While my priority is to get to work, find solutions, stabilize services, and support the communities that will feel the impact of the City’s decision, as Director of the Arts Council, I could not remain silent when so much is at stake for our Community. 

Each year, the Greater Augusta Arts Council absorbs significant public criticism surrounding the Arts in the Heart of Augusta Festival. A small but vocal group often misunderstands its purpose and impact, and our organization bears that weight because we understand a fundamental truth:

Arts in the Heart is not simply a festival. It is an economic driver.

While the festival supports the Arts Council, it rarely produces a surplus large enough to fund Operations. What it does consistently and measurably is generate substantial economic activity For the City of Augusta, and bring in a large influx of out-of-town visitors, particularly at a time when our downtown needs it most.

Downtown Augusta has endured years of construction and declining foot traffic. Arts in the Heart brings a concentrated influx of consumers who support local restaurants, hotels, artists, retailers, and city services. It drives tourism, fills hotel rooms, generates tax revenue, and creates paid opportunities for artists, performers, and city personnel through special duty pay. While the festival may cause temporary disruption for some, it also creates economic momentum for many.

Removing City funding directly impacts the Arts Council’s ability to meet the security and operational requirements mandated for an event of this scale. Arts in the Heart is one of the largest festivals in the Southeast and cannot exist without adequate infrastructure support. 

Beyond the festival, the elimination of discretionary funding dismantles the City Arts Grants, which are funds the Arts Council re-grants to local nonprofits serving some of Augusta’s most under-resourced communities. Many of these organizations may not survive this loss. The ripple effect will be profound.

This decision does not affect one organization alone. 

It impacts an entire ecosystem.

The Greater Augusta River Region is home to more than 176 arts and cultural nonprofits, 50+ galleries, 238 performing arts groups, 13 museums, and an estimated 5,000–7,000 creative workers across design, marketing, media, culinary arts, fashion, production, and education. The arts are employers, tourism drivers, workforce attractors, and quality-of-life anchors.

This is not a request for special treatment.

It is a call to recognize reality.

I understand and recognize the need for fiscal responsibility and difficult decisions. But eliminating all discretionary funding for NGOs is not strategic. It is destabilizing. Even those who believe they are unaffected will feel these cuts in our economy, our workforce, our youth, and our businesses.

Speaking out invites criticism, but leadership is not about comfort – it is about responsibility.

If the Greater Augusta Arts Council doesn’t not speak up for our community, our nonprofits, and our artists, who will?

Now, my personal focus turns to the work ahead, finding solutions, building partnerships, and doing everything possible to mitigate the impact of this decision.

Silence is not an option when the stakes are this high.