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 Tarrytown, NY - The Westchester Library System, in partnership with Lifetime Arts, Inc., proudly announces a new arts program to enhance the quality of life for older adults in Westchester County.
Creative Aging in Our Communities: The Westchester Libraries Project will develop, promote, and showcase artistic creativity among older adults, by engaging them in participatory, sequential art-making workshops, providing socialization opportunities and a sense of purpose. This program is supported by generous funding from the Helen Andrus Benedict Foundation which has a long standing commitment to building “elder-friendly” communities.
Libraries may apply for a grant to fund these projects but must do so in partnership with professional arts organizations and/or teaching artists. Each participating library will provide space for a workshop series to be designed, coordinated, and taught by its artist partner, and will host an exhibition or performance at the end of its series. The program is part of the WLS celebration of its 50 th anniversary.
“This new project recognizes that the later years in life can be a time of tremendous growth and creativity,” says Siobhan Reardon, Director of the Westchester Library System. “ Creative Aging in Our Communities offers older adults the opportunity to express themselves in new ways artistically, using the library as their studio.”
The Creative Aging in Our Communities: The Westchester Libraries Project application is available at: www.westchesterlibraries.org and www.lifetimearts.org. Up to eight projects are expected to be awarded funding for the 2008-09 cycle. Libraries may apply for a minimum of $1,000 and a maximum of $5,000. Applications will not be considered for general operating expenses, capital projects, equipment purchases or fundraising events. The deadline for submitting an application is October 1, 2008.
Interested library personnel and artists are urged to attend one of the four application workshops scheduled as follows:
Workshop #1: Tuesday, August 5 @ 6PM
White Plains Public Library
100 Martine Avenue, White Plains 10601
(914) 422-1400
Workshop #2: Friday, August 22 @ 11AM
Grinton Will Library, Yonkers
1500 Central Park Avenue, Yonkers 10710
(914) 337-1500
Workshop #3: Tuesday, September 9 @ 4PM
Mount Vernon Public Library
28 South First Avenue, Mount Vernon 10550
(914) 668-1840
Workshop #4: Friday, September 12 @ 1PM
Croton Public Library
171 Cleveland Drive, Croton on Hudson 10520
(914) 271-6612
“Creative Aging programs and public libraries are a natural fit,” says Maura O’Malley, President of Lifetime Arts. “Libraries are welcoming to people of all ages and this program, with its financial resources and technical assistance will enable libraries to enhance their programming for this growing segment of the population.”
For more information, contact Lifetime Arts at (914) 355-2304 or
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About the Westchester Library System
The Westchester Library System (WLS) includes 38 member public libraries located throughout the County and is one of New York State's 23 public library systems. WLS and its member libraries have a total collection of 5.6 million items, including 4 million books, as well as audio recordings, videocassettes, DVDs, print serials, and other materials. WLS will commemorate its 50th year beginning November 2008 with a series of kick-off events leading up to the 50 th anniversary celebration.
About Lifetime Arts, Inc.
Lifetime Arts, Inc. is a multidisciplinary, not for profit arts service organization that exists at the intersection of aging and the arts. They serve professionals and other stakeholders in both fields by promoting the creation, expansion and sustainability of arts programs for seniors through a variety of services and programs. Lifetime Arts strengthens the nascent field of creative aging—a marriage of the arts and positive aging—by providing practical support for arts practitioners and institutions of all sorts that provide services to seniors. Lifetime Arts offers its services to professional artists and arts organizations, retirement and senior community centers, government entities, private and corporate foundations, and schools and community organizations in the New York City metropolitan area, including Westchester County and southern Connecticut. They connect the people, funding, ideas and strategies necessary to increase the number and quality of professional arts programs for older adults in the region and beyond.
About the Helen Andrus Benedict Foundation
The Helen Andrus Benedict Foundation, a private foundation created in 1997, is committed to creating good places for people to grow old while maintaining the maximum possible levels of independence. From its inception, the Benedict Foundation has used intergenerational strategies to help strengthen Westchester neighborhoods and communities, as well as to increase the number of meaningful opportunities for older people to volunteer their time and talents. More than $6.4 million in grants has been awarded to nonprofit organizations since November 2000. In addition to grants to local Westchester County nonprofit organizations, the Foundation makes "field-building" grants to nationally-recognized organizations for projects designed to advance policy and practice while directly benefiting Yonkers and Westchester County.
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