Art Chowder November | December, Issue 18 | Page 60

Spokane Valley
Arts Council
PROMOTING THE ARTS
T
he arts are an investment in the education, development and future culture of our
youth. They provide more ways for more citizens to gather to celebrate traditions old
and new. It takes commitment and hard work to help the arts flourish. The goal of
these endeavors is to strengthen the community and benefit regional arts and cultural
organizations, area artists, and local businesses.
GAIL BONGIOVANNI
SPOKANE VALLEY ARTS COUNCIL
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
MEMBER SINCE 2004
Gail is the Owner/Instructor of Gail’s
School of Dance in Spokane Valley since
1980. She joined the Spokane Valley
Arts Council Board of Directors in 2004
and serves as volunteer co-coordinator.
She is the President of the board of In-
land Northwest Dance Association, and
has been a member since 1991.
She has also been a part of ValleyFest
since 1990 when the event began, and
currently serves as Secretary for the
board of directors.
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ART CHOWDER MAGAZINE
The Spokane Valley Arts Council is a regional community arts organization established
in 2004 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit, without city boundaries, to better support and enrich
the environment in which we live. The Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce was
a founding sponsor of the Spokane Valley Arts Council, providing administrative and
management expertise. In addition, many other businesses contribute in-kind and/or
monetary support to the council. As part of our goals to create community identity and
cohesiveness, we encourage our own distinctive cultural assets.
This year we held the first Spokane Valley Arts Council Arts Preview at Pavillion Park in
Liberty Lake, in conjunction with the free 18th Annual Ludlow Kramer Memorial Concert
by the Spokane Symphony Orchestra. We had five non-profit groups in attendance
representing visual arts, theatrical arts, dance arts and Valleyfest which supports all the
arts and non-profits. The Spokane Symphony Petting Zoo showcased musical arts before
the concert, giving an opportunity to try playing instruments. Each representative shared
their love of the arts with the concertgoers by engaging those in attendance with free
activities, drawings and information regarding the upcoming arts season.