The Kent County Fund for the Arts, housed at the CenDel Foundation, is proud to announce the distribution of $28,556 in grant funding to support a vibrant slate of arts programming in 2026.
The Kent County Fund for the Arts was established in 2008 through a generous contribution by Rosemary Twilley, in memory of Joshua Twilley, Esq. Since its inception, the Fund has been managed by the CenDel Foundation in partnership with the Kent County Fund for the Arts advisory board. Over the years, it has become a cornerstone of support for arts and culture in central Delaware.
This year’s recommended grant funding will support a wide range of organizations and projects designed to inspire creativity, expand access to the arts, and strengthen community connections.
Among the projects receiving support are:
- Delaware Shakespeare — Funding will support three performances of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Abridged for Kent County audiences.
- Delaware Friends of Folk — Grant funding will help present a series of free acoustic music concerts at Dover’s historic Old State House.
- Biggs Museum of American Art — Support will assist with the exhibition Imaging the Specular: The Art of Peter Paone.
- Delaware Choral Society — Funding will help present a Founder’s Day concert celebrating the organization’s 70th anniversary.
- The Children’s Theatre — Grant dollars will support a Broadway-style musical production featuring 40 Kent County children, with The SpongeBob Musical planned as the first choice.
- Art Works for All — Funding will continue a performing arts residency program that helps transitional students develop life and workplace skills through theater arts education.
- Forward Journey — Support will expand creative arts activities for adults with severe disabilities in a safe and engaging environment.
- Inner City Cultural League — Grant funding will provide performance opportunities and arts education through live, virtual, and collaborative artistic programming.
- First State Ballet Theatre — Funding will support a community-centered blues performance by the Paradise Alley King Snakes in Kent County.
- Delaware Symphony Orchestra — Support will help present Explorer Concerts designed to engage elementary and middle school students through music discovery programs.
- Delaware Institute for the Arts in Education — Funding will assist the Delaware Wolf Trap Early Learning through the Arts program serving Kent County children.
- Kent Chamber Choir — Grant dollars will support a performance of Anton Bruckner’s Mass No. 1 in D minor in collaboration with a chamber orchestra.
- Mispillion Art League — Funding will continue outreach efforts providing free art experiences to nonprofit clients throughout the community.
- Cancer Support Community Delaware — Support will help offer art workshops for cancer patients, caregivers, and their families in Kent County.
