Jay Linnehan, President and CEO of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation shared the future vision of Arts Elevate at the May 5 Showcase event.

CHELMSFORD – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) gathered more than 100 guests at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts on Tuesday, May 5, for the Arts Elevate Showcase — a celebration of the program’s inaugural Embedded Community Artist pilot and a look ahead to its next chapter.

The evening brought together funder partners, community leaders, nonprofit organizations, and artists to witness student work from four pilot residencies and hear firsthand how professional artists — embedded inside community organizations this past fall — sparked connection, creative agency, and wellness outcomes among Greater Lowell youth.

“What you’re about to see tonight is real,” Jay Linnehan, President and CEO of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation shared in his opening comments. “It’s not a concept or a theory. It’s what happens when you trust communities, trust artists, and trust young people to create something together. Relationship comes first. The art follows.”

The Arts Elevate Showcase opened with a performance by the Chelmsford Children’s Chorus, an Arts Elevate Arts Equity Grant recipient.

An Evening of Stories and Art

The program opened with a performance by the Chelmsford Children’s Chorus, an Arts Elevate Arts Equity Grant recipient, whose rendition of Becoming You by Bethany Main set an immediate emotional tone. Four partner organizations — Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell, Danny’s Place in Acton, Prescott Community Center in Groton, and The Umbrella Arts Center in Concord — each delivered presentations about their residency programs.

An artist panel discussion, moderated by Jennifer Aradhya, GLCF’s VP of Marketing, Programs & Strategy and founder of Arts Elevate, gave voice to the artists themselves — including Juan Carlos Rivera, who represented the Boys & Girls Club program’s spoken word artist Anthony Febo’s work, fiber artist Shoni Hallock-Martin (Danny’s Place), visual and mixed media artist Andrea Wilson (Prescott Community Center), and filmmaker Tom Flint (The Umbrella Arts Center). Artists spoke about individual moments of student transformation, and what they themselves learned in the process.

Ricky Orng of Adobo-Fish-Sauce closed the evening with a spoken word performance that brought the energy and spirit of the pilot programs into the room.

“Art, in my life, has been like oxygen— not a luxury, not an enrichment add-on, but something I actually need to breathe,” reflected Aradhya, “Watching this pilot unfold in real time, in our own communities, has only solidified what I’ve always believed: the arts are not just good for young people. They can be essential for them, a lifeline to connection. What we built this past fall and continued this spring is proof of that concept— and we’re just getting started.”

About the Four Pilot Programs

• Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell — Artist Anthony Febo brought spoken word to the Club through Adobo-Fish Sauce Poetry, meeting young people through unexpected gateways — including Dungeons & Dragons — to unlock self-expression and voice.
• Danny’s Place, Acton — Artist Shoni Hallock-Martin led Handmade Paper Arts & Sculptural Creations, guiding students through the tactile, grounding process of making paper itself before layering art and story on top.
• Prescott Community Center, Groton — Artist Andrea Wilson’s program Me, Myself & Art created a studio space so welcoming that students regularly arrived 30–45 minutes before sessions began, eager to be there.
• The Umbrella Arts Center, Concord — Artist Tom Flint led Youth Short Films, bringing together students from different school districts to co-create original films — learning collaboration not as a concept, but as a necessity — culminating in a Red Carpet premiere on The Umbrella’s Main Stage.

Expansion: Veterans, Seniors, and a Growing Ecosystem

GLCF used the evening to preview Arts Elevate’s next phase of growth. In 2027, the program will launch its veterans’ initiative, partnering with veteran-serving organizations across the Greater Lowell region to bring embedded artists and creative engagement to the men and women who have served. A seniors’ pilot is planned to follow in 2028.

Later this month, GLCF will release a new grant opportunities: Embedded Artist Support Grants for nonprofits seeking to bring an artist into their organization.

The Arts Elevate Toolkit — a practical guide for any youth-serving nonprofit looking to adopt the embedded artist model — will also be released at the end of May.

For more information or to give, visit glcfoundation.org/arts-elevate.

From left: GLCF’s Jennifer Aradhya, visual and mixed media artist Andrea Wilson (Prescott Community Center), filmmaker Tom Flint (The Umbrella Arts Center), fiber artist Shoni Hallock-Martin (Danny’s Place) and Juan Carlos Rivera, who represented the Boys & Girls Club’s program.