The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn. He said the creation of such a space in the community is an important issue, even for him- self who is not a performer or an artist. I come from a very musical family myself and Im completely talentless, but I make a fan- tastic audience so I certainly have an apprecia- tion for arts and music, he said. He said the QEP centre has been a dream for a long time and is nearing its realization. Its my pleasure here today to announce the grant, but to congratulate the Trillium Foundation for making what I think is an excel- lent decision. Its going to mean a lot to our community. The executive director of the Oakville Arts Council, Megan Whittington, thanked the vari- ous groups involved in helping to establish the new centre. We have a really exciting journey ahead. Its been an interesting journey so far and Im wish- ing us all the best in getting to where we need to be for this community, she said. Presenting the actual grant was Bill Allison, an Oakville resident and a volunteer with OTF. He said this was one of some 1,500 grants being handed out this year in Ontario to non-profit groups, which range in the types of work they do, including the arts. The arts add to the life and vitality of any community and Oakville is certainly no excep- tion. It has a thriving arts scene and a forward thinking one as well, developing new ways of engaging arts, artists and art groups with cre- ative collaborations, he said. Each grant we make is done with the idea that in the end our grantees will have made their community healthier and a more vibrant place as a result. The grant money will be used to pay for two part-time positions, help provide professional educational support from outside of the com- munity and more. QEP is expected to open in the fall of 2011. The 144,000 sq. ft. facility is the renovated former QEP High School and will feature both a community centre and space dedicated to arts and culture. By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF The organization co-ordinating the wishes of local arts groups for the construction of a new cultural and community centre says a grant it recently received is a benefit to all the groups it represents. Oakville-based CommUnity Arts Space (CUAS) held a reception cer- emony for the two-year, $130,000 grant it received from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) at the Oakville Galleries in Gairloch Gardens Friday, Dec. 10. CUAS is supporting local cultural groups by co-ordinating an effort for the con- struction of the soon-to-be-opened Queen Elizabeth Park cultural and community centre. In attendance at the reception were members of the various arts groups, with musical entertain- ment by the local band High Rendition Jazz, comprised of high school students, packed into a room. The reason we are here today is to acknowledge the grant that the Ontario Trillium Foundation has offered to the community of Oakville. Lots of you have accom- panied this topic for many, many years, said Britta Martini-Miles, CUAS executive director, to the group. She said the location for the reception was chosen for two rea- sons: one to show the beauty avail- able in Oakville, in this case a venue sitting in a garden on the shore of Lake Ontario; and the other to show the need for a venue by packing a small room with the many people interested in the arts. Martini-Miles thanked Town Council for providing the $28 mil- lion space to the community, and Trillium for funding the co-ordina- tion of the various arts groups over the years. However she said there is still much work to be done if the new centre will become the community hub that many hope it will become. The Province collects the fund- ing for the Trillium Foundation, but the grants are administered by a separate body, comprised mostly of volunteers. This time I think you (Trillium) hit a home run because the need for this venue in our com- munity is tremendous, said Thank you for the health of our community! This year the Oakville Hospital Foundation was blessed with more than 30 community partners who raised money to purchase essential life saving equipment for our community hospital. On behalf of the doctors, nurses and support staff at OTMH, the Oakville Hospital Foundation would like to wish you and yours a happy and safe holiday season and may the year ahead bring peace, prosperity, good health and much happiness. O b 3 For the Health of Our Community January 1, 2011 2:30 pm Hamilton Place Theatre Tickets: (855) 872-5000 and at Copps Coliseum Box Office ticketmaster.ca Complimentary Strudel Reception! salutetovienna.com 33 Friday , D ecem ber 17, 2010 O A KVILLE BEA V ER w w w .o akvillebeaver .co m Trillium grant is win for arts community, recipient says HELPING HAND: Pictured is the CommUnity Arts Space executive director Britta Martini-Miles receiv- ing a plaque that comes along with a $130,000, two-year grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, at the Oakville Galleries in Gairloch Garden. On the left is foundation volunteer Bill Allison, handing over the grant and Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn, representing the Province. MICHELLE SIU / OAKVILLE BEAVER I think you (Trillium) have hit a home run because the need for this venue in our community is tremendous. Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn