She grew up in Augusta, Ga., in a home with a disco ball that on late nights would become a beacon for community and connection. This is where Williams first began to study dance and where she said she learned that “dance is a celebration of community, of life, and joy.”

Malu Tan is a fulltime, award-winning artist who’s probably best known for her abstract work. But her status as a professional doesn’t mean she’s stopped being a student occasionally. “We have to continue to grow and challenge ourselves,” said the Charlotte-based painter. “That’s the value of this grant. It helped me improve as an artist.”

For centuries, bread has been at the center of every culture’s food tradition. It sustains us. It unites us. And now, through the work of the Our Daily Bread Foundation, it provides purpose for disenfranchised young people in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

“Growing up I did not have a lot of chances,” said Leai Ho, who was born and raised in Malaysia and has called Charlotte home since 1996. “ I was not exposed to the arts. It wasn’t something we could afford.” As a child, her exposure to art was limited to the art curriculum in school. So, as an adult, she looked for activities that matched her interests.

Charlotte filmmaker Joanne Hock was destined to become a filmmaker and storyteller. Her father – the son of a movie theater owner – spent countless days after school at the cinema. He shared his love of the artform with her and she recognized film as a medium that married the artistic elements of music, words and visual arts to make emotional connections.

What’s been erased can never be restored. That’s just one problem with tearing down history. There comes a time that people long for what’s no longer there. And it’s too late.