The next monthly meeting of the Arts Council board will take place April 16 at the library in Dushore, 6 pm. Though it’s technically a “board” meeting, all SCCA members and friends of the arts are welcome. We like to keep everyone in the loop that we possibly can – plus, we’re looking for new board members. Artists, of course, are welcome, but at this point we’d especially like to see a few “practical” hands added, those who some knowledge of funding, gladhanders and jolly good fellows with a background in the real world. Also, ideas for new programs and events are always welcome.

If you come, slip around to the library’s side door, which takes you through the office and out to the Grand Central Table where we gather. The Arts Council board is a fine bunch, the meetings are generally short and we have a good time. Oh, bring cookies.

(OK, this is a cheat because I copied most of it from my latest email. Can’t be original all the time, can we?) Our 8th annual lit contest has begun and will run through March 15, 2018. Please hound any student you know, grades 7-12 – public, private, home schooled, Red Rock Job Corps Center – to enter. We’re especially interested in tracking down the home schoolers, who can be difficult to identify. You can download the entry rules here. 

There’s a general feeling afoot that writing is falling by the wayside in these days of abbreviated texting. We’d hate to see that, but we also believe that this lapse is temporary – social trends change over time, and they’re galloping faster each year (a social “generation” is now 5 years or less). Creative writing is still out there and will likely show a resurgence when we least expect it.

Sort of like human decency.

–DD

With the Roving Theater on hiatus, we’re left with a fairly large gap in the Arts Council programming. Part of that (probably the largest part) will be filled with an expansion of our music offerings.

At this point, we plan to dissolve the Ultimate Weekend into smaller music klatches peppered throughout the year. Ragtime pianist Bob Milne will be returning as one of our acts and the Celtic Martins will extend their streak, on different dates and possibly at different locations.

We hope to include more dancing, more loosey-goosey, laidback, audience-participation events, and we hope to expand the roster of places where we bring our performers (preferrable ones with comfortable parking).

Outside the music sphere, we’re looking for summer programs for students that would be worthy of our scholarships. And not to neglect the older set, we’re considering a wider variety of adult programs and projects. We also want to create firmer bonds with other arts groups in the area

What would you like to see, hear, taste or smell that the Arts Council could provide? Take a minute to think about it, then send us a note here.

If you haven’t yet planned anything exciting for Saturday, Oct. 28, the SCCA is holding its annual potluck at Cherry Mills Lodge, just off Rt. 87, about 4 miles west of Dushore. It’s open to all members of the Arts Council, as well as anyone else interested in what’s going on with the arts in the area.

A true potluck, it involves the swapping of homemade foods, as well as the good companionship of the SCCA board members. It’s a lowkey event with no pressure of any kind, and there may be a bit of music provided by some friends. Show up around 6 pm, and don’t be shy about offering your favorite dish.

The Lodge is a beautiful place, run by the wondrous Kiner family. Check it out here.

We’ve ended up (or think this will be the end) with the Google calendar – free, simple to work with, does what we want and can be viewed by anyone. We hope the page link for the calendar will be picked up by every oufit in Sullivan County. We also hope for world peace and the return of the gold standard, but we’ll take what we can get.

Enjoy summer, which has relocated to the fall.

Derek Davis and Connie Hatch are putting the Calendar together from various lists, emails and suggestions. If anyone has ideas as to the best ways to display it, as well as items to include (or exclude), please let us know. Use this contact form.

At this point, what seems best is for us to maintain an Excel file offline, update it as needed, then upload it to the Calendar page. Not sure yet how well this would work, and it may take extra effort. But we do need to update offline, rather than chance too many people overlapping with each other if we used an updatable online calendar. Hope this makes sense.