Oxford First Selectman George R. Temple announced Thursday that the town has received two grants from the Katharine Matthies Foundation.
The first grant was for $7,500 to build a pavilion at the Ryan Vernooy Tennis Center. A second grant for $4,200 was awarded to the Oxford Cultural Arts Commission.
The Ryan Vernooy Tennis Center on Great Oak Road is under the supervision of the Oxford Parks and Recreation Department.
The parents, family and friends of Ryan Vernooy have raised the money to fund the Ryan Vernooy Tennis Center and greatly appreciate the contribution the Katharine Matthies Foundation has made.
The Tennis Center is a memorial to Ryan Vernooy. Ryan loved tennis and his parents felt it a fitting memorial to donate funding to build two new tennis courts with lighting, fencing and landscaping opposite the Great Oak Middle School on Great Oak Road. The dedication for the Ryan Vernooy Tennis Center is scheduled for Oct. 20.
The $4,200 awarded to the Oxford Cultural Arts Commission will go toward general operating expenses for the Gallery of Art and the Nine-Mile Players.
The Gallery of Art is an annual showcase of artists exhibited in the Meeting Room in the Oxford Town Hall. The weekend of Sept. 28, 29, and 30 will the the Commission’s Third Annual Gallery of Art.
The Nine-Mile Players is Oxford’s community theater. The Players have performed Little Women, The Red Lantern, an original one-act play, as a stage reading, and is now announcing auditions for Footloose.
