The Orillia Museum of Art and History (OMAH) celebrated its $96,900 Community Building Fund grant on Thursday evening.
The grant, awarded last November by the provincial government and the Ontario Trillium Foundation, was used to support staffing costs in order to develop and deliver programs and technological resources.
“Any in-person programs we’ve now been able to modify to virtual programs,” explains Ninette Gyorody, the executive director of the Orillia Museum of Art & History. “If anything should ever happen again (such as the pandemic), we can pivot our delivery and not have to close.”
Stephen Davids, the president of OMAH's board of directors, says the impact of the Ontario Trillium Foundation grant cannot be overstated.
“This grant has allowed the museum much-needed support in recovering from the pandemic,” he said. “OMAH can now continue to be a significant contributor to our community's well-being.”
Jill Dunlop, MPP for Simcoe North, was on hand to celebrate the grant on Thursday.
“To me, Trillium announcements are fantastic and very exciting,” she said. “They aren’t huge amounts of money, but they are enough to make a huge impact for that community organization.”
Dunlop says OMAH is a worthy recipient of the grant.
“There are lots of great things happening here,” she said. “I know the impact of this money will be well spent for making OMAH even bigger and better.”
Orillia mayor Steve Clarke was also on hand for the celebration.
“I firmly believe that we are defined when we educate others as to who we are as a community by our arts and culture,” he said. “OMAH does a wonderful job of doing that on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis.”
Clarke thanked the provincial government and the Trillium Foundation for recognizing OMAH’s need for support coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
