Asbury Park Arts Council Awarded A State Grant

ASBURY PARK, NJ – The Asbury Park Arts Council, along with Ocean Grove Historic Preservation and the Jersey Shore Arts Center, was recently awarded a grant from The New Jersey Arts and Culture Recovery Fund (NJACRF). This is the second round of grants awarded by the NJACRF, which is hosted by the Princeton Area Community Foundation.

The COVID-19 pandemic closed venues, which led to the furlough and laying off of more than half of the state’s creative workforce and a combined reported loss of more than $100 million as of December.

To help the state’s arts community, the NJACRF was established last year with a gift from the Toms River-based Grunin Foundation.

Most recently, Merck became a leadership donor, and the 1772 Foundation and Turrell Fund became major donors to the fund, which has raised a total of over $4.5 million. But the needs of the community across the state are great, and fundraising continues.

“COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted the health and economic wellbeing of many communities in New Jersey,” said Carmen Villar, vice president, Social Business Innovation, Merck, in a statement.

“We are proud to support the NJACRF’s work to ensure equitable recovery of the vibrant arts and cultural sectors for all communities in our state.”