FORT WAYNE, IN – Arts United is launching today “Stories of Resilience,” a multimedia awareness campaign focused on the adaptivity and resilience of arts and culture nonprofits in the wake of COVID-19. Through the campaign, Arts United will be sharing short-form documentaries that feature interviews with arts and culture nonprofit leaders and highlight the organization’s crucial leadership in helping the arts and culture community survive the impact of COVID-19.

Restrictions caused by COVID-19 severely hindered programming capabilities, requiring arts and culture nonprofits to reimagine how they continue serving their mission and adjust their activities and operations. After enduring these challenges for nearly a year, arts and culture nonprofits now can speak to their experiences of becoming adaptive and resilient. Arts United is capturing and sharing these Stories of Resilience, underscoring their importance to the community.

“Arts and culture nonprofits are among those who are facing significant disruption at a time when there is a greater need for human connection, dialogue, unity, and fun than ever,” said Susan Mendenhall, President of Arts United. “We are proud to share the stories of how arts and culture nonprofits are adapting so that they can continue to serve the residents of Northeast Indiana residents and contribute to building our region’s vibrant quality of life.”

In April 2020, Arts United initiated the Arts & Culture Resilience Initiative to ensure the community’s quality of life in the future by supporting arts and culture nonprofits through reopening and re-envisioning their mission delivery. As part of this initiative, Arts United facilitated the development of the Artist Relief Fund and the Arts & Culture Reopening Guide. In addition, Arts United established the Arts & Culture Nonprofit Resilience Fund in partnership with AWS Foundation, the Edward D. & Ione Auer Foundation, The James Foundation, the McMillen Foundation, Chuck and Lisa Surack and Sweetwater, Steel Dynamics, the Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne and other donors.

To date, the Arts & Culture Nonprofit Resilience Fund has established a financial foothold of more than $2.8 million to benefit 18 leading arts and culture nonprofits. Two rounds of funding have now been granted to 18 organizations totaling $1.6 million in October 2020 and $600,000 in January 2021. A third round of grants is planned in May 2021.

Learn more about the Arts & Culture Resilience Initiative and view Stories of Resilience at artsunited.org/resilience.
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