A well-attended Raglan Arts Weekend preview opening this week has Raglan Old School Arts Centre (OSAC) staff and Raglan Community Arts Council (RCAC) committee members hoping the much-loved organization has turned a corner after four financially challenging years.
The RAW preview attendance, which far exceeded RAW Coordinator Nicole Brzeska’s (Nicky) expectations, followed on from a successful monster garage sale the previous weekend which raised close to $5000 for the OSAC operational budget.
RCAC chair Rodger Gallagher said emerging from the pandemic the organization had found itself facing severe financial challenges. “Hopefully with summer around the corner, and some great initiatives on the go, we will be able to continue to serve the Raglan arts community. Like many community organisations, RCAC has had to face the reality of a fall in financial grants. However, we have proactively restructured our organization and are now confident we are in a stable position. We do now have a lower capacity for some activities and we ask the community to appreciate that.”
OSAC visitors will notice some changes. Manager Jacqueline has moved into an independent contractor role, with initial responsibility for the Raglan Film Festival. The office is staffed by part-timers Maxine King (Accounts & Administration) and Shona Butchart (Marketing & Support). Other part-timers, Penni Bousfield and Deb King continue in their respective roles of Music Coordinator and Market Coordinator.