Six Pike County entities have received grant funding totaling $20,430 from the Alabama State Council on the Arts.

The grants were among 138 grants awarded at the Council’s December meeting in Montgomery. The grants totaled $397,069 and support arts in education, folk art, community, literature and performing and visual arts programs.

The Brundidge Historical Society received a $3,680 folk arts grant for the Pike Piddlers Storytelling Festival Jan. 29 and 30.

The Pike County Chamber of Commerce received $1,750 for the TroyFest Jazz Concert and workshops in April.

Two $1,000 grants were awarded to the Pioneer Museum of Alabama for the “Sacred Harp – A 150-Year Tradition Lives” event in February and “Breakfast Pioneer Style” in May.

The Troy Arts Council received a $5,000 multi-discipline grant for “The Big Beat Experience.”

A design arts grant in the amount of $5,000 was awarded to the Troy University Amphitheater Schematic Design project.

The Troy-Pike Cultural Arts Center received a $3,000 grant for The Exhibition of Historic Photographs featuring the exhibits, “Holman Johnson: Pike County and Beyond

and “To Remember a Vanishing World: D.L. Hightower,” August through November.

Troy Mayor Jimmy Lunsford said these grants allow the cities and county to offer arts programs to the community that would not be possible otherwise.

“These programs expand the cultural knowledge of the whole community and the kids especially benefit,” Lunsford said. “And, I can say this. The last time I was in New York talking to Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s, the two agencies that rate cities, we far outweigh other sister communities with programs like the Vienna Choir Boys and events that bring nationally acclaimed storytellers to town. Programs like that set us apart.

“A lot of other communities have amenities but the cultural arts set us apart when we are compared with other cities our size.”

Lunsford said cultural arts programs are beneficial in the industrial and business recruiting process.

“During the latest industrial recruitment, the industry brought people from all across the country to town and a reception was held for them at the Johnson Center for the Arts,” he said. “They were a-gasp at the facility. They knew that they were getting the cost of living of small town America and, at the same time, a community that offered a quality of life where people would want to come here and grow and where the industrial base would be sustained.”

Lunsford said Troy is the only city of its size to receive an A rating from Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s. He credits a Division I university, the educational system, and the cultural arts facilities and events for setting the city apart.

Brundidge Mayor Jimmy Ramage also gives high marks to the cultural arts programs in the Pike County community.

“We have had great success in Brundidge with the ‘Come Home’s, It’s Suppertime,’ which is Alabama’s Official Folklife Play, and with the Pike Piddlers Storytelling Festival and other storytelling events,” Ramage said. “Not only have they brought a wealth of positive recognition to our community, they have provided opportunities for our citizens to use their talents in worthwhile endeavors.”

Students are among those who have benefited from the opportunities offered through the Brundidge Historical Society’s folklife programs.

“These art programs supplement the programs that are offered through the schools,” Ramage said. “We are extremely proud to have these opportunities offered to our young people and to all people of our community. Not many communities of 2,400 people have a community theater and having it here continues to make a difference in our town.

“We also have a lot of people who are part of the We Piddle Around Theater events who are from surrounding communities. People come to Brundidge for the play and storytelling events from all across the state and beyond. We are very appreciative to the Alabama State Council on the Arts for making it possible for Brundidge to offer these opportunities.”

The grants were among 138 grants awarded at the Council’s December meeting in Montgomery. The grants totaled $397,069 and support arts in education, folk art, community, literature and performing and visual arts programs.

The Brundidge Historical Society received a $3,680 folk arts grant for the Pike Piddlers Storytelling Festival Jan. 29 and 30.

The Pike County Chamber of Commerce received $1,750 for the TroyFest Jazz Concert and workshops in April.

Two $1,000 grants were awarded to the Pioneer Museum of Alabama for the “Sacred Harp – A 150-Year Tradition Lives” event in February and “Breakfast Pioneer Style” in May.

The Troy Arts Council received a $5,000 multi-discipline grant for “The Big Beat Experience.”

A design arts grant in the amount of $5,000 was awarded to the Troy University Amphitheater Schematic Design project.

The Troy-Pike Cultural Arts Center received a $3,000 grant for The Exhibition of Historic Photographs featuring the exhibits, “Holman Johnson: Pike County and Beyond

and “To Remember a Vanishing World: D.L. Hightower,” August through November.

Troy Mayor Jimmy Lunsford said these grants allow the cities and county to offer arts programs to the community that would not be possible otherwise.

“These programs expand the cultural knowledge of the whole community and the kids especially benefit,” Lunsford said. “And, I can say this. The last time I was in New York talking to Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s, the two agencies that rate cities, we far outweigh other sister communities with programs like the Vienna Choir Boys and events that bring nationally acclaimed storytellers to town. Programs like that set us apart.

“A lot of other communities have amenities but the cultural arts set us apart when we are compared with other cities our size.”

Lunsford said cultural arts programs are beneficial in the industrial and business recruiting process.

“During the latest industrial recruitment, the industry brought people from all across the country to town and a reception was held for them at the Johnson Center for the Arts,” he said. “They were a-gasp at the facility. They knew that they were getting the cost of living of small town America and, at the same time, a community that offered a quality of life where people would want to come here and grow and where the industrial base would be sustained.”

Lunsford said Troy is the only city of its size to receive an A rating from Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s. He credits a Division I university, the educational system, and the cultural arts facilities and events for setting the city apart.

Brundidge Mayor Jimmy Ramage also gives high marks to the cultural arts programs in the Pike County community.

“We have had great success in Brundidge with the ‘Come Home’s, It’s Suppertime,’ which is Alabama’s Official Folklife Play, and with the Pike Piddlers Storytelling Festival and other storytelling events,” Ramage said. “Not only have they brought a wealth of positive recognition to our community, they have provided opportunities for our citizens to use their talents in worthwhile endeavors.”

Students are among those who have benefited from the opportunities offered through the Brundidge Historical Society’s folklife programs.

“These art programs supplement the programs that are offered through the schools,” Ramage said. “We are extremely proud to have these opportunities offered to our young people and to all people of our community. Not many communities of 2,400 people have a community theater and having it here continues to make a difference in our town.

“We also have a lot of people who are part of the We Piddle Around Theater events who are from surrounding communities. People come to Brundidge for the play and storytelling events from all across the state and beyond. We are very appreciative to the Alabama State Council on the Arts for making it possible for Brundidge to offer these opportunities.”