The arts and culture sector can’t exist in a silo. It relies on people and organizations outside the field who bring their own expertise, resources, and perspective to support the work and help it reach further. This year’s honorees for this category have each found meaningful ways to contribute to the strength, visibility, and sustainability of our creative community.
The Supporter of the Arts & Culture Sector Spark Award honors an individual or organization outside of the sector whose work directly aids or supports the arts and cultural industry.
City of Light Creative & Consulting
2026 Supporter of the Arts & Culture Sector Award Winner
City of Light Creative & Consulting supports nonprofits across Western New York and beyond with strategic planning, fund development, grant writing, communications, training, and brand identity support. While the firm works with nonprofits of all kinds, its work with arts and cultural organizations reflects a clear understanding of the realities of the sector, particularly for small organizations working with limited resources.
Much of that support is personal. Nikki Ronan and the City of Light team work closely with their nonprofit clients to understand what they need and build practical, flexible
solutions around those needs. The firm makes that support more accessible through free consultations and resources, flexible scheduling, reduced rates, and customizable service packages.
Their support extends beyond consulting, too. City of Light regularly sponsors and promotes the work of its clients and other nonprofit organizations, helping bring attention to the work happening across the community. The team also connects organizations with other resources and people when a particular need falls outside their expertise, even when that means sending business elsewhere.
That combination of practical expertise, flexibility, and genuine investment in the organizations they serve makes City of Light Creative & Consulting the 2026 Spark Award recipient for Supporter of the Arts & Culture Sector.
“They develop a deep, personal bond with everyone they work with.”
The Buffalo Hive
2026 Supporter of the Arts & Culture Sector Honorable Mention
The Buffalo Hive is a nonprofit online journalism organization dedicated to covering Western New York’s arts and culture communities. Launched in 2024, the publication combines independent reporting with a comprehensive arts and culture calendar, helping audiences discover exhibitions, performances, events, and the people behind them.
In its first two years, The Buffalo Hive has published more than 2,000 stories and several thousand events, drawing more than 100,000 site visitors. The organization also prioritizes paying the local journalists and freelancers who contribute to its coverage, having paid more than $30,000 to writers while collaborating with photographers, videographers, podcasters, and arts organizations across the region.
By covering arts and culture across disciplines and communities, The Buffalo Hive helps local organizations and artists reach new audiences while giving the public a central place to find out what is happening throughout Western New York. Ongoing investment in independent arts coverage and support of the people creating and documenting the region’s cultural life, makes The Buffalo Hive the 2026 Spark Award Honorable Mention for Supporter of the Arts & Culture Sector.
