One Community Through The Arts
Post Office Box 74
Channing, MI 49815
E-mail:
Our History
Organized in 1998 as a non profit organization we became dedicated to performing and visual/graphic arts. Housed in a historic old movie theater we began producing and booking live theater performances for the immediate area.
By 2000 the program had attracted the attention of Dickinson County Foundation as one of the community leaders in youth programs. The classes had enough support to mount educational productions. We had three programs in operation; the Professional Bookings, The Adult Semi-Professional Stage; and the Children’s Educational Stage. Unique was the idea that young people were able to observe and work with professional and semi-professional groups while learning their own theater skills and developing a sense of self-worth and self-discipline.
In 2001 & 2002 we partnered with Association of Student Artist and with 2 Rural Arts Grants expanded the program to include visual arts. Our programs had touched the lives of over 5000 people with a 75% of them being children. Another expansion in the program was the Haunted House which partnered with Big Brothers/Big Sisters, American Red Cross and the Pine Mountain Ski Resort developing TWISTED NIGHTMARE and has remained one of the most popular drawing crowds.
2003 Found another partner, Dickinson Area Concert Association, a program of professional performing artists. We presented 5 major productions along with a summer and fall schedules of classes for children K through 12.
In 2004, due to financial matters we moved to East Hughitt to concentrate on teaching and developing young talent through productions at the Crystal Theatre and the Haunted House project .With limited funding our banner as a major children’s attraction and educational arts organization was still flying...
2005, was a sense of new beginnings with Partnerships in 2 different counties an expansion of our current programs. A successful Children’s Haunted House, and the awarding of a Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs brought a new sense of power of the arts to create community unity in rival regions.
New partnerships were found with Iron Mountain/Kingsford Community Schools and together with ASA and Dickinson 4-H the project of One Community Through The Arts produced one of its best summer workshops. The name change to ONE COMMUNITY THROUGH THE ARTS became official September 2006 . To avoid cash flow problems One Community Through The Arts has now instituted an Endowment with Dickinson Area Foundation to preserve the project.
One Community Through The Arts mission statement embraces the performing and visual/graphic arts by presenting quality family entertainment and educational opportunities for all ages. As a a non-profit organization dedicated to enriching the lives of our children.
