The San Benito County Arts Council is excited to announce arts & culture grants for 15 local artists, arts organizations and cultural groups as part of their 2025 Arts Express Grant Program.
The goal of the San Benito County Arts Council’s Arts Express Grant Program is to promote artistic and cultural engagement, accessibility, equity and diversity San Benito County. Arts Express provides funding support to local artists, art groups and art and cultural organizations through general operations and project-based grants.
This year, the Arts Council received 25 grant applications with close to $75,000 in funding requests, which were then reviewed and ranked by a 6-member grant panel. Final grant allocations were approved by the Arts Council’s Board of Directors at their October 2025 board meeting.
The 2025 Arts Express Grantees include:
Organizations & Cultural Groups- El Teatro Campesino, San Benito Stage Company, Rancho Maze Band Boosters, Luna Gallery and Eco Art Studio, Carisma Mexicano Grupo Folklorico, JMM Dance Company
Individual Artists – Ramona Hill, Sandra Arretche, Cristal Avila, Jane Rekedal, Caleb Amelio, Dana Parker, Aidet Maupome, Veronica Vasquez and Michael Ballen
Anne Hall, board member with the San Benito Stage Company states, “The San Benito Stage Company is deeply grateful for the longstanding support of the Arts Council. The Arts Express grants help us keep theater, and performing arts, alive in San Benito County!”
Artist Cristal Gonzalez Avila shares, “Receiving the Arts Council’s Arts Express Grant will allow me to bring Martin to life. Martin is a full-length play that follows the journey of a young migrant dreaming of a better tomorrow. Although he leaves México, he never truly leaves his home. In a magical-realist world, his family home and his new life in the United States remain spiritually intertwined—connected through memory, spirit, and his mother’s unwavering yearning for his return.”
Funding for the Arts Express Grant Program is made possible through the generous support of The David & Lucile Packard Foundation. For a full list of funded projects, please visit www.sanbenitoarts.org
For more information about the Arts Express Grant Program, please contact the Arts Council at info@sanbenitoarts.org or call at 636-2787 or visit www.sanbenitoarts.org