WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $794,100 for West Virginia through the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). This funding will support programs that preserve West Virginia’s rich cultural history and promote arts education.

“Anyone who has been to one of our many festivals knows every West Virginia community has its own story to tell,” Senator Capito said. “From music to old home recipes, our culture and traditions make us who we are. This funding will help preserve and enrich West Virginia’s culture for current and future generations.”

“In West Virginia we have a rich cultural heritage and an active artistic community that we take great pride in,” Senator Manchin said. “This funding will support summer workshops for musicians, the Heritage Farm Museum & Village that showcases our rich Appalachian culture, our beloved West Virginia Symphony Orchestra and other cultural and humanities programs across the state of West Virginia. I applaud the recipients of these awards for continuing to invest in our communities through the arts.”

Individual awards listed below:

  • West Virginia Division of Culture and History
    • $660,100 to support arts programs, services, and activities.
  • Heritage Farm Foundation
    • $75,000 to preserve and develop Old Central City in Huntington, W.Va.
  • West Virginia Humanities Council
    • $34,000 to support the West Virginia Folklife Program, an effort to preserve West Virginia communities’ oral histories.
  • West Virginia Symphony Orchestra
    • $15,000 to support a statewide touring and community engagement project.
  • Allegheny Echoes
    • $10,000 to engage students in Appalachian music and literature.


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