Virginia: Creative Forces Arts Summit

Virginia has one of the nation’s largest military populations: 1 in 10 Virginians is a veteran, and the state is home to more than 100,000 active-duty military personnel. To address the unique needs of this population, the Virginia Commission for the Arts (VCA) recently convened a Creative Forces Arts Summit to support wounded service members and their families through the arts. The summit was held in Virginia Beach near the Joint Expeditionary Base at Little Creek, a new National Endowment for the Arts Creative Forces expansion site. Military officers, community organizations, arts therapists, medical providers, civic leaders and arts leaders all came together to learn about best practices and identify ways to collaborate to assist injured service members and their families. VCA engaged a broad team of partners in the summit including the Eastern Virginia Medical School, Virginia Veterans Family Support, Virginia Beach Economic Development, The Sandler Center Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and Americans for the Arts. For more information, contact VCA Executive Director Margaret Vanderhye. (Photo: Creative Forces Arts Summit, by the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art)