Johnston County Arts Council to celebrate 50th anniversary By MIKE BOLLINGER
SMITHFIELD — A milestone birthday deserves a big celebration. Such a celebration will take place March 20 when the Johnston County Arts Council celebrates its 50th anniversary. From 3-5 p.m. in the Frank Creech Gallery at Johnston Community College, the council will host an exhibit and reception showcasing the talents of current JCAC board members and honor council founder John Hobart of Smithfield. That celebration will take place 50 years to the day from the date the first steering committee met and officially formed the council on March 20, 1972. “The exhibit and reception will be open to the public. We want the public to attend,” JCAC executive director Darlene Williford said. Hobart was chair of that steering committee, which also included Norman Grantham Jr. of Smithfield, Faye Lee Lampe of Smithfield, Robert Holt of Four Oaks, Eleanor Hooks of Smithfield and Christine J. Massey of Clayton. Hobart and his wife, Frankie, are still very much involved in the activities of the arts council. “I thought an arts council could become a binding force that could bring people in the various communities of the county together in the name of the arts,” said Hobart. Williford emphasized the council is not just about visual arts. “We have all these different arts: writing, music, theatre and many others. You would be surprised how many artists we have in Johnston County,” she said. “We’re really blessed with the talent in 14 | [ JOHNSTON NOW ]
Johnston County Arts Council founder John Hobart, center, will be honored at a reception to celebrate the JCAC's 50th anniversary March 20 in the Frank Creech Gallery at Johnston Community College. Hobart and his wife, Frankie, left, are still active with the council. Darlene Williford, right, is the JCAC executive director.
the county.” Hobart said he was in Reidsville working at Rockingham Community College when he saw an arts council being formed for Rockingham County. At that time, the state was encouraging the formation of arts councils in the various communities, and Hobart decided an arts council would be good for Johnston County. “I grew up in Smithfield, and John had very close connections here,” Frankie Hobart said. “Once we moved to Johnston County, forming the arts council had to do with a sincere hope to help the community. It was a goal to get the whole county involved. It has been a wonderful organization for that reason.” John Hobart said the idea of having an arts council here also stemmed from an arts and crafts festival that was held at JCC, then Johnston Technical Institute,
that included people from all parts of the county. “Out of that response, and the fact the state was encouraging the formation of arts councils, the inspiration for the Johnston County Arts Council was developed,” he said. Frankie Hobart said the state arts council, on which she would eventually serve, was just coming into being and it was a goal of then-Gov. Jim Hunt to have arts councils in every county in North Carolina. The first big event involving the JCAC was when the Artrain visited the county in September of 1974. More than 8,000 people toured the Artrain, which was parked along the side of the road with artists performing in box cars. “It was just one big, fun time,” Frankie Hobart said. She said that was the real beginning for the council because it was the first time volunteers were used to put on an event.
