Awarded Best Economic Development Initiative in Wisconsin!
Who We Are.
CREATE has become a leading voice in the field of small-city, people-centered community and economic development. Established in 2004 as an arts advocacy organization, CREATE learned quickly how to leverage creativity and culture to attract and support people with big ideas. We launched an innovation center to grow those big ideas and to accelerate creative ventures in the arts, business, and community impact.
CREATE now works at the overlaps of creative placemaking, social cohesion, and entrepreneurial ecosystem building. We are helping communities activate people, places, and possibilities that improve quality of life and strengthen local economies.
OUR TEAM
+ MAGGIE MARQUARDT
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
she/her
"Fundraising, when stripped of all the barriers we put up around it, is about discovering meaning and how to translate that meaning into action." -Jennifer McCrea
Maggie is one of those rare individuals that could take on any job. Her expertise in fundraising and donor cultivation is strategic, and she is able to effectively collaborate with program managers to refine and implement solutions. Described by colleagues as loyal, intelligent and having a generous spirit, Maggie’s skills, strong work ethic and personable manner make her a strong asset to any organization.
Serving as CREATE’s Co-Vice President since 2016, she has helped focus our efforts in three areas: facilitating placemaking & public art to connect community to identity, developing infrastructure & programming to connect innovators to resources, and curating events & experiences to connect people to community.
Specialties: Relationship development, public speaking, grant writing, arts management, nonprofits, corporate and foundation relations, fundraising, marketing
+ GARRETT KATERZYNSKE
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS AND DIGITAL MARKETING
he/him
Garrett Katerzynske utilizes his experience in film production, advertising, journalism and media studies to support a range of projects and resources within CREATE. His passion for the creative arts and ability to communicate strategically help connect our members and enhance our overall brand. In every project he pursues, he strives to bring aesthetics and design in sync with authentic storytelling and strategic goals. Collaboration and careful consideration are key to his approach, ensuring our full community is considered within a rapidly-evolving creative landscape.
+ DANA SONNENBERG
PROJECT MANAGER - ARTS AND EXPERIENCES
she/her
Dana Sonnenberg comes to CREATE after serving Arts Lab in Minnesota and the marketing team of the Exclamation CUSO run in partnership with Simplicity. She brings a background in Arts Management (graduating from the UWSP program), marketing, and equity, diversity, and inclusion work that makes her perfect for CREATE’s blend of services.
HIGHLIGHTS
HONORS, ACHIEVEMENTS, & PUBLICATIONS
2020 - Selected as one of Portage County's People of the Year by the Stevens Point Journal.
2020 - Paint the County! and it’s “Voices Project” chosen to be part of the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission.
2020 - Awarded funds through A Community Thrives for anti-racism efforts.
2020 - Recipient of the Wisconsin Economic Development Association’s “Economic Development Initiative of the Year.”
2020 - Supported the installation of a marker recognizing the burial ground on which UWSP was built.
2020 - Paint the County! selected as part of Arts Wisconsin’s and the WEDC’s Creative Workforce program.
2020 - Supported the creation of a Diversity Affairs & Inclusion Committee at the County Board.
2020 - Produced 4,000+ face shields for frontline COVID-19 workers with key community partners.
2019 - Selected as one of Portage County's People of the Year by the Stevens Point Journal.
2019 - Piloted the Fellowship Program with the MBA at UW-Stevens Point.
2019 - Featured in the Wisconsin Counties Magazine for “Using Culture as an Accelerator.”
2019 - Interviewed for Strong Town’s “It’s the Little Things” podcast on “Fostering Creative (and Financially Resilient) Communities."
2019 - Awarded funds through A Community Thrives in support of the IDEA Center, an innovation hub.
2019 - Featured on a Highway to Well podcast focused creativity and wellness.
2019 - Supports the launch of Portage County’s first ever Hmong Week.
2019 - Invited onto Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Route 51” to discuss creative placemaking.
2018 - Invited to present at the Creative Placemaking Leadership Summit in Chattanooga on using creativity to reenergize small-town economies.
2018 - Invited as a featured case study, speaking at the closing session of the ArtsLab cultural development program.
2017 - Selected as one of Portage County's People of the Year by the Stevens Point Journal.
2017 - Supported the launch of Hatch, which would grow into a statewide pitch competition.
2017 - Works with the Stevens Point Brewery on a mural to commemorate their 160th anniversary.
2017 - Presented the IDEA Center concept at the annual Wisconsin Educators of Business & IT Conference.
2017 - Invited to speak at the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters conversation on creativity and small-town economies.
2017 - Selected to participate in the Levitt AMP [Your City] program, bringing ten weeks of free live music to the Pfiffner Bandshell.
2016 - Presents with the Central WI Economic Research Bureau on “The New Economy: How Creative Communities Attract Growth.”
2016 - The #OrangeBarrelArt Tour, in partnership with the Stevens Point Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, wins the 2016 Wisconsin Tourism Trailblazer Award.
2016 - Newaukee invites CREATE to share its IDEA Center concept at their Empty Storefronts conference in Madison.
2016 - The Arts Alliance of Portage County relaunches as CREATE Portage County.
2015 - The Alexander Landerman mural "The Fox Can" is featured as part of the Fort Collins Mural Monday project.
2015 - The Wisconsin Main Street program invites the Arts Alliance to speak about downtown revitalization and placemaking.
2015 - Milwaukee Biz Times names Greg Wright, Executive Director, the Innovator to Watch for the arts in Wisconsin.
2015 - Arts Wisconsin invites the Arts Alliance to present on the Creative Economy at Arts Day 2015.
2014 - The "Celebrate the Arts" program earns the "Arts Destination Marketing Award" from Destination Marketing International and Americans for the Arts.
2013 - The WI Department of Tourism awards the Arts Alliance and the Convention & Visitors Bureau a JEM Grant for their "Celebrate the Arts" campaign.
2011 - Bill Schierl, President & Founder, receives the "Arts in the Community" award from Arts Wisconsin.