WHQR 91.3fm Awarded $2,500 From the N.C. Arts Council

WILMINGTON, NC (NEWS RELEASE) – WHQR in Wilmington has been awarded $2,500 from the N.C. Arts Council for the national radio program “A Season’s Griot.”

The funds will be used to produce “A Season’s Griot,” public radio’s only nationally syndicated Kwanzaa program. Hosted for the last 17 years by acclaimed storyteller Madafo Lloyd Wilson, this annual one-hour special captures the tales and traditions of African-American and African peoples.

“State funds like the generous N.C. Arts Council Grant allow WHQR to produce unique, high-quality programs like “A Season’s Griot.” We are proud that the only national public radio program about Kwanzaa is produced right here in Wilmington, North Carolina,” said Cleve Callison, WHQR Station Manager.

WHQR has been producing and broadcasting “A Season’s Griot” for seventeen years. WHQR is a community licensed public radio station providing a mix of music, local and NPR news and cultural programming to southeastern North Carolina and northeastern South Carolina.

“The support of our grants program by the General Assembly during these economically challenging times demonstrates the role the arts play in our economy and our quality of life,” said Mary B. Regan, executive director of the N.C. Arts Council. “Nonprofit arts organizations employ workers, stimulate commerce, generate tax revenues and help communities retain their vibrancy.”

More than 13.6 million people participated in the N.C. Arts Council-funded projects last year in schools, senior centers, museums, concert halls and community centers. Nearly 4.3 million of these were children and youth.

The N.C. Arts Council awards grant money each year to provide diverse arts experiences for citizens in all 100 counties of North Carolina. In fiscal year 2010-11, the Arts Council is expected to distribute $7.4 million in state and federal grant funds to arts organization, schools and other nonprofit organizations that sponsor arts programs.

WHQR 91.3fm is the only public radio station for southeast North Carolina and northeastern South Carolina, broadcasting out of Wilmington. Find WHQR online at whqr.org.

The N.C. Arts Council is a division of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities and with the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural, and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available at ncculture.com.