Welcoming Lily Stanley: Our New Director of Outreach & Education at Northern Lakes Arts Association
Updated: Oct 5
This fall, we welcomed Lily Stanley to Northern Lakes Arts Association as our new Director of Outreach & Education.
A Familiar Face in Ely
If you’ve been around NLAA over the last few years, Lily may already be a familiar face. She moved to Ely in 2023 and started participating in NLAA productions and events around town. Now, she is stepping into a new role, helping us think more intentionally about education, outreach, volunteers, partnerships, and how people find their way into the arts in the first place.
A Journey to Ely
Lily grew up in a small farming community in rural Illinois. Before coming to Ely, she spent several years moving around and working seasonal jobs in Alaska and Wisconsin.
“I really love adventure and the outdoors, so living at the doorstep of the Boundary Waters and Quetico has been amazing,” Lily said. “I am also a huge bookworm and could happily spend all my days reading if that was an option.”
But the arts were part of her life long before she arrived in Ely.
“My dad is a human jukebox for all kinds of music, but he has an abnormally large repertoire of musical theatre,” she said. “Growing up, he’d sing songs from all the classic shows that he grew up listening to, and I’d rent the movies from the library and dream of being the next Julie Andrews or Judy Garland.”
Access to the Arts
Growing up in a rural community also shaped how Lily thinks about access to the arts.
“I grew up in a tiny farm town in rural Illinois that had limited arts opportunities close by, and then as an adult I kept moving to these remote places that also had little happening in the way of arts,” she said.
Coming to Ely was different.
“Moving to Ely and starting to participate in NLAA productions and other events around town was a breath of fresh air. But I know what it’s like to feel like you’re missing out on things you love just because of where you live, so I jumped at the chance to work with NLAA in creating programming that builds those opportunities for our community.”
That experience is a big part of what Lily brings to this position.
Rethinking Arts Education
We have been doing a lot of thinking at NLAA about what arts education can look like in a rural community. It cannot only be about training people who already consider themselves artists. There need to be places to start, opportunities to try something new, and ways to participate, whether someone is eight years old, 38, or 78.
Lily describes arts education in much the same way.
“Arts education is about creating opportunities: to learn something new, to grow a skillset, to cultivate something that you enjoy doing just for the joy itself,” she said. “Sometimes it can be hard to find these things on your own, so arts education allows for an entryway in or maybe a gateway to something bigger.”
Valuing Time and Experience
She also wants the programs we offer to be worth the time people give to them.
“Everyone’s lives are so busy, and especially at certain times of the year in Ely, there is so much going on, it’s hard to decide what you want to participate in and/or even have time for,” Lily said. “I want to build programming that values people and the time they are spending with us, and allows them to leave with a high value experience even if it was the first time they’ve ever tried something.”
For Lily, that work includes supporting the people who teach as much as the people who participate. She sees successful arts education as offering a wide range of opportunities at different skill levels while continuing to listen to what people in the community actually want. It also means giving teaching artists space to grow their own work and share what they know with others.
Engaging New Audiences
One group Lily is particularly interested in reaching is people who may not think of themselves as “arts people.”
“A lot of ‘outdoor’ people may think the arts are not for them, which is untrue since the arts are for everyone,” she said. “I’d hope to engage with this demographic and show them what the arts can offer.”
That feels particularly important here.
People come to and stay in Ely for all kinds of reasons. Someone can spend Saturday paddling, hunting, hiking, or splitting wood and still want to sing in a choir, take a painting class, learn an instrument, see a play, or try something they have never done before. Those things do not have to exist in separate worlds.
Looking Ahead
As Lily settles into the position, she is already thinking about where we can grow.
“I’m a little biased towards the musical and performing arts, so I’d love to help create more educational opportunities for acting, singing, and dancing skills for adults,” she said.
She would also like to see more opportunities for people to learn music locally, particularly when it comes to instruments.
But before any of that comes listening. Lily’s role is not simply to decide what NLAA should offer. It is to spend time with the people who live, teach, create, work, volunteer, and participate here and help us build programs around what our community actually needs.
A Warm Welcome
And when somebody does decide to try something for the first time, Lily’s hope for them is pretty simple.
“Well, I’d hope they feel excited!” she said. “But really that they feel welcome and supported as they start the process of learning something new.”
Outside of NLAA, Lily is still very much the person who moved to Ely looking for adventure. She loves the outdoors, goes on canoe trips frequently, and reads whenever she gets the chance. Recently, she has been on a seafaring story kick and recommends Hampton Sides’ The Wide Wide Sea and In the Kingdom of Ice.
She is also working on her piano skills after years away and has her sights set on Felix Arndt’s Nola, which is her current music fixation.
“I would love to be able to play it on the piano someday,” she said, “but I’m not quite there yet.”
We’re glad Lily is here, and we’re glad she has chosen to take on this work with us.
If you see her at a class, performance, around town, or somewhere out on the trail, say hello. And if there is something you have always wanted to learn, teach, make, or try in Ely, tell her.
That is a pretty good place for us to start.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Lily's arrival at Northern Lakes Arts Association marks an exciting chapter for our community. Her passion for the arts and commitment to inclusivity will undoubtedly enrich the cultural landscape of Ely and Northern Minnesota. Together, we can foster creativity and ensure that the arts thrive in our vibrant rural setting.
Let’s embrace this journey together, as we explore the endless possibilities that the arts have to offer.
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