• MAGAZINE WRITING: Montclair Library

OnCenter, Montclair Public Library’s magazine; this issue’s theme is “finding community.”

(IN BRIEF)

TRENDING

18th Century e-device prediction
1771 The demise of printed books was predicted as early as 1771, when French visionary Louis-Sébastien Mercier’s book The Year 2440 detailed a world in which the massive holdings of the Royal Library are condensed into a single volume. His description of that volume was “eerily like the description of an iPod.”

So you got a new e-device: now what? 
The library offers the Montclair community a variety of free materials, including 
downloadable music, electronic audiobooks and ebooks. Residents can schedule an appointment with a librarian or drop by the Main Library for instruction on using any of the library’s resources on their device. For more information about electronic resources at the Montclair Public Library, call (973) 744-0500 ext. 2235 or visit http://www.montclairpubliclibrary.org.

No, a MakerSpace is not an item sold in The Container Store
Wikipedia defines a MakerSpace as “…a community-operated workspace where people with common interests, often in computers, technology, science, digital art or electronic art, can meet, socialize and/or collaborate.” The common denominator is collective creativity, whether the emphasis is on traditional hand tools or digital tools, arts & crafts or technology. MakerSpaces are opening up in libraries, schools, community centers and other organizations who embrace this kind of opportunity for community engagement and learning. Montclair Public Library will soon be opeaning a MakerSpace in the Youth Services area. It will feature a 3D printer, sewing machine, badge-maker, crafts materials, A high-end digital workstation and more. There will be monthly MakerSpace open sessions as well as special sessions that may focus on teens, child + parent, technology, crafts, design, etc. Watch the web page, Facebook and newsletter for the grand opening!

GET INVOLