Congratulations!

The 34th Annual Emancipation Proclamation Observance and Pioneer Awards were held on January 1, 2024. The theme was “A Salute to the Arts.”

Among the honorees were Morton Theatre Facility Supervisor Lynn Green "for unselfish and dedicated service" in the arts. She manages the Morton and Athens Creative Theatre. A University of Georgia graduate, she has a Drama and Theatre degree. For over two decades Lynn has served the Morton Theatre including as a member of the theatre staff for 17 years, and her previous roles as a contractor, board member, and interim Arts Division Administrator.

The Morton Theatre was honored with an award, as well. Built in 1910 by Monroe Bowers Morton, it is one of the first and the oldest surviving African American vaudeville theatre in the United States. At one time, the Morton building formed the core of the downtown Black business district. The theatre was the primary entertainment facility for the city’s Black community for many years and is the only theatre from the early twentieth century that survives in Athens-Clarke County. It is now a facility of the Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services Department.

The late Lois Thomas-Ewings was posthumously honored, as well. In 1985 she moved to Athens and began mentoring young girls at Heard Park (then East Athens Community Center) and founded the East Athens Educational Dance Center which took on a life of its own. During her 35 years with the Athens-Clarke Unified Government, she taught more than 3,500 students in Athens and surrounding areas.

Call for Art!

The Lyndon House Arts Center announces the online call for artwork submissions for the 49th Juried Exhibition. This show will be selected by Juror Jen Sudul Edwards, Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art at The Mint Museum in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Submissions for the 49th Juried Exhibition will be received online only at ArtCall.org. The call for art submissions will be live from January 4 at 10:00 a.m. – January 26, at 5:00 p.m. The opportunity to enter artworks for the exhibition will end on January 26 at 5:00 p.m.

Athens area visual artists, 18 years and older, are welcome to submit up to three entries for consideration. An entry fee of $35.00 is required. The Athens area includes the following counties: Clarke, Oconee, Barrow, Greene, Jackson, Madison, Hall, Banks, Franklin, Hart, Elbert, Wilkes, Morgan, Walton and Oglethorpe.

New this year is the 49th Juried Exhibition Application Clinic. This is a drop-in event on January 23, 2024 from 12:00 – 3:00 p.m. to assist any artist with their submission and the online process for application.

Notification of all artist entries is February 2, 2024, at noon. Artworks selected for the exhibition need to be delivered to the Lyndon House Arts Center on Friday February 9, 10:00 a.m.– 4:00 p.m. and Saturday February 10 from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

The 49th Juried Exhibition opens in the galleries on March 12, 2024 from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. The exhibition will be on view through May 4, 2024.

All exhibitions are free of charge and open to the public. Exhibitions are on view during regular gallery hours Tuesday and Thursday 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

For more information, please call 706-613-3623.

MLK Day of Service

Athenians are invited to honor Dr. King's legacy at the annual Athens-Clarke County Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service on Monday, January 15, 2024.

In 1994, Congress made the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday an official day of service. Athens-Clarke County is one of the thousands of cities across the United States that decides to make the holiday "A Day On and Not a Day Off.”

This year’s kick-off celebration will take place from 8:30 – 9:30 a.m. at the Lay Park Gymnasium at 297 Hoyt Street. The first 400 registered volunteers at the kick-off will receive a free t-shirt, and light morning refreshments will be served.

Approximately 30 different community organizations, schools, and churches will host volunteer service projects for the Day of Service, including the Athens Area Homeless Shelter, Acceptance Recovery Center, Brooklyn Cemetery, Family Promise Athens, Project Safe, and more.

Online volunteer registration will close on Friday, January 12. Those interested in participating can find the registration link online at www.accgov.com/mlkday. Limited walk-up registration will be available at the kick-off event.

For more information, please visit www.accgov.com/mlkday

Frog Watch

Do you enjoy listening to frogs calling? Learn to identify and count frogs as part of this citizen science program. You can participate at your own home or join the Sandy Creek Nature Center monitoring team. The monitoring season is February through August. Volunteers are asked to make a commitment to monitor at least twice a month at a Sandy Creek Frog Watcher site.

This program is for ages 13 and older. Frog Watch training takes place Saturday, January 20 from 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. at Sandy Creek Nature Center. Online registration is required.

For more information, please call 706-613-3615.

Auditions!

Oh, Kay! In Concert is part of the AMTO (Athens Musical Theatre Orchestra Program) bringing instrumentalists, singers, and actors together to explore feature length scripts and scores from the musical theatre genre together in a concert setting.

This 1926 romp, which served as an inspiration for Nice Work If You Can Get It, skewers the upper class in an uproarious Prohibition story of bootleggers, society matrons, and new love. The show will take place Friday, April 5 - Saturday, April 6 at 7:00 p.m. at the Morton Theatre

Auditions are scheduled for Monday, February 5 and Tuesday, February 6 from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. at Quinn Hall at Memorial Park. Please email act@accgov.com or call 706-613-3628 to schedule an audition.

ACCGov Leisure Services Online Registration

The Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services Department offers a diverse selection of activities highlighting the arts, environmental science, recreation, sports,
and holiday events for adults and children.

All registration takes place online at www.accgov.com/myrec .

ACCGov Leisure Services Scholarships

The Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services Department offers scholarship to qualifying Athens-Clarke County children.

Scholarships allow participants to pay less than the program fee.

For more information, including required documentation,
please visit www.accgov.com/scholarships

Georgia Recreation and Park Association

Agency of the Year

Populations: 80,000 - 150,000

2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2019, 2021, 2023

The Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services Department

205 Old Commerce Road, Athens, GA 30607

www.accgov.com/leisure

706-613-3800