The newest members of the Everett Cultural Council recently gathered for their annual meeting to provide funding from the Massachusetts Cultural Council to local grant applicants.
The new committee members are: Karyn Alzayer, Amanda Gil, Iliana Panameno, Briana Pierce, and Lucy Pineda. The Everett Cultural Council provides grants to arts, culture, and science initiatives that serve citizens of Everett and beyond.
New council Chair Karyn Alzayer is optimistic about this year’s grants, saying, “I can’t wait to see what this round of applicants brings to our city, and I look forward to helping provide these organizations with some of the tools they need to bring more arts and culture support to the city of Everett.”
Alzayer said the Cultural Council has big plans for the organization, with goals to bring more awareness to the grant program and increase the pool of applicants for future grants.
“We also want to work on providing more guidance for applicants for both composing successful applications and completing impactful initiatives,” she said. In addition to serving on the Cultural Council, Alzayer is also a local artist who does henna body art and public art installations. She is also the founder of the arts-based non-profit Integral Arts Everett, which works to cultivate and expand opportunities to engage with the arts.