Happy New Year to friends of the IBMA Foundation across the country and around the world! We couldn’t be happier to be kicking off 2026 with you.
Our shared passion for bluegrass music and the positive effect it has on our lives inspire us to work even harder together to support programs and initiatives that foster the growth of bluegrass. Thanks so much for helping the Foundation to make that happen in 2025, We can hardly wait to see what the new year brings!
The deadline to apply for Arnold Shultz Fund grants is January 31. Please help us share the word! The link to the downloadable application form is on our homepage at the bottom: https://bluegrassfoundation.org.
The Shultz Fund was created in 2020 to encourage people of color/underrepresented individuals in the bluegrass community to become more involved with the music. Thanks again to the Pisgah Banjo Company who hosts a banjo raffle each year to benefit the IBMA Foundation’s Arnold Shultz Fund!
In this issue of The Cornerstone, you’ll find an announcement of a new scholarship especially for those who work offstage in music production to create the magic of live music festivals and concerts. There’s also a unique grant report from our friends at the Jam Pak youth program in Arizona, who recently connected with young musicians in the Appalachian states of the southeastern United States. Equally exciting grant reports are shared from Virginia, West Virginia, and Ireland!
The IBMA Foundation project grant review committee is meeting in early January, and we plan to announce recipients in the February 1, 2026 issue of The Cornerstone. Thanks to all 29 applicants from all over the United States and beyond!
It’s a wonderful bluegrass world out there, and we’re so happy you’re a part of it, through your support of the IBMA Foundation, as well as everything you do personally to share the music. We appreciate you!
–Nancy Cardwell, IBMA Foundation executive director
Design by KJ Pargeter
RETURN to the January 2026 issue of The Cornerstone.
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