Up & Coming Weekly

October 30, 2018

Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.

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14 UCW OCTOBER 31-NOVEMBER 6, 2018 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM LESLIE PYO, Assistant Editor. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcom- ingweekly.com. 910-484-6200. Fayetteville Ladies Power Lunch inspires, educates and empowers local women a STAFF REPORT Four times a year, The Fayetteville Ladies Power Lunch brings local women together to inspire, educate and empower one another. Wednesday, Nov. 7, is the final power lunch of the year, featuring keynote speaker Lisa Saleeby-Powell. Now the president of Future Unlimited, Inc., Saleeby- Powell started working at the business's first McDonald's franchise restaurant in 1982 when her parents switched from building restaurants to owning one. After attending a meeting and seeing the energy in a room filled with en- trepreneurs, she decided she wanted to own a McDonald's and worked toward that goal for 10 years. Now the company owns six McDonalds restaurants here in Cumberland County and employes more than 300 people. Lisa has won several civic and business awards as well as the Outstanding Woman Entrepreneur of the Year from Methodist University's Reeves School of Business. She serves on the board of a number of local organizations and is involved with numerous charitable organizations. e power lunch starts at 10 a.m. with a shopportunity, which includes vendors as well as a wine bar and tasting. e luncheon and Saleeby-Powell's talk follow from 11:45 a.m. to 2 p.m. After the meal, attendees are invited to stay and shop until 3 p.m. A portion of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Kidsville News Literacy and Education Foundation. e Kidsville News Literacy and Education Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that offers funding assistance for reading and educational resources that are provided at no charge to children grades K-6. Since 1998, Kidsville News! has been distributed to all elementary school chil- dren in Cumberland and Hoke Counties. e luncheon takes place at the Ramada Plaza at Bor- deaux. Visit www.fayettevilleladiespowerlunch.com or call 910-273-2820 to make your reservation. Tickets cost $35. Lisa Saleeby-Powell started working at Future Unlimited, Inc.'s first McDonald's franchise restaurant in 1982. EVENTS Longtime locals are familiar with a pair of tall, friendly red doors at 301 Hay St. in downtown Fayetteville. And new residents can't help but notice these same doors. Above them reads a simple but stately title: "THE ARTS CENTER." is month, the organization behind those doors, the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County, turns 45. Since its founding by local visionaries in 1973, the Arts Council has become an integral driver of Cumberland County's culture and economy – and not by accident. Deborah Mintz, execu- tive director who's worked at the Arts Council for more than half its existence, is retiring early next year. She's responsible for the development of many of the nonprofit's beloved community events, includ- ing A Dickens Holiday and the International Folk Festival. ese events also draw thousands of outside visitors each year. In September, the IFF celebrated its 40th year and saw about 120,000 people enjoy downtown Fayetteville. "I see the cultural arts industry as a dynamic part- ner with our local and state governments, economic development and educational organizations and in- stitutions," Mintz said. "Today, the nonprofit cultural arts industry provides close to $60 million annually in direct investment in our community." Behind those red doors, the Arts Council also runs a gal- lery that showcases art from local and international artists. Its exhibitions highlight and spark discussion of issues that range from the community to global level. e gallery's lat- est exhibition, "Touchstone: Images Of Service," opened last week and invited photog- raphers to submit works that capture heroism, sacrifice and courage. e Arts Council also spearheads public art instal- lation initiatives with results that can be seen peppered throughout downtown. While most residents are familiar with the Arts Coun- cil's events and gallery, not as many know much about its Artists in Schools pro- gram and the grant money it disburses. Artists in Schools brings high-caliber arts educators to over 80 public and private schools in Cumberland County and Fort Bragg. e program offers matching grants to schools to cover fees for residencies, as- sembly performances and workshops conducted by teaching artists. e Arts Council vets these teaching artists from a pool of local, regional and national talent. Last year, said Arts Council Education & Out- reach Director Adrienne Trego, Artists in Schools helped students learn about physics through circus acts, create their own silk banners celebrating their school and use drumming to learn about math. e Arts Council also grants more than half a mil- lion dollars annually to support community orga- nizations and individual artists in this community. ese grants include the support of local non- profit treasures like Cape Fear Regional eatre, Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra and Cape Fear Botanical Garden. Janet Gibson, a Fayetteville native who joined the Arts Council early this year as director of marketing and communications, remembers writing about the Arts Council as a young reporter in November of 1987. "at was when the Arts Council moved into the building at 301 Hay St.," she said. "I remember being here for a reception, and it was beyond celebratory. … It's been very fulfilling to watch the Arts Council grow and prosper and become admired by the arts community – not only statewide but nationally – in its reputation for being a leader and a trailblazer. "e thing about the arts in our area is they pro- vide jobs and really feed the economy." Mintz said the quality that's best served her in leading the Arts Council is tenacity – that and "a passionate knowledge that the arts are critical to the growth and success of our citizens and community." Gibson put it this way: the Arts Council is success- ful because of "so many visionaries and people who refuse to give up. ey know that Fayetteville is this … center of creative expression." Mintz said the thing she'll miss most in her re- tirement is working with these passionate people, though she's not moving. "I've lived here longer than anywhere else. I am a Fayettevillian, not by birth, but by choice," she said. "I will still be right here in my adopted hometown." e Arts Council is conducting a national search for a new executive director who can build on Mintz's legacy. To learn more about the Arts Council and view a full list of upcoming exhibitions at e Arts Center, visit www.theartscouncil.com. Arts Council celebrates 45 years of tenacious belief in the arts by LESLIE PYO at a glance Thank you to the Arts Council for creating and/or supporting: A Dickens Holiday The International Folk Festival Arts Council Gallery Artists in Schools program Fourth Friday Dogwood Fall/Spring Festivals More than half a million dollars in artist grants each year … and so much more!

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