HISTORIC paintings and pictures showing Okehampton?s past will form part of an exhibition thanks to a grant from the National Lottery?s Awards for All scheme. Following the recent disclosure of a series of paintings and pictures of ?old? Okehampton, the town council has been awarded £2,500 to catalogue and record the images and prepare an open exhibition. Local historians will also be involved in the project by providing information about the faces and scenes depicted. Okehampton town clerk Don Bent said among the paintings were pictures of old mayors of Okehampton, pictures of benefactor Sidney Simmons, and of historic town scenes. Mr Bent said: ?It is a super collection. This is an opportunity for the council to put on a display about people who have done a lot to promote the town in the past and a chance to recognise what they did.? Also successful in the latest round of applications was Okehampton Community College, which received a grant of £4,900 to support the ?I can do it? project. The project has been specifically created for adults with learning disabilities to stimulate their creative and artistic awareness through weekly workshops exploring a variety of themes. South Tawton Parish Council has also received a £2,580 grant as part of a community project to enhance the parish environment. A living willow has been planted on the bank of the stream that runs through the village to aid conservation and stop erosion. Since the National Lottery started ten years ago, 7,420 Awards for All grants have been made to grass roots community groups and organisations in the South West, totalling almost £25-million.
