Twelve Great Projects Received Funding through the Second Year of the MotorCities - Automobile National Heritage Area Grants and Mini-Grants Program

DETROIT, Sept. 30 -- MotorCities - Automobile National Heritage Area (MotorCities-ANHA) announced last Thursday at its quarterly Board Meeting its 2003 Grant and Mini-Grant recipients. Twelve separate projects worth over $165,000 in new auto heritage related activities will be created by the $36,000 in funds that MotorCities-ANHA is distributed through its two programs announced last week. The goals of both programs are to develop projects that increase auto-heritage related activities by expanding educational programs, increasing revitalization activities, and broadening tourism programs that focus on our auto past, present, and future.

The MotorCities-ANHA Grants range from $2,500 to $10,000, and they are awarded to organizations that are engaged in active partnerships with MotorCities-ANHA. All Grant projects are required to have 50% in matching funds. Four projects were funded.

  2003 Grant Awardees

  Education and Interpretations Category
  1) Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit:  "Photography of Charles Sheeler"
  2) Henry Ford Estate - Fair Lane, Dearborn:  "Outdoor Signage Project"

  Revitalization Category
  3) REO Town Commercial Association, Lansing:  "Reo Mural Project"

  Tourism Category
  4) Detroit Historical Museum, Detroit:  "Milwaukee Junction Brochure"

The MotorCities-ANHA Mini-Grants range from $250 to $2,500. These projects are open to individuals and organizations, and they are designed to fund smaller, innovative, and creative projects. Eight projects were funded.

2003 Mini-Grant Awardees

1) Blanche Kelso Bruce Academy, Detroit: "Automotive Emulation Inspiration" and "Detroit Put the World on Wheels Mural"

2) Carriage Town Historic Neighborhood Association, Flint: "Carriage Town Walking Tour Brochure"

3) Center Academy, Flint: "Center Academy's Auto Heritage Education Program"

4) Michael Dixon, Grosse Pointe: "Motormen and Yachts, The Waterfront Heritage of the Automobile Industry" Manuscript

  5) Michelle Andonian, Detroit:  "Rouge Evolution" Photography Exhibit
  6) Michigan Antique Fire House Museum, Ypsilanti:  "Website"

7) Sinclair Powell, Ann Arbor: "Detroit: How the Auto Changed a City: 1880-1920" Manuscript

8) Young Spartans Program at Forest View Elementary, Lansing: "Connecting Cars, Community, and Commerce"

Grant funds may be used for a variety of projects including: feasibility studies, educational programs or products, interpretation, marketing tools, events programs, and brick and mortar projects.

"It's the mission of MotorCities-ANHA to promote and support projects which raise awareness for our region's auto heritage, and for the role that Southeast and Central Michigan have played in changing the world through the automobile," said Mark Pischea, executive director of MotorCities-ANHA. "We are pleased to present the 2003 Grants and Mini-Grants recipients, and we are excited and proud to support their efforts to promote and link our auto heritage."

Designated by the U.S. Congress in 1998 as an Affiliate of the National Park Service, MotorCities-ANHA helps citizens appreciate how the automobile changed Michigan, the nation, and the world. MotorCities-ANHA strives to make Michigan's rich automotive heritage a source of pride for communities and a positive influence on the region's future. MotorCities-ANHA works on projects that support MotorCities-ANHA's mission of preserving, interpreting, and promoting our region's rich automotive and labor history. For additional information, please visit MotorCities-ANHA's website: www.autoheritage.org .