When state budget cuts took $1 million from her arts group earlier this year, Barbara Fenhagen needed money fast.

So, the executive director of the South Jersey Performing Arts Center turned to an increasingly vital source of funds for arts groups - corporate contributions.

"We have gotten some additional money from businesses, which helps a great deal," she said Thursday night at a ceremony honoring the local arts community's backers in business and politics.

While Fenhagen hopes the political process eventually will restore the $1 million in aid, she predicts arts groups will look more and more to business donors for assistance.

"We obviously have a challenge to educate businesses," said Fenhagen, whose group today will host a regional Business/Arts Summit at its facility in the Tweeter Center.

"We also have to begin to work with the larger companies based in North Jersey. We have to remind them that 27 percent of the state's population is in South Jersey," she said.

Dorothy Rivers, former head of the Haddonfield Symphony, said arts groups may pursue joint projects with other nonprofits, such as providing art therapy at medical institutions.

"Corporations love that sort of thing because their money is supporting two groups," said Rivers, who was honored for her work in building arts/business partnerships.

State Sen. Wayne Bryant, D-Camden, who was cited for his support of the arts, said groups that develop alternate sources of funding might have an edge in the battle to receive scarce state aid.

State Sen. Joseph Roberts, D-Camden, agreed.

"We have to be more creative in finding alternative sources of funding," said Roberts, who also was honored.

"When an organization can show they've developed their own sources of money, it gives them more credibility and can help make government money available."

Honored were:

•Arts Partner - Max Appel, Appel Farm Arts and Music Center, Elmer;

•Business Volunteer - Peter Busam, Decisive Business Systems, Pennsauken;

•Business Partner - Frank Siegel and Video Communications Services, Mount Laurel;

•Chairman's Award - State Sen. Wayne Bryant, D- Camden;

•Corporate Partner - Lockheed Martin Technology Services;

•Government Partners - Assemblymen Louis Greenwald and Joseph Roberts, both D-Camden, and state Sen. John Matheussen, R-Gloucester;

•Partnership Advocate - Dorothy Rivers, Dorothy Rivers Group, Haddonfield.