Mendel Center welcomes return of in-person events
Dear Mendel Center Patrons,
Last season, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, we contemplated art and its power to heal, transform, and inspire. While disappointed that we couldn’t share events face-to-face with our patrons, we chose to look at the situation as an opportunity to try out new ways to connect with our community – online, outdoors, and indoors. Among the groundbreaking highlights were:
- A virtual, locally focused speaker series explored why the arts matter in times of crisis, mental health issues and disparities in our community, social justice and advocacy work happening at the grassroots level, and the pandemiceconomy.
- Our first-ever Drive-in Live Seriesoffered a diverse line-up of local andregional musicians.
- Our first-ever virtual Broadwayseries brought internationallyknown productions intoliving rooms,coupled with post-show discussionswith some of the creative forcesbehind those productions.
- We proudly rolled up our sleeves andsupported Spectrum Health Lakelandand theBerrien County HealthDepartment as they administeredmore than 20,000 COVID-19 vaccinesin Grand Upton Hall.
- With the help of individual andbusiness contributors, and agenerous challenge grantfrom theFrederick S. Upton Foundation, ourCreating Bridges campaign raisedmore than $100,000. This allowedus to continue delivering innovativeprograms at a time when ourcommunity needed it most. To allwho participated, THANK YOU!
We look forward to welcomingeveryone back to The MendelCenter with the 2021-2022 seasonof in-person events. The lineup isa compilation of performance andspeakercommitments from twoseparate seasons – six eventspostponed from spring of 2020, anda partially built 2020-2021 in-personseason that didn’t happen. Staytuned as weround out the seasonwith additional exciting and diverseperformers and special engagements.
In addition to touring productions, wewill continue to serve our purposeas a truecommunity center, hostinghundreds of public and private eventsfor individuals andgroups from ourBenton Harbor hometown and beyond.And outside our walls, The MendelCenter is putting its resources behindgrassroots community initiatives morethan ever before.
Through it all, The Mendel Center motivation and mission continues based on five principles:
Inspiration:Elevating individual and community perspectives during challenging times.
Connection:Valuing human interaction and cultivating meaningful relationships.
Gratitude:Expressing appreciation for those working to make themselves and our community better.
Flexibility:Continually exploring, pivoting, and innovating to create the best experiences possible.
Inclusiveness:Listening to diverse voices and acting to better serve and empower ALL individuals in our community.
We welcome your feedbackas we travel together on thisjourney. In the end, our goal istobring you meaningful MendelCenter experiences that make apositive difference in your life.
Mike Nadolski,
Executive Director
Grace Kelmer,
Director
Tickets may be purchased anytime online, or 2-6 p.m. weekdays by calling (269) 927-8700, Option 1. or visiting the box office located in the Grand Upton Hall lobby (parking lot entrance 3). Have a ticket purchasing or event question? Email us atboxoffice@lakemichigancollege.edu
Grace Kelmer, Director, The Mendel Center; Mike Nadolski, Executive Director, The Mendel Center; and Stephanie Steele, Event Services Manager.
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