An investment in the arts is an investment in the community.
We are on a mission of liberation, transformation, and community care through the arts; your partnership and solidarity can make this vision a reality. Your support makes it possible for us to deliver programming to our community that is innovative, meaningful, and accessible to all who want to participate.
In these uncertain times, we rely on the ongoing support of community members to keep The Cordial Eye operational. Thank you for considering us.
A letter from our Co-Executive Directors
Dear Friends,
2025 has been an incredible year for The Cordial Eye. This year has brought us:
Our new (20,000-sf!) home at 438 Main St,
The launch of Creative Care, our art-therapy-infused program
Our first National Endowment for the Arts grant, awarded to the Arts & Justice Collective, our collaboration with Belonging Books and Amplify POC, Inc
Many, many life-giving encounters with our creative community.
2025 has also been a year full of challenges. The activity of the current federal administration has dismantled many forms of support for our work and rendered The Cordial Eye ineligible to benefit from federal funding opportunities, due to our focus on historically excluded communities. To this end, we recently learned that a $100,000 multi-year grant from the State of MA was terminated, due to shifts in federal funding. This grant funded our Creative Futures program, a paid creative workforce development program that prioritizes adults who have faced barriers to sufficient and meaningful work.
Creative Futures has run for three consecutive years, bringing over 30 artists through the program, facilitating the start of our thriving artist studio space, engendering invaluable connections between artists in our community, and enabling participating artists to secure thousands of dollars of creative work. This loss of funding - which supports staff time, artist and mentor stipends, materials, and guest lecturers - represents a true threat to the continuation of this vital program.
Our Response: We believe in the power of our community and the importance of Creative Futures. We are tirelessly pursuing other alternative funding sources through available grants and foundations, having conversations with potential sponsors, and making plans to scale the program to fit available resources.
How can you help?
1) Make a donation! We have options for one-time or monthly donors.
2) Do you know a funder, donor, or business that might be interested in supporting our work? We’d love to
meet them! Please consider introducing us to any funding opportunities you might be aware of.
3) Spread the word! Our work only thrives because of our connected, caring community. Let the folks in your
life know about our important work.
Thank you for your continued support. Our work only has meaning because of the community that surrounds us. We look forward to many future years of growing in creativity and care with all of you.
Sincerely,
Anastaci Pacella Mary George
co-Executive Director co-Executive Director
P.S. Don’t miss our 3rd annual Cordial Eye Ball on November 1st!
Keeping the arts financially accessible is important to us.
Engagement with creative life is incredibly important to community and individual wellbeing. Your donations make sure there is room in our budget for us to participate in MassCultural Council’s Card to Culture Program which offers discounts to classes and events for EBT and Connector Care cardholders.
