the year. During the gathering, the board and attending member group representatives approved the upcoming fiscal year's budget, and welcomed a new group of officers and board directors, including both seasoned members and new faces. The new officers and board of directors nominating committee, chaired by standing committee chair for membership Erin Knapheide, worked the past two months to complete the year's roster. It was filled, save for a few spots, and approved by those present. QSFA President Joe Bocke presented numbers "celebrat(ing) 65 years of service with $38,132 in awards," according to a handout provided during the meeting. Awards for 2011-12 included $7,850 to 28 Art$ Dollar$ projects, funded in part by the Illinois Arts Council, and $20,000 to nine programs through the Marion Gardner Jackson Trust Arts Fund. "Hard data like this means your society is going in the right direction," Bocke said. Member organizations promoted upcoming events. Friends of the Castle will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of Villa Katherine's tourist center Sept. 8. The Great River Watercolor Society will hold an annual workshop Nov. 5 with Cynthia Kukla, professor of art at Illinois State University. In its sixth year of operation, jazz radio station WQJC plans to increase its broadcasting strength through the Federal Communications Commission in order to reach buildings on the edge of Quincy's city lines. The Quincy Museum will hold its annual Folklight Festival Sept. 22 on the museum's front lawn. They'll demonstrate various crafts from the past, including jam making complete with samples and jars for purchase. Quincy Community Theatre director Lenny Bart announced an ongoing fundraising campaign both for scholarship funds and to make repairs and changes to the building. The theater's goal is $75,000. The short meeting also included discussion of impending financial troubles for QSFA as a whole. The Marion Gardner Jackson Trust and the City of Quincy, both "big sources of revenue," have "decided to withdraw some support," according to Mary Ann Klein, the president of the board of directors. The Marion Gardner Jackson Trust has given QSFA about $25,000 per year for the last 18 years,and won't be able to provide any funding at all in the 2012-13 fiscal year. QSFA normally receives $22,000 per year from the city, but that amount will be decreasing significantly. "Funding is so critical to arts organizations," she said. "That's going to present a challenge. But the society tries to do a lot with a ... little, sort of conservative budget ... they've done everything to keep serving the member organizations as well as they can, and that's a positive." -- afrank@whig.com/221-3381
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