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85 BRIDGEPORT RD. E. WATERLOO (Across from the Bridgeport Rd. Plaza) Since 1971 519-893-8118 MON., TUES., WED. 10 AM - 6 PM THURS., FRI. 10 AM - 8 PM SATURDAY 9 AM - 5 PM SUNDAY 12 PM - 4 PM Design your own sofa, loveseat or sectional available in both fabric & leather Choose from hundreds of Configurations and style options! available in both fabriC & leather Visit our clearance centre and saVe 30-70% on selected items!! Job seekers learn, develop and build their skills EMPLOYMENT SERVICES D'EMPLOI ∙ Youth Job Connection ∙ Youth Job Link ∙ Canada Ontario Job Grant ymcaemploymentservices.ca ONTARIO EMPLOYMENT ONTARIO EMPLOI CAMBRIDGE 258 Hespeler Rd., N1R 3H3 519-621-1621 x291 KITCHENER 800 King StreetWest, N2G 1E8 519-579-9622 x241 ymcacambridgekw.ca Thursday, October 12, 2017 • WATERLOO CHRONICLE • 5Serving your community since 1856 By Bill Jackson For the Chronicle Four private, not-for-profit cultural organiza-tions in Kitchener and Waterloo are coming together for a campaign dubbed Reso- nate Waterloo Region, which aims to highlight the value of arts in the broader commu- nity. "The whole point of the campaign is to speak in a language of what we do for the community, even if you don't attend," said Andrew Bennett, executive director of the Kitchener-Waterloo Sym- phony. Along with the TheMu- seum, Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery and Kitchener- Waterloo Art Gallery, Bennett said he hopes to reach people "beyond our normal reader- ship." There are 100,000 people who attend the symphony each year, but that's still not all the residents of Kitchener and Waterloo, he noted. "The ambition is to get across to others how much these organizations achieve in total for the community," Bennett said. "We're chang- ing lives for people who come from disadvantaged back- grounds. We're doing a load of stuff that needs to be rec- ognized and we're very proud of it." A graphic on the website, resonatewr.ca, highlights that the local arts and cul- ture scene attracts more than 600,000 people to the region on an annual basis, with an economic impact estimat- ed at around $96 million. It creates 1,300 full-time and part-time jobs and produces 73,776 volunteer hours. More than 80,000 students partake in school programs each year and the sector also supports more than 800 young people through summer camps and youth projects. Shirley Madill, executive director of the Kitchener- Waterloo Art Gallery, said many people simply aren't aware of what the art gallery offers. "It's more than just the exhibitions," she said, point- ing to various talks, presenta- tions and programming for all ages. According to the region's new director of cultural ser- vices, Helen Chimirri-Russell, the collaborative Resonate campaign stems from a joint initiative between the region and the cities of Waterloo and Kitchener, which came together over the past couple of years to take a closer look at how key cultural institu- tions are funded. In 2017, the Region of Waterloo made $20,000 avail- able to enable a small num- ber of collaborative initiatives that would benefit the arts and culture sector, including $14,000 to the four identified "key cultural institutions" to develop a PR campaign to change perceptions and raise awareness. A 2015 report by Hill Strategies Inc. found that the economic impact of the arts, culture and heritage in Can- ada -- nearly $48 billion -- is more than 10 times larger than the economic impact of sports. Yet, financial support continues to be a challenge for many organizations such as TheMuseum, which is still striving to achieve financial sustainability. "There's no question that we are all on the ground swinging and doing the best that we can," said CEO David Marskell. "The funding model is not ideal for some of us, so we all need to do what we need to do to survive." F o l l o w i n g t h e r e c e n t announcement of his family's $1 million legacy donation, Marskell challenged the com- munity to match it. However, fundraising isn't a direct goal of #ResonateWR. "The ultimate goal is to get people to say, 'This is really important.' Whether you actually write a cheque -- I don't know if that's necessar- ily the goal we're going for," he said. "What I really hope will come out of this is that people will come and visit, and that they'll bring their friends and come when there are visitors in from out of town -- that they will value the hard work people are putting in to make the quality of life here as good as it can be." Major corporations like Amazon that may be looking to locate in this area will first look to see if there are cultural amenities for their employees and families, Marskell noted. "It's just fundamental -- we need to sustain our orga- nizations and we need to take them to a new level, and celebrate with this campaign what we have and support it by volunteering or showing up for an event." By visiting one of the four "key" cultural organizations, people can collect limited- edition Resonate Waterloo Region buttons. By sharing a picture with the button at one of the four locations and using #How- IResonate, you'll be entered into a draw for prizes, includ- ing free tickets to various events. For more information on the campaign and giveaways, visit resonatewr.ca. Resonate campaign hopes to highlight value of arts in region