A standing-room only crowd was on hand at the Regional Enterprise Tower Downtown Wednesday to watch as $1 million was awarded to 12 regional and 88 grassroots projects that will highlight the music, art, environment, history, science and diversity of the 14-county Southwestern Pennsylvania during Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary next year.

Under the banner of "Community Connections" and the theme of "Pride and Progress," the winners were chosen from 500 entries and selected by panels of community leaders. Most of the grassroots grantees will receive awards of $5,000, while the larger regional projects will receive $50,000. Among the regional grantees were the August Wilson Center for African American Culture, which will collect the work and personal stories of local artists, and the River City Brass Band, which will commission Pittsburgh-themed musical works from seven local composers.

The $1 million was donated by 19 private foundations, corporations and community foundations, and the projects will be administered by the Sprout Fund, a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit group.

Questions or comments on this presentation may be sent here. This video was produced by Melissa Tkach.