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The arts make Maine a better place to live, philanthropists say.

By BOB KEYES Staff Writer December 30, 2007

— ELLSWORTH — Maine's community of philanthropic foundations and individuals is well aware of the role arts nonprofit groups play in making Maine a better place to live, said Hank Schmelzer, president of the Ellsworth-based Maine Community Foundation.

Arts organizations and arts and cultural events play critical roles in revitalizing downtowns throughout Maine, from Stonington to Dover-Foxcroft to Bethel.

Because of that, the Maine Community Foundation actively supports arts groups, he said, and looks especially favorably on organizations that have an established relationship with the communities they serve.

They should have strong boards with deep local ties, a broad base of funding and the ability to adapt to evolving community needs, he said. Arts groups with those attributes are most likely to receive funding, he said.

"We always view the arts as important to community building, and the arts always had a presence in our grant pools," he said.

The numbers bear that out.

Lately, the Maine Community Foundation has increased its support for arts, culture and humanities. It gave $817,305 to arts and cultural organizations in 2003, $1.3 million in 2004, $1.59 million in 2005 and $4.4 million in 2006.

Carl Little, director of communications and marketing for the foundation, said the 2006 figure is influenced by several large grants and does not necessarily reflect future trends.

The Maine Community Foundation in 2006 awarded 24 percent of its grant dollars to the arts, culture and humanities, significantly higher than the 15 percent it usually gives to the arts annually.

-- Bob Keyes