TheEmpowering Marga Does it Again

Photo by Gale Curcio/Local Kicks Marga Fripp and Rabia Naeem Pervez from Empowered Women International last week.

RICHMOND, VA. - The list of winners are in, and Alexandria's Marga Fripp is on it. Again.

On Sunday, Virginians for the Arts announced winners of its Arts Build Communities Awards, and Empowered Women International's Marga Fripp won a Rising Star Award. "Obviously I'm thrilled and honored by this affirmation of what we do everyday for struggling immigrant artists,"  Fripp said.

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks A Torpedo Factory artist.

The awards recognize arts organizations that best demonstrate the ability to enhance the community, lift our spirits, and build a better quality of life.  “The awards showcase the ways the arts contribute to the overall quality of life in Virginia communities," said Virginians for the Arts President Peter Fields.

Fripp has been lauded by the New York Times for her "essential work" empowering hundreds of immigrant artists. Last year the Giving Circle of HOPE, a Reston-based organization which promotes volunteerism and effective philanthropy, gave Fripp and her Old Town-based Empowered Women International a $5,000 grant -- its maximum -- and the third in three years.

"Members like Marga seek to make a difference in the Northern Virginia community by contributing their time, talents and money to projects which encourage self-sufficiency and well-being among people in need," said a spokesperson for the organization, which awards $200,000 yearly.

But it is still a dream largely unfulfilled for Fripp, as she makes do with a yearly budget of less than $60,000 and a flood of new immigrant applications each month. Recently she had to close EWI's gallery at 1307 King Street because of a budget shortfall. But she is nothing if not determined: "The art of EWI's fine artists will be exhibited at the Lee Center, and one of the city's galleries starting next month," she vowed.

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks The Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town.

She began helping women in need in her native Romania, where she worked as a broadcast journalist, but because she was so outspoken, and an activist, she found herself barred from working in her profession, and left the country.. When she arrived in America, still another disappointment: despite her education and experience, she was unable to find a job. “I felt like I was stranded in the middle of the ocean,” she said. “I went from being a name to a no-name. I was a career professional who found myself with nothing.”

Fripp, empathizing more than ever with women needing help, became their champion here  just as she had in Romania, and set to work.

“She’s a fireball," said Ann Stone, former chair of Republicans for Choice and one of her earliest backers. Speaking of Marga’s dedication to others, she said "I love to hold her up as an example to my American friends who whine and complain. She had been in our country only one year, when the governor gave her an award as one of the top volunteers in Maryland.”

But the best "award,” as Marga is quick to tell you, comes from the goals she helps others achieve. Though a busy mother of two, she started Old Town-based Empowered Women International (EWI) in her home basement. Reaching out to women in immigrant communities, she created workshops focused on developing their entrepreneurial skills. By helping them revitalize abilities they had not had a chance to develop, she led them in translating successful experiences in their native lands to success in the U.S.  

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks The Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town.

Once inspired, the women learned to appreciate their own talents, and began to flower. EWI has helped hundreds of immigrant artists develop their skills while teaching them the business side of art, the marketing, financial and legal aspects they need to know.

She calls in local experts in various fields to share their knowledge: The Alexandria Small Business Development Center, WETA and Creative Artisans, among others. EWI artists visit galleries and discuss marketing strategies with successful women entrepreneurs in the art fields, such as Carol Supplee of Old Town's Imagine Artwear and Linda Brenda Hafer of the Art League of Alexandria.

Many of the women sell their craft and art in local galleries and shops and participate in local art shows, buildlng a following as their art develops. Marga's online gallery and store can be visited at www.ewint.org.

Liberty's Promise  

Another Alexandria grantee was Old Town-based Liberty's Promise and its director Robert M. Ponichtera for his work on civics and citizenship.  
Ponichtera's non-profit supports young immigrants in need while encouraging them to be active and conscientious citizens. "Our program's aim is to make the immigrant experience an affirmative one for young newcomers while instilling in them a sense of pride and support for American ideals of democracy and freedom," said Ponichtera, who earned a Ph.D. in East European History from Yale University and has taught at Yale, Quinnipiac College, and Albertus Magnus College.  

Currently an adjunct professor of history at George Mason University, Ponichtera and his family live in Alexandria, where he manages Liberty's Promise day-to-day operations.

Other Winners

The Barter Theatre, Abingdon, was selected to receive the Shining Star Award.  With 150,000 annual patrons, The Barter Theatre was selected for the extraordinary impact it has had on the Abingdon community, the region, and on the Commonwealth of Virginia.  The theatre, Abingdon’s 10th largest employer, was founded in 1933 during the Great Depression—when patrons could exchange vegetables for a ticket, was awarded the Shining Star designation, since it has stood the “test of time.”  

