CERF+ Publishes Impact Report

The Craft Emergency Relief Fund (CERF+) released their 2022 Impact Report, which is available online.

In September, the Craft Emergency Relief Fund’s (DBA CERF+) Board of Directors and Staff announced the appointment of Ruby Lopez Harper as the organization’s next executive director.

Lopez Harper brings a wealth of expertise in arts and disaster management. She fulfilled several roles at Americans for the Arts (AFTA) over the past six years, most recently as Vice President of Equity and Local Arts Engagement. Prior to AFTA, she served as Grants and Services Director of the Greater Columbus Arts Council.

An artist sent me an email thanking me for spending time with them during a coaching session and said, ‘You are the patron saint of individual artists’ – I took that to heart. From my time leading a small community theater to my time leading a grants and services department and individual artist programming to my time advocating for visibility and acknowledgment of artists to my own identity as a craft artist – I’m in a particular place in my career where I can bring all this and an equity foundation to expand the reach of CERF+ and invite even more craft artists into the fold.

-Lopez Harper

Since 1985, CERF+ has assisted hundreds of artists working in craft disciplines with emergency financial assistance, as well as resources and education programs for studio-based artists designed to strengthen and sustain their careers. CERF+ works to assure the well-being and success of artists through these programs and through research and advocacy to improve the overall safety net for artists before, during, and after disasters.