Weekend Fundraisers…

This past Saturday’s piano performance and Sunday’s magic show-rock music-food extravaganza were well-attended, successful fund-raising events.

Nearly $4000.00 was donated over the weekend at the two events.  And nearly everyone had a great time meeting-up with their neighbors while enjoying wonderful music and food.  The spirit of the community center has already begun!

Special thanks to: Colette McDonald who helped with food prep on Saturday, Wilma and Bill Hahn who shopped for Sunday’s food, Janet for more shopping and major clean-up duty on Saturday night, Robert Kerr, Jeff Davis, Barb and Ben for grilling (Ben also painted the sandwich board),  Andrew for providing the grill, Doug Agee and Loose Change for rock and roll to dance by, Joe Tulley, Tammy and Chelsea Ackerman for providing mums, cookies, coffees, teas, and hot cider, Scott for the engaging, amazing magic and punny humor, Betsy for being MC on Sunday and Colette for doing the same on Saturday, Pamela Street for help setting up, balloons and multiple trips to her cabin to bring supplies we forgot, Bob McDonald for major parking duty, Dan Crane and Billy for providing the fire truck, Ann Green for the beautiful, eye-catching brochure, and Joanna Goud for picking up the brochures, shopping, and food preparation… plus, thanks to all the other workers and donors whose names may not appear here!

We’re closing-in on the first phase of our 2008 funding goal — enough for the ACCC to complete the purchase of the former Eastin Gallery property as scheduled in early October.  After that, we’ll need to complete the second phase of our 2008 funding so that we can begin renovations.  Our total funding goal for 2008 is $134,000.  So far we actually have a bit less than $62,000.  Somewhat more has been pledged, but not yet received.  So we are still looking to raise approximately $70,000 by year’s end to stay on schedule with our purchase and renovation plans.

Thanks to the more than 120 individuals — so far — from Allenspark and beyond who have given so generously to help fund this project.

If you are an Allenspark citizen or a friend of the Allenspark community and have not already donated, please help us meet our funding goals.

Click on the word GIVE on the menu above to go to the GIVE page where you can see all the ways you can help bring the center to life.

Now Is The Time… Send $$

FRIENDS OF THE ALLENSPARK COMMUNITY:

Crunch time has arrived.

Beyond existing pledges, our near-term fund-raising goal is $70K.

With that amount in hand the Allenspark community center can begin to exist, and we can begin renovations.

Now is the time to make good on your pledges.

If you have not previously pledged, now is the time to send in contributions.

If you are an angel — an angel of some wealth — please consider how worthy a project we have here.

Make checks out to ACCC – the Allenspark Community Cultures Council – and send them to

P.O. Box 431
Allenspark, CO 80510

or call 303 747 2089 for more information

or click here to make an on-line donation
by credit card or your PayPal account

using our PayPal account…

Press Release: Purchase Agreement!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE…

COMMUNITY GROUP AGREES TO PURCHASE FORMER GALLERY IN ALLENSPARK

On August 23, 2008, the Allenspark Community Cultures Council (ACCC) signed a purchase contract for  the former Eastin Gallery, located on Highway 7 in Allenspark.

The Council, a broad-based group representing neighbors and interested friends, intends to establish a community center in the 4,050 square-foot building and adjacent cabin, located next to the firehouse at the junction of State Highway 7 and Business Highway 7 in northwest Boulder County.

A community survey conducted this summer identified a variety of activities that residents and visitors would like to see provided at the center. These include:

Art studios
Art on display
Community classes
Exercise room
Visitor center and museum
Sales of snacks and convenience items
Food Co-op
Lectures, musical events, discussion groups, and events
Community offices for forestry information and interaction with County government
Office space for telecommuting or co-working
Playground and gathering space for community youth
Community garden

The Council, whose public meetings this summer have drawn over 60 participants, is incorporated as a Colorado non-profit organization, and has applied to the IRS for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.

The Council plans to cover capital expenses for the center through a fund raising program designed to solicit contributions and low- or no-interest loans from individuals, grant-making organizations, corporations, and government agencies. In the first month,  fund raising efforts have resulted in more than $61,000 from individuals and a $1,000 grant from the Tourism and Recreation Program (TARP) of Boulder County. The funding program is designed to retire capital expenses over a 10-year period.

The Council has established a weblog at http://apcc.wordpress.com/ (this location), where additional information and an on-line discussion are available. Persons interested in contributing may visit the weblog or contact Board Chair Margaret Patterson at 303-747-2089. Please send contributions to: ACCC at P.O. Box 431, Allenspark, CO 80510.

Community Members Pack East Room — Great Meeting!

The most recent public meeting of the Allenspark Community Cultures Council convened tonight just a bit after 7:00PM and ran until nearly 10:00PM.

The east wing of the former Eastin Gallery was filled to capacity and a few people stood outside the doorway to the main room. Although the night was unseasonably chilly for August, the atmosphere was convivial and the room got progressively warmer as the meeting dealt with diverse topics such as non-for-profit status, strategic planning, legal and safety requirements for public buildings, renovation needs and costs, fund-raising, additional activities and events, and a fast-paced discussion of an easy-to-pronounce, easy-to-remember name for the community center.

Many wonderful suggestions were made and some thoughtful critiques of proposed actions were heard. At times there was hearty laughter and at other times a thoughtful silence filled the room as members of the newly elected Board of Directors made presentations concerning capital expenses, operating expenses, and ways of proceeding to gather funds. New contributions and pledges were also announced, although everyone recognized that it will take more and more organized fund-raising to get the center into operation.

If you attended — or even if you did not attend — please make comments concerning the meeting and the issues discussed, using the comments link that appears directly after this post.

Please attend the next public meeting

Monday, August 18,  at 7:00PM at the former Eastin Gallery on Route 7 (next to the fire building).

There will be updates on the many actions that have been taken since the last public meeting.

Interest in APCCC is broad-based and steadily growing. Many of our fellow citizens have generously come forward with pledges of support — including money and in-kind contributions. Innovative people have suggested some great additional community activites and uses… for example, a community garden.

We need your help in arriving at a simple-to-say and appropriate name for our group. Our official name – Allenspark Community Cultures Council – is quite a mouthful. Even APCCC or “AP triple C” seem too difficult to use easily. Please think this over and bring some good ideas.

If you have not yet filled-out and returned the survey form, please do so. If you received a paper copy in the last issue of The Wind, or if you have printed out your own paper copy, bring it to the meeting. If you have received a copy of the survey form by email, please take a few minutes to fill it out on-line and email it back using the “submit” button included on the form.

Whether you have attended before, or if our community center project is new to you, come on by and be a part of this great new development. You’ll meet your neighbors, and everyone is welcome.

Hello Allenspark Community…

This is your Allenspark Community Cultures Council blog — OK, it’s formally a weblog.

Visit this site to read posts about APCCC from Board members and fellow citizens alike.

Here’s where you can find the latest information and opinions about the Allenspark community center and other projects of the APCCC.

Use the comments feature to add your thoughts!