PAC (Presentation Arts Center)
PAC CELEBRATES SIX YEARS OF COMMUNITY OUTREACH Making arts education accessible & affordable to all 2016-2022
MUSIC Since September 2016, 88 children have participated in the music program . . . piano, guitar, violin, cello, and voice. Donald Wright and Sister Brenda have taught since the beginning of the program. Recently, two piano teachers and one guitar teacher have joined the PAC family. Some of our teenage students have “paid it forward” . . . teaching younger students piano and guitar. Currently, PAC teaches 18 piano students and 22 guitar students. Waiting lists exist for piano and guitar lessons. Based on the cost of lessons at local music stores, the dollar value of volunteer teachers’ time is $1560 per week. This information represents one-on-one lessons with children and does not include camps, group classes or adult guitar lessons. Students have performed at Arti-Gras and Arts in Bloom celebrations. Several have played instrumental pieces at Our Lady of the Presentation Masses. Two high school piano students are very advanced — playing Beethoven sonatas and Chopin etudes. Individualized curriculum is customized to the learning needs of each student so each child learns at his/her own pace. Several special needs students are in the piano program. PAC recently received funding from Cardinals Care for the purchase of three new keyboards which have been added to the loaner instrument program for at home practice. Sixty percent (60%) of PAC music students attend schools in the Ritenour School District. The remaining 40% are home schooled or attend Catholic/faith-based or private schools. Fifty percent (50%) of the students are Caucasian, 25% African American and 25% Latinx. Performing Arts summer camps have included “101 Dalmatians” Musical, Improv Theater, Puppet Camp, Ballet and Hip Hop. As a community outreach ministry of OLP parish, all music lessons and camps are offered at no cost.
VISUAL ARTS In the fall of 2015, a craft class was held to create decoupage centerpieces for the 100th Anniversary of Our Lady of the Presentation parish. From that single class, The PAC Visual Arts Department was born! We have grown from jewelry making and drawing classes — to offering 6-8 week courses that include: Watercolor, Mixed Media, Sculpture, Pottery, Acrylic Painting and Board Painting. The first “Art by the Glass” was held in 2017. Various art classes have grown from 15 adult students in 2016 to 80 child and adult students in 2022. We hold a Spring Break Art Camp and a Summer Art Camp for kids, grades 1-12. Starting in October of 2022, instructors are teaching a Saturday afternoon art class for middle school children. We started an Art Mentoring Program for high school students in 2022. During COVID, we used technology to reach students by creating YouTube videos, Facebook and Instagram pages. In 2015, our original instructors were Connie Savile, Vinny Ridolfi and Jane Luft. We have been fortunate enough to gain additional instructors: AJ Smith, Sharon Early, Linda Ballard, Grace Pandolfo, John Wang and Nick Leeper SJ, all volunteering their time. Art created in these classes is on display at our annual Arti-Gras/Arts in Bloom event. Our students are ages 6-75 and include Caucasian, Latinx, and African Americans. QUILTING In 2020, the Holy Trinity quilters joined Our Lady of the Presentation quilters. Card Parties had been cancelled due to COVID, so monthly quilts are no longer being produced. Quilters have turned their attention to crafting quilts of all sizes — baby quilts to king-sized quilts — for individuals, raffles, and parish events. Proceeds from the sale of these quilts have gone to the Parish, and to several local, national and international charities. We quilt on Wednesday from 9:00-2:30. Several women do embroidery, finishing work and quilting at home. We welcome all who’d like to join us: we have folks from other parishes and churches in our group. Beginners are welcome also! Follow PAC on Instagram and Facebook.