Avangrid Foundation Provides $45,000 in Grants to Berkshire County Arts Organizations
Funds to support Barrington Stage Company, Hancock Shaker Village, Mahaiwe Performing Arts and MASS MoCA
The Avangrid Foundation, the primary philanthropic arm of Berkshire Gas's parent company Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR), announced today that it has provided a total of $45,000 in grants to four nonprofits in the Berkshires dedicated to the arts: Barrington Stage Company, Hancock Shaker Village, Mahaiwe Performing Arts and MASS MoCA.
"I am pleased for the Avangrid Foundation to support these four organizations that are taking impactful steps to increase access to the arts in the Berkshires," said Pedro Azagra, Avangrid CEO. "At Avangrid, we recognize the critical need to protect, preserve and promote cultural and artistic heritage. These grants will help to accomplish this mission by funding programs that increase access to these resources for our most disadvantaged populations."
"Each of these programs provides a different avenue of access to the arts for youth, families and our communities as a whole," said Pablo Colón, director of corporate citizenship at Avangrid and executive director of the Avangrid Foundation. "Inclusivity and equity are key components of thriving communities, and the Avangrid Foundation is proud to support efforts that increase access to the arts with these grants."
Barrington Stage Company, a regional theatre company in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, will use the $15,000 Avangrid Foundation grant to support their Playwright Mentoring Program. This six-month out-of-school program uses theater as a means of providing a safe, creative and empowering experience for Berkshire County youth. The participants, ages 12 to 19, work with a playwright to create short plays and performance pieces based on their personal stories. The goal is for the participants to develop conflict-resolution and creative risk-taking skills and use the foundation of theater to educate and empower themselves and their peers.
"As the participants create short plays based on their personal stories, we provide them with an artistic outlet, and a place where they will feel welcome as they develop positive relationships with their peers and adult role models (mentors)," said Martin Mansfield, director of institutional giving at Barrington Stage Company.
Hancock Shaker Village, a 750-acre museum celebrating the history and legacy of the Shakers, will use the $10,000 Avangrid Foundation grant to help fund its annual Free Community Day. During this celebration, admission is free all day for all ages and Spanish-speaking accessible programs are available. In addition to the regular slate of museum offerings, special programming will be offered during the Free Community Day, including a children's scavenger hunt, interactive and participatory art displays, craft demonstrations, wood-working and blacksmithing workshops, interpreter-led tours and Shaker talks, and visits with the barnyard animals.
Mahaiwe Performing Arts, a local performing arts center that strives to reach people of all ages and income levels, will use the $10,000 Avangrid Foundation grant to support its various programs that encourage people from traditionally marginalized communities to actively participate in the arts. This includes Mahaiwe's Education program, Community Engagement program, and partnerships with dozens of local arts and nonprofit organizations.
"We are grateful for Avangrid's support of the Mahaiwe's Education and Community Engagement programs, which range from its Spanish-language Community Advisory Network and Spanish-language films and performances to free family events during the summer and holidays, free tickets through Card to Culture, and a robust field trip tradition that serves thousands of students throughout the four-state region each year," said Janis Martinson, executive director of Mahaiwe. "In 2023, over 5,000 individuals attended Mahaiwe shows with free or steeply discounted tickets, and the Avangrid Foundation is helping to make that possible again this year. Patrons tell us how vital these offerings are, providing respite for people who work almost constantly, giving a large family a shared celebration that would be otherwise out of reach, or seeing a reminder of home on our stage. That contributes not only to the well-being of individual neighbors, but also to the health of our community as a whole."
MASS MoCA, one of the world's liveliest centers for making and enjoying today's most evocative art, will use the $10,000 Avangrid Foundation grant to fund its Artist-in-Residence Workshops for Teens. This program pairs teens from the museum's Teen Activator program with MASS MoCA's artists-in-residence and/or master teaching artists to encourage creative exchange between artists and teens and help teens establish and develop their own artistic practices. It will include two visual arts workshops and two performing arts workshops, which will tie into MASS MoCA's robust exhibition and performance calendar.
"While students in our northern Berkshires region have the opportunity to visit MASS MoCA on field trips through our school partnership program, young artists deserve a place to explore, exchange, and expand their ideas with others," said Lisa Dent, director of public programs at MASS MoCA. "The support from the Avangrid Foundation provides resources for teen artists to develop new skills, build community, and learn from MASS MoCA's vibrant community of contemporary visual and performing artists. We are excited to help the next generation of cultural leaders a place to call their artistic home."
About Avangrid Foundation: The Avangrid Foundation is an independent, nonprofit organization that funds philanthropic investments that primarily impact communities where Avangrid, Inc. and its subsidiaries operate. Since 2001, the Avangrid Foundation and its predecessors have invested more than $38.9 million in partnerships that focus on building sustainable, vital and healthy communities; preserving cultural and artistic heritage; advancing education; and improving people's lives. The Avangrid Foundation is committed to advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in the United States. For more information, please visit www.avangrid.com/avangrid-foundation.
About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $46 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, Avangrid has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital as one of the JUST 100 companies – a ranking of America's best corporate citizens – in 2024 for the fourth consecutive year. In 2024, Avangrid ranked first among utilities and 12 overall. The company supports the U.N.'s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World's Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.
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