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Darke County Center for the Arts
Giving
Thanks - Marilyn Delk
Darke County Center for the Arts has much for which to be grateful
during this season of Thanksgiving, including enthusiastic support from
a vibrant community, as well as the steadfast service of a talented
staff and governing board.
However, DCCA's success is also due in large part to the venerated
venue in which many of their presentations take place; DCCA is
exceedingly thankful for Henry St. Clair Memorial Hall!
The historic building itself helps DCCA attract audiences and engage
artists who love to perform in the grand and beautiful space. The most
recent accolade came from Too Slim, the bass-playing, face-slapping
member of Grammy Award-winning Western quartet "Riders In the Sky," who
announced to the audience assembled for DCCA's presentation of the
group's "Round Up at Kids' Corral": "St. Clair Memorial Hall is such a
gem within your community!" In conversation with DCCA staff following
the show, Too Slim's cohorts Woody Paul, Ranger Doug, and Joey the
CowPolka King reiterated their admiration for the revered facility in
which they have played multiple times, and commended the upgrades
accomplished during the recent renovation of the Hall.
Owned and operated by Greenville City Schools, Henry St. Clair Memorial
Hall has served its community since 1912. In his bequest to the school
board, Henry instructed that a memorial hall be erected "for the use
and betterment of the public schools, in whatever manner said board
thinks most practicable and beneficial for the public." In the
intervening 104 years, the school board has followed that instruction,
diligently maintaining the revered building and overseeing the plethora
of events taking place therein. DCCA gives thanks for that diligence,
as well as the community spirit which governs school officials'
decisions regarding this treasured building. The generous cooperation
of school personnel contributes greatly to DCCA's ability to present
outstanding artists who bring inspiration, joy, and enrichment to the
community.
Of course, maintaining such a grand structure as Memorial Hall can be
quite costly, and over the years the grandeur faded somewhat as school
officials worked to spread their allotted funds among the district's
full range of required responsibilities and emergency demands. So,
during the 1980's, Darke County Center for the Arts spearheaded a
community fund-raising drive to restore St. Clair Memorial Hall to its
original state of splendor. Following that highly successful effort,
Darke County Endowment for the Arts was established to receive and
manage charitable gifts to be invested to produce income benefiting
cultural enrichment in our community, including essential upkeep and
maintenance of Memorial Hall.
Donations to DCEA can be designated to a general fund from which annual
grants are awarded, a fund helping underwrite the mission of Darke
County Center for the Arts, or the Memorial Hall Fund, dedicated to the
preservation of Henry St. Clair Memorial Hall as a performance hall and
community arts center. Past projects assisted by Endowment funds
include upgrades to ever-evolving technical equipment essential to
performances in the Hall, as well as restoration of the Hall's crown
jewels, the stunning stained glass windows adorning the main lobby.
If you, like DCCA, are thankful for Henry St. Clair Memorial Hall,
consider participating in the preservation of this hallowed structure
with a gift to Darke County Endowment for the Arts. Donations may be
sent to DCEA, P. O. Box 155, Greenville, OH 45331; or contact your
attorney to learn how you can follow Henry's example, leaving a legacy
that will enable Henry's magnificent gift to keep serving a grateful
community for generations yet to come.
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