The US Regional Arts Organizations (USRAO’s) has announced the grant recipients of Walking Together: Investing in Folklife in Communities of Color. A total of $3.34 million has been awarded to 96 grantees. Fifty-six organizations will each receive a $50,000 grant. Additionally, 40 individuals will each receive $15,000. Mid Atlantic Arts is administering the Walking Together program on behalf of the USRAOs.
In the state of Delaware, two grantees received funding from Walking Together. Terry Sammons of Wilmington will receive a $15,000 grant. Sammons specializes in Lenape beadwork and fish skin tanning. The grant will allow him to acquire more supplies for beadwork, create teaching opportunities, and preserve the culture of beadwork. Treinta Y Tres Delaware Rueda, an organization based in Claymont, will receive a $50,000 grant. The organization centers on Cuban Social Dance and the grant will allow them to share the vibrant tradition of Rueda de Casino through instruction, inclusive programming, and encouraging community.
This pilot program awards significant nonmatching grants to traditional artists, practitioners, nonprofits, local and Tribal governments, and community organizations and knowledge keepers that demonstrate a deep commitment to sustaining folklife rooted in communities of color.
Walking Together aims to facilitate a robust regional and national support network for traditional arts, support collaborative documentation and marketing services, and address historic precarity and disinvestment in folk arts and culture that communities of color face. Organizations and individuals deeply engaged in sustaining their community’s traditions receive unrestricted grants through Walking Together, with the aim of supporting their existing work and bolstering community traditions and knowledge into the future.
“We are excited and honored to support organizations and individuals sustaining folklife in their communities,” said Juan Souki, Executive Director of Mid Atlantic Arts. “Supporting folklife means directly supporting the intrinsic role art plays in everyday life. Sustaining cultural modes of knowledge is crucial to bolstering the vitality of underserved communities across every state and jurisdiction.”
“The arts have a unique power to bring people together, preserve heritage, and strengthen the fabric of our communities throughout the First State,” said Division of the Arts Director Jessica Ball. “I am thrilled to congratulate Terry Sammons and Trienta Y Tres Delaware Rueda on receiving Walking Together grants. Terry’s dedication to preserving Lenape cultural traditions connects us to the indigenous roots of our region, while Trienta Y Tres Delaware Rueda brings the joy and vibrancy of Cuban social dance to our neighborhoods. These grants will help celebrate and uplift these culturally specific practices, ensuring that all Delawareans can experience and appreciate the rich traditions that make our communities stronger.”
“This opportunity will allow us to continue spreading the joy of dancing Rueda de Casino,” said a representative from Treinta y Tres Delaware Rueda. “It helps us keep our community events affordable while sharing the rich cultural traditions of Cuba through our performances, Dance & Dines, and ongoing classes, bringing greater cultural awareness throughout the State of Delaware.”
“This is an opportunity to address inequities in arts philanthropy, with unrestricted support for caretakers of cultural knowledge rooted in communities of color,” says Ellie Dassler, Program Director of Folk and Traditional Arts at Mid Atlantic Arts. “Investing in traditional artists is investing in the well-being of their communities.”
Grant recipients are from all 50 states, DC, Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. All states and jurisdictions have at least one recommended grantee.
More than 2,000 organizations and artists applied for Walking Together funding in 2025. Eligible applicants were reviewed by six review panels—one per region—and selected applicants were invited to a second round of review. Each region also assembled committees of consultants composed of traditional artists, folklorists, scholars, arts professionals, and advocates as “Working Circles.” These Working Circle members were involved in every stage of the program, including the development of grant guidelines, outreach to potential applicants, and application review and feedback processes as part of a participatory grantmaking model.
