Executive Director Tamara Loewenthal outside the Lotus Firebay on Rogers Street. Photo by Rodney Margison

Editor’s note: The following is a press release from the Lotus Education & Arts Foundation. Bloom has republished it here with edits for style and clarity.

On Monday, July 12, the Indiana Arts Commission (IAC) announced it has awarded $9,530 to the Lotus Education & Arts Foundation through the Arts Organization Support grant program.

During its June 25 quarterly business meeting, the commission approved funding recommendations for the Arts Project Support and Arts Organization Support grant programs. Over 590 applications were reviewed by 167 Hoosiers from around the state specializing in arts, community development, and finance.

“The projects and organizations that are receiving funding have major positive impacts on the cultural, economic, and educational climate of Indiana,” says Alberta Barker, IAC chair. “The commission is impressed at the work being done around the state and is excited to support investment in Hoosier communities.”

The IAC also awarded Lotus a $1,000 merit award. The commission awarded these merit awards to 52 organizations receiving Arts Organization Support to recognize their innovation and dedication to providing public benefit in the last year.

“We greatly appreciate the generous support from our elected officials—Representative Matt Pierce, Senator Shelli Yoder, and Governor Eric Holcomb—and we are grateful for the Indiana Arts Commission’s commitment to nurturing creativity through arts education experiences,” Lotus Executive Director Tamara Loewenthal says. “The funds from the Indiana Arts Commission’s FY22 Arts Organization Support Grant have allowed Lotus to continue serving our mission to create opportunities to experience, celebrate, and explore the diversity of the world’s cultures through the music and arts. It is this type of funding that enables the arts to not only survive but thrive.”

“From the smallest rural communities to the largest cities, we see arts and creativity improving quality of life and driving economic development, and this funding will support the projects and organizations around the state at the heart of this progress,” adds Lewis Ricci, IAC executive director. “It is an honor to support work that is strengthening the fabric of Indiana communities.”

Funding for the Indiana Arts Commission and its programs is provided by the Indiana General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

Click here to view the full list of grants awarded.