Representing the Los Alamos Arts Council at the TopHAT Gala Tuesday are from left, Megan Hesselink, Andy Fischer Wright and executive director Brandi Engleman. Also pictured is Jill Rubio, executive director of PEEC. Courtesy photo
The award received by Los Alamos Arts Council for Community Engagement. Courtesy photo
LAAC NEWS RELEASE
The Los Alamos Arts Council was recognized Tuesday November 18th at the annual NM Hospitality Association’s TopHAT Gala and award ceremony for their excellence in Community Engagement.
This award is in recognition of the hard work and efforts our organization has put in to ensure that our events and programs drive tourism and economic development opportunities through Los Alamos as well as our multiple partnerships with other nonprofits, small businesses, and state entities.
Staff was in attendance on Tuesday, along with members from the LACDC, Los Alamos MainStreet and Creative District, County of Los Alamos Economic Development Department staff, Chamber of Commerce staff, and representatives from PEEC, who also won an award during the evening’s event.
We want to thank the LACDC and Mainstreet for nominating us for this award, and we want to thank our community partners who have stood by us through thick and thin these last five years as the world has changed how we plan and execute our programming.
Being recognized in front of industry professionals from around the state who understand the efforts that we each endeavor to take in order to brighten our communities while improving our local economy was a delightful experience and the chance to engage with other professionals who are doing the “boots on the ground” work in New Mexico was a reminder to all of us that our hard work pays off in more ways than are immediately evident to those of us in the thick of it.
We hope that this recognition will give our events another little boost of attention statewide, bringing even more participants to the activities we have planned in 2026, and opens the door to more partnerships with our local hospitality and small businesses as we continue to grow the creative industry in and around our county.
This is a timely reminder, in an uncertain economic climate, that the creative industries in New Mexico are strong and thriving and can be key to a diverse local economy. We will continue to live up to the expectation of delivering strong community programs and working with our partners to ensure that the quality of our engagement is worthy of this award.
Our fundraising efforts continue in December. We are only $7200 shy of our annual fundraising goal and hope that the community will continue to support our efforts to start the New Year in a better financial position. We aren’t out of the woods; fundraising has to continue at a steady pace and we are looking for sponsors for our annual events to ensure that our budget can meet the needs of the programming. If you are a LANL employee, consider a giving match through the employee giving program. Local businesses who would like to expand their reach and connect with community members at our events can consider a sponsorship or business membership. Individual donors are encouraged to set up small, recurring donations; these add up quickly! There are some wonderful fundraising events on our calendar, and we’re updating our events page weekly with all of our offerings, so be sure to check in to see what’s coming up.
With Affordable Arts in full swing at the Fuller Lodge Art Center, we encourage everyone to visit us and shop from one of our 150+ local and regional New Mexican artists. With gifts for everyone and every budget, when you purchase an item in our gallery gift shop, you are not only supporting our nonprofit mission, you are putting dollars directly into the hands of a local artist. Our hours can be found on our website, with special holiday hours for Black Friday and Shop Small Saturday.
Art Classes and Community Art Programs continue throughout December and we have a robust winterfest weekend planned with activities on and off campus to complement the county wide celebrations from December 5th-December 8th. We will have exciting news about our afterschool programs for the New Year later in December, especially for those families who are waiting to hear about the status of our afterschool studio programs.
Our organization has definitely had a rough few months, but staff and volunteers have continued to deliver on our promise to Unite the Community Through the Arts, and to support local artists, patrons, visitors, and students. We plan to continue these efforts into 2026, but cannot do it alone. Thank you for continuing to stand up for the arts in Los Alamos, and we hope you will visit us over this holiday season.
For more information on becoming a donor, sponsor, member, or attending a class or workshop, please visit our website at www.losalamosartscouncil.org or reach out to us at info@laac-flac.org