Margarita M. Phillips 
SILER CITY – William “Chip” Pate, a marketing and public relations consultant serving education and nonprofit clients, has been named a 2021 Community Hero by JMArts, the Jordan-Matthews Arts Foundation. The annual award was created to honor a community volunteer who has made a significant contribution to the success of the arts at Jordan-Matthews High School.
The award was presented on May 27 by JMArts President Rose Pate as part of the JMArts Awards, an online ceremony showcasing outstanding student musicians, actors and visual artists. Arts awards are usually announced as part of the JM Awards Night, an annual event featuring top students from all disciplines. But due to the pandemic, the arts awards were announced by faculty members in video presentations on JMArts Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The awards ceremony is pinned to the top of JMArts Twitter on twitter.com/JMHSArts or is accessible on all platforms with the hashtag # JMAawards2021.
Chip and Rose Pate are married; Chip was one of the founders of JMArts, working with Rose, the current president of JMArts, to create the foundation a decade ago. Since then, Chip, the owner of Pate and Associates Marketing in Pittsboro, has donated over a third of his billable hours each year to help nonprofits, with most of those hours going to JMArts.
He was involved in setting the strategic direction of JMArts and managed the association’s marketing and public relations, including its website, social media, press releases, JMArts Update newsletter, his photographs and his relations with the media.
Building on his doctorate. in higher education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chip also helped develop the foundation’s educational programs. He helped create the JMArts “Performing in College†educational roundtable for high school students planning to major in the performing arts in college, and he designs the foundation’s annual arts adventure in New York City.
This signature educational trip is built from scratch each year around the interests of traveling students. Chip books hotels and flights, plans meals, and works with associates in New York City to organize special events like backstage Broadway tours and extended lunches for students to learn from theater critics, actors and from nationally respected producers.
While the students enjoyed the benefits of his work with JMArts, he says he has also been blessed.
“I’ve said this many times before, so it’s no secret that these student actors, musicians and visual artists are the only thing that gives me hope for the future,” he said. he declares. “They work incredibly hard, even without some of the benefits that many schools take for granted. They are truly exceptional people and most of all they encourage and care for each other.
“It’s something you probably don’t see unless you’re backstage, in rehearsal, or in the art studio, but, honestly, it’s impressive. I just wish everyone could see what I saw, so that they too can be encouraged and inspired.
Because Chip participates in the preparation and promotion of the arts awards every year, Rose had to inform her husband of the honor in advance. She prefaced this discussion by saying, “It was the committee, not me,†knowing that it might be a little uncomfortable to present an award so close to home.
On the other hand, the decision made sense.
“We both got involved in supporting JM’s arts programs when our son was a student here, and we found it so rewarding that we stayed active,†said Rose. “We could never have had the impact we had without the service of Chip. If you’ve ever heard of JMArts, it’s thanks to their work.
All of the arts award winners in recent years are listed online at jmarts.org/awards.
More information about JMArts, including its flagship JMArts Scholars program, is available at jmarts.org.
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