The Barter is recognized for its ability to successfully develop community partnerships and business, legislative, and local community support. Long-standing partnerships include SWVA Second Harvest Food Bank and United Way of Washington County, among many others. It maintains relationships with recruiting departments of corporations and hospitals, as well as regional economic development offices to help provide positive experiences of the area when prospective executives, doctors, and businesses come to the area.  Barter enhances K-12 education in the region, discounting ticket prices by two-thirds for Student Matinees and providing free tickets to students enrolled in the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program. Its education programs serve more than 55,000 children each year.  

The Prizery, South Boston, was selected to receive the Rising Star Award.  The Rising Star Award is presented to an organization that contributes to and engages its community significantly, like the winner of the Shining Star award, but that is now not as well established.

Founded only in 2004, the Prizery has galvanized support for the fine and lively arts across the region, and it has become a mecca of performances, exhibits, and classes. Housed in a donated circa 1903 building, which underwent a $7 million adaptive re-use overhaul, today it is a major regional attraction for visitors and business prospects.  Among its significant programs supporting K-12 education, The Prizery operates a unique Pre-K Arts Academy for every public-school four-year-old, partnering with the Halifax County Public Schools. Its work has helped spawned businesses that include three restaurants, a retail art gallery, a clothing boutique, a home décor shop and an artists’ guild. The organization has sparked an entirely new way of community thinking about the region’s potential in a post-tobacco, post-textile era.

These organizations will be recognized as Finalists for the Awards:

Shining Star Finalists:  Signature Theatre, Arlington; The Taubman, Roanoke; 1708 Gallery, Richmond, and Piedmont Arts Association, Martinsville.

Rising Star Finalists: Empowered Women, International, Alexandria; Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, Winchester; Break the Glass Foundation, Chesapeake; and Gallery 5, Richmond.

The organizations will be recognized with an Honorable Mention designation:

Shining Star Honorable Mentions

• Alleghany Highlands Arts and Crafts Center, Clifton Forge

• Bluemont: The Cultural Spirit of our Communities, Purcellville

• Educational Theatre Company, Arlington

• Greater Reston Art Center, Reston

• Municipal Band of Charlottesville, Charlottesville

• Piedmont Council of the Arts, Charlottesville

• Pro-Art Association, Wise

• Visual Arts Center of Richmond, Richmond

• Wayside Theatre, Middleton

Rising Star Honorable Mentions

• Bay School Cultural Art Center, Mathews

• Parsons-Bruce Art Association, South Boston

• Southwest Virginia Community College, Richlands

• The Barns of Rose Hill, Berryville

• Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation, Falls Church

Eighty-two Virginia arts organizations were nominated for awards.  Judges for the awards included Mrs. Willie Dell, Commissioner, Virginia Commission for the Arts; Mr. Peter Fields, President, Virginians for the Arts; Mr. Mark Flynn, Legislative Director, Virginia Municipal League, Richmond; Ms. Marjorie N. Grier, Director—Corporate Philanthropy, Dominion Resources, Inc., Richmond; Dr. Roderic A. Taylor, Member of the Board, Virginians for the Arts, Chesapeake; and Mr. J. Vaughan Webb, Commissioner, Virginia Commission for the Arts, Ferrum.  Ms. Beth Temple, Alexandria, served as a judge and chaired the judges panel.  She serves as Chair of the Virginians for the Arts Awards Committee.

“There are many arts organizations all across Virginia that are doing outstanding work in enriching the lives of their home communities.  These organizations are anchors for downtown and neighborhood revitalization.  Performances, festivals, and art exhibitions bring people together for shared experiences, which build cohesion within communities and create a sense of civic pride.  Arts organizations employ people and make purchases from local businesses, adding to economic vitality.  The new Arts Build Communities Awards bring a spotlight to the role of arts organizations in building strong communities,” says Peggy Baggett, Executive Director, Virginia Commission for the Arts.

Matthew D. Fine, a well-known sculptor from Norfolk, Virginia, with a growing national reputation, has been selected to prepare the award pieces.

Awards will be presented at the ArtWorks for Virginia Conference 2010 Luncheon on January 27, 2010, in Richmond, Virginia.

Virginians for the Arts works to build awareness of the importance of the efforts of Virginia’s state arts agency, the Virginia Commission for the Arts. In 2009, the agency provided grants for operating support for more than 200 arts organizations throughout the state and more than 1,000 other types of grants that benefit teachers, students, local government, artists and the communities they serve.

The Virginia Commission for the Arts is the only entity in the state concerned about developing the arts industry as a whole and about making the arts available in all parts of the Commonwealth. In 2008, the Commission helped to make possible 39,943 arts events attended by more than 7.7 million people, including 1.9 million school children.

As of October 2009, Virginia’s arts agency was funded at 51 cents per capita, the lowest level of any state arts agency of its neighboring states: including (July 2009 figures) North Carolina at $1.18 cents, Maryland at $2.52, Kentucky at $.84, and West Virginia at $1.54.  

Donna Shor contributed to reporting.