More than 300 attend inaugural SMARTS family dinner

YOUNGSTOWN — The arts give people hope for their dreams, said Mahoing Valley-area native Kirsti Manna, keynote speaker for the inaugural SMARTS family dinner tonight at Stambaugh Auditorium.

More than 300 people attended the event.

SMARTS is an acronym for Students Motivated by the Arts, a community art school located in Youngstown’s Ohio One Building downtown.

Manna, who grew up in Poland, and her husband, Bill Warner, originally of Boardman, who accompanied her, are now part of the Nashville, Tenn., music scene.

Both are graduates of Youngstown State University’s Dana School of Music.

For the complete story, read Thursday's Vindicator and Vindy.com