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Hanover Day

and

The Hanover Cultural Council

Building Community

In 2006 the Hanover Cultural Council held its first Hanover Day celebration on June 24th. Although it poured rain that year the enthusiasm from event goers, town residents and the vendors was wonderful. Thanks to sunnier weather in the past 13 years the event has grown to include most of the town civic organizations, many local businesses and individuals.


The goal of the Council in starting this event was to build community and to showcase the talents and specialties of local residents. The money that is raised by the council through this event is given back to the community in the form of grants for the arts, sciences & humanities. The HCC is always looking for new members. If you are interested in joining the council or getting more information about what we do, please contact Chris Haraden - Chairman at  charaden@hanoverday.com.  

2024 Hanover Cultural Council Members

  • Christopher Haraden - Chair
  • Karen Cass
  • Derek Schipper
  • Meghan Walsh
  • Diane Campbell
  • Rachel Hughes
  • Diane Sawin
  • Janine Senator
  • Bonnie Clarke
  • Ruthie Lydon 

2024 Hanover Day Committee Members:

"The Hanover Cultural Council is a local agency funded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency."

Massachusetts Cultural Council

In Massachusetts, public funding for the arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences is provided through a central state agency, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and through a network of local cultural councils that serve every city and town in the state. The mission of the Massachusetts Cultural Council is to promote excellence, access, education and diversity in the arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences in order to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and to contribute to the economic vitality of our communities.

The MCC receives funding from the Massachusetts Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts, and it distributes funds through two channels:

1) Direct grants to individuals and organizations, available through statewide competitive grant processes; and

2) Distributions to local councils, which then regrant funds to individuals and organizations in their own communities through two types of grants:

  • Standard LCC grants which fund a broad range of cultural activities;
  • PASS grants which fund cultural field trips for young people.

The Local Cultural Council (LCC) program was established in 1982 and was overseen by the Massachusetts Arts Lottery Council until 1990. It then merged with the Massachusetts Council on Arts and Humanities to form the Massachusetts Cultural Council. LCCs are made up of volunteers who are appointed by the community?s chief elected official and who are responsible for making decisions on how they will award the money granted to them by the MCC in ways that will serve local cultural needs. There are currently 329 LCCs in Massachusetts that form an extensive grassroots system of public support for community cultural programs. Collectively, these councils distribute more than $2 million each year to fund cultural activities in all 351 cities and towns in the state. Distributions to each LCC are based on a local aid formula devised by the state. The formula takes into account population and property values, and is weighted in such a way to give larger distributions to less wealthy communities.

Hanover Cultural Council Grant Recipients

During the past several years, these are some of the organizations and programs that have been awarded grants by the Hanover Cultural Council. The funding for these grants comes from an annual appropriation from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, supplemented by the funds raised at Hanover Day.

  • International Poster Exhibits at the John Curtis Free Library
  • Art and Poetry: Making Creative Connections
  • Your Neighborhood Fireflies
  • Institute of Contemporary Art Museum Passes
  • John Curtis Free Library Storyteller Series
  • Plimoth Plantation Museum Passes
  • Mr. DJ's Hollywood Quiz Show
  • South Shore Arts Festival
  • Robert Frost: Light and Dark
  • Talking Hanover History
  • Sally Ride: Astronaut and Scientist One-Woman Show
  • Heritage Museum & Garden Pass
  • Confident in Your Own Skin-Fashion Workshop
  • "Folktale Superheroes" or Library Summer reading
  • Sail Away on the Craft of Pastel Painting
  • Singing with Parkinson's Chorus
  • The Massachusetts High School Drama Festival
  • Stetson House Museum Exhibit
  • 'A Universe of Stories' Library Program
  • A Summer Reading Song & Story Celebration
  • Trash and daffodils
  • The Art, Nature, and Science of Spring Illustrated
  • The Massachusetts High School Drama Festival
  • Council on Aging: Let's Get Moving! Dance Program
  • STEAM Lab and Family STEAM Night
  • Garden Therapy for Seniors
  • Hanover Traffic Island Beautification
  • South Shore Tech Drama Club Dinner Theatre
  • Park & Rec Summer Concert Series
  • Hanover Community Theater
  • TheaterWorks USA: Grade 1 Field Trip
  • Sustainable Musical Instrument Loan and Lesson Program

The Hanover Cultural Council wants to hear from you!

Each year, the Hanover Cultural Council provides financial support to activities that bring us together as a community and highlight what makes Hanover special. Through our grant program, we sponsor projects, performances, and programs in the arts, sciences, humanities, history, cultural awareness, dramatic arts, and music.

Using a combination of funds from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and money raised at Hanover Day, the Council was able to award just over $20,000 to local organizations for activities in the coming year, including historical programs, theatrical performances, concerts, school field trips, gardening-related programs, kids’ activities, and discounted passes to area museums.

The Cultural Council is gathering feedback and ideas from Hanover residents as we set our priorities for future grant cycles. Please take a few minutes to answer this anonymous, seven-question survey:

https://forms.gle/EELSeiMcnVgvYCBM6

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