The Mountain Arts Center (MAC) staff and board of directors, along with the City of Prestonsburg and Big Sandy Community and Technical College (BSCTC) held their first gala last week on Thursday Oct. 20 to celebrate two decades of providing music education, heritage, culture, and entertainment to the community and eastern Kentucky.
Almost 170 community members joined on stage for dinner, music, and presentations. “It was very exciting to be on that stage,” said Tom Vierheller, Professor of Biology at BSCTC. “Who knew it was so big! It was so neat to see it from this different perspective.”
After dinner was served, MAC executive director Clayton Case welcomed the crowd and showed a video presentation of photos from the construction of the building and memorabilia from the first season in the fall of 1996. Case remarked how it has been a building block for artists, as many have started at the MAC or Kentucky Opry and moved to bigger jobs and venues. He listed names such as J.T Cure, Kory Caudill, Roger Coleman, Rebecca Lynn Howard, and Josh Martin.
Next came BSCTC President Dr. Devin Stephenson. He stated that he “was so proud of the collaboration between the city and the college.” He also presented Mayor Les Stapleton with a special “President’s Ambassador’s” award. Stephenson noted that he has “thoroughly enjoyed working with Mayor Stapleton on this project, and this shows that when BSCTC and the community can work together, great things will happen.”
Prestonsburg Mayor Les Stapleton stepped to the podium next and remarked how the night was a perfect fit to the new energy and directions from the City and the MAC. Afterwards, Stapleton said “The MAC staff has hit it out of the ball park with this evening’s festivities. This just shows what we are capable of doing here in this facility.”
The MAC’s current corporate sponsors were recognized as part of the special night. Those included The Kinzer Family Group, Appalachian Wireless, Mark West Energy, and Pepsi.
The highlights of the evening came near the conclusion when the MAC, and its theater, were dedicated to honor individuals that have meant so much to the center since its inception. It was decided to honor the late Miss Billie Jean Osborne by naming the facility “Billie Jean Osborne’s Mountain Arts Center.” New letters with the designation are on the main wall in the lobby. The theater was renamed the “Willard & Lucy Kinzer Theater.” This was to honor all of the contributions that the Kinzer Family has given to the MAC for twenty years. Mr. Case stated, “I can’t think of a more fitting way to honor a great family that has contributed to our success in delivering the arts to the community.”
(story provided by the Mountain Arts Center)
