SCC Partners with Renowned Artist Paul Stankard by Raffling ‘Salem Bouquet’ Glass Art to Fund Scholarships

By: Follow Local News Staff

The “Salem Bouquet,” a 4-inch-in-diameter, spherical paperweight created and generously donated by internationally renowned glass artist Paul J. Stankard. Raffle tickets will be sold — $10 each or three for $25 — and a drawing will take place at the planned June 12 “Night of Thanks” at SCC. (Photo by Jeff DiMarco)

CARNEYS POINT, N.J. — The Salem Community College (SCC) Foundation is again partnering with internationally renowned glass artist and SCC distinguished alumnus Paul J. Stankard to raise funds for scholarships.

This latest fundraiser — a raffle for the “Salem Bouquet,” a stunning 4-inch-in-diameter, spherical paperweight created and generously donated by Stankard — is now underway. Valued at $7,500, the paperweight features flowers, fruit, and honeybees, and is signed with a Paul Stankard cursive cane. Raffle tickets — which are $10 each or three for $25 — may be purchased at www.salemcc.edu/night or by contacting SCC Foundation Executive Director Ceil Smith at csmith@salemcc.edu.

The SCC Foundation will draw the winning ticket at “The Night of Thanks,” a reception on Friday, June 12 from 4:30 to 8 p.m. in Davidow Hall on the SCC campus located at 460 Hollywood Avenue in Carneys Point, New Jersey. The winner need not be present to win. Tickets to the Night of Thanks reception are being sold at $35 each, and are also available at the SCC website. In addition to the paperweight raffle drawing, the evening will feature a silent auction and substantial hors d’oeuvres provided by DiPaolo’s.

A Mantua resident, Stankard is a proud, long-time supporter of SCC’s signature programs in scientific glass technology and glass art. The programs are now housed in the new 20,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art Sam and Jean Jones Glass Education Center, which opened on the SCC campus last September. The center’s studio/lab is named in Stankard’s honor. He graduated from the scientific glassblowing program at SCC in 1963.

Through Stankard’s unwavering guidance,the college has advanced the South Jersey glass tradition and, like Stankard, has gained international respect. That tradition has its roots in Salem County, where Wistarburg Glass Works was the first successful glass factory in the 13 colonies beginning in 1739 in Alloway. Stankard has said he’s grateful his career is anchored in the South Jersey glass tradition.

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