The Pagosa Springs Main Street Advisory Board was recently awarded a grant for up to $7,500 through the America 250 - Colorado 150 Commission’s Community Grants Program.
Main Street Coordinator Kathleen McFadden explained during the board’s meeting on Jan. 15 that the grant funds will be used for the Main Street Board’s Heritage and Culture Committee’s commemorative coloring book project.
McFadden noted that she had “received formal announcement” that the board’s grant application made it through the first gate and was selected to receive a grant award.
According to McFadden’s report shared during the meeting, the commemorative project will be “a 28-page illustrated coloring book featuring historic buildings, cultural landmarks, local stories, and regional heritage elements with short, accessible captions for children and general audiences,” called “Color Pagosa’s Past: A Colorado 150 Commemorative Coloring Book.”
“I am so thrilled,” McFadden said, explaining that the funds could potentially cover the printing costs to produce the coloring books.
McFadden explains in an email to The SUN that the Main Street Advisory Board is planning to produce 5,000 free copies to be distributed in August through local schools, the Ruby M. Sisson Memorial Library, Pagosa Springs History Museum, Visit Pagosa, community partners and participating downtown businesses.
She also notes that the coloring book project was selected by the grant program, “which was created to support smaller, community-based projects that can be activated quickly and reflect the unique stories, histories, and creativity of communities across Colorado.”
McFadden mentions that the goal of the project is to “celebrate Pagosa Springs’ history in a format that’s educational, engaging, and widely accessible, especially during the Colorado 150 and America 250 observances.”
Artwork for the project will feature local and regional talent to make it a “community forward project” and a call for artists is being planned for the book’s illustrations, McFadden explains.
Details for the contest are currently being finalized, though the first-place award will likely include a cash prize featuring the winning illustration in full color on the book’s cover, according to McFadden.
clayton@pagosasun.com
>