More Than $25K of Free Arts Programs Provided for Waterville Area Youth
In less than four years, arts non-profit Waterville Creates has provided in excess of $250,000 of free arts experiences for children and teens through its Youth Arts Access Fund, or YAAF. The program was launched in March 2022.
Anyone aged 18 or under can activate YAAF to cover some or all of the price of admission to any of Waterville Creates programs, no questions asked, no proof of need necessary. For an $8 movie ticket at the Maine film Center or or $250 registration for a week-long theater camp at the Waterville Opera House, or anything in between, YAAF works just the same.
Community Support
YAAF, described by Maine Arts Commission Chair Bob Keyes as presenting “a national model” for youth access to arts, represents a major cornerstone of Waterville Creates’ mission and values, and one that the community particularly believes in. As one local teen put it following an event at Waterville Creates, “The Youth Arts Access Fund has been a huge help, and I just think it boosts community.”
The Waterville Creates community has rallied around this initiative to make sure younger audiences can continue to attend their favorite programs without obstacle. The fund has no formal budget or endowment: it is entirely supported by donations and corporate sponsorships, as well as a portion of all WC ticket sales.
Special note is due to major support from the Colby Center for the Arts and Humanities, the T-Mobile Foundation, Dirigo Wealth Management, One River CPAs, Waterville Area Women’s Club, Northem Light Inland Hospital, Central Maine Power, first National Bank, GoNet Speed, and Skowhegan Savings Bank. In 2024, all proceeds from two David Byrne appearances with his nonprofit Reasons to Be Cheerful at the Watervi1le Opera House and Maine film Center went directly to YAAF, injecting around $20,000 into the fund.
Looking ahead, January 2026 already had around three dozen YAAF-eligible programs on the books for Waterville Creates, with more regular-run releases at the Maine film Center yet to be set in stone. As the organization continuously expands its programmatic offerings in the performing arts, film, clay, education, the visual arts, and more, local and visiting youth have more opportunities than ever before to explore new creative experiences. The Youth Arts Access Fund ensures they will have those opportunities no matter what.
You can lean more about the Youth Arts Access Fund at www.watervillecreates.org/yaaf/.
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