Through Grace, much of Modesto learned to love the arts

When Grace Lieberman called me with an urgent message one day a few years ago, I immediately called her back, thinking some emergency occurred.

“Carole,” she began, stretching my name in her still thick Rhode Island accent, “can you help me write an essay for a national contest that is awarding $100,000 prizes to Seniors finding a new purpose in their lives. I want to use the funds to continue the Stanislaus Arts Council.”

I gladly replied I’d help her, and so began my day-long experience listening to Grace tell her life story and share her love of the arts. Grace had been an acquaintance before then; but after our meeting, we became friends until her passing earlier this year.

Her friendship left an indelible mark on me, as it did on her many friends and colleagues.

Grace began her career as an elementary school teacher in a small Rhode Island coastal community near a state prison. The deprivation she saw in small children motivated her to encourage her young students through the arts – she urged young Evelyn to write poetry to overcome the fear of her alcoholic father; she engendered hope in Billy by encouraging him to tell his stories, even one involed his father starting a fire in the family bathtub.

I sat fascinated at our meeting, while she weaved tales of children she helped by instilling a love of art and music.

Grace recounted her teaching days at Oakland Beach Elementary School and later Rhode Island College and City College of New York, teaching institutions that changed her life. When she arrived with her husband in Modesto in 1978, she again witnessed residents who were not only economically deprived but had few cultural outlets to express their talents. She shared with me how the hard work ethic of so many in our largely agricultural community precluded many from ever seeing a play or attending a theatre.

Saturday, at 2 p.m., Grace will be remembered in a tribute from Modesto’s arts community at the State Theatre. Organized by Modesto actor and director David Barbaree, it will bring together the many friends, theater colleagues, the Modesto Symphony Orchestra Chorus and many of her students who share that passion by carrying on her legacy.

Grace believed our region was rich in traditional art, dance and music – but its artistic talent too often went unrecognized and was undervalued. She wanted more arts for children and a theater. Her tenacity to take surveys, conduct public meetings and deliver the arts to residents led to continuous changes in how art is presented and now delivered in the northern San Joaquin Valley. It was this tenacity, a founding board of directors and $12,000 from the State of California that allowed her to start the Stanislaus Arts Council.

In 2010, she was named California Arts Council Director of the Year and served on the Gallo Center for the Arts board of trustees. When she learned that many senior citizens had never performed nor participated backstage, she created and produced the Senior Spotlight. As schools cut funds for the arts, Grace initiated the Stanislaus Artists Resources in Schools – or STARS – program, which placed professional artists in classrooms, encouraging both you and old to engage.

Through Grace’s influence, thousands of students participated annually in the STARS program, and just as many seniors attended Serenades on Sunday concerts. She believed in diversity and supported groups from the Latino community and those promoting the International Festival. Actors such as Timothy Oliphant, Jeremy Renner and James Marsters emerged from the northern San Joaquin Valley after working with Grace Lieberman.

In the 1980s, Grace created the “Yes You Can!” Children’s Museum on the lower west side of Stanislaus County, considered highly unusual at the time, but Grace made it a success. Her efforts to create new venues for people to discover their talents raised the level of awareness of the arts and inspired art education programs for thousands of residents in the area.

Grace also found time to enjoy the arts she loved: especially performance and music. She joined the Modesto Master Singers and was a member of the Modesto Symphony Orchestra all volunteer adult Chorus. She performed in countless plays and musicals throughout the region, from the Prospect Theater to the Denair Gaslight Theater, which helped fuel her passion.

Though not a Valley native, Modesto was her home. She made it her purpose to use her passion and experience to bring arts to children and seniors, enhancing the lives of many Stanislaus County residents. Her oft-repeated words included, “we need a tsunami of art in the Valley” and, “if arts had the same visibility as sports, it would solve our valley’s problems!”

Grace Lieberman passed away in April, but the legacy of her passion for arts and music lives on. She could be outspoken and tough talking, but was also kind and could find humor in every story. Eeryone who knew her has an anecdote about Grace, sprinkled with a laugh.

At The State on Saturday, perhaps you’ll almost hear Grace, adding her opinion and nodding approval as music and art lives on in our region.