Nobu Yasuda directs the Chippewa Valley Symphony Orchestra during a 2019 concert at the Pablo Center at the Confluence.

Several Chippewa Valley arts organizers are among the recipients of half a million dollars worth of coronavirus relief grants announced recently by the Wisconsin Arts Board.

The board – the state agency dedicated to promoting the arts – combined $466,000 in federal CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act funding received from the National Endowment for the Arts with $78,000 from Arts Midwest, a regional organization, to make 110 grants worth a combined $544,000.

Recipients in the region include:

• Chippewa Valley Symphony Orchestra, Eau Claire – $2,000
• Chippewa Valley Theatre Guild, Eau Claire – $5,000
• Eau Claire Jazz Inc., Eau Claire – $2,000
• Chippewa Valley Cultural Association, Chippewa Falls – $5,000
• Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts, Menomonie – $5,000

“These WAB CARES grants will aid small, medium, and large arts organizations as they sustain operations and retain jobs through these difficult times,” said George Tzougros, executive director of the Wisconsin Arts Board. “We thank the National Endowment for the Arts and Arts Midwest for their partnership in support of Wisconsin’s nonprofit arts organizations.”

In addition, the National Endowment of the Arts made 12 grants of $50,000 each directly to Wisconsin arts groups, including the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, and the Pump House Regional Arts Center in La Crosse.

Read more about the grant funding on the Wisconsin Arts Board’s website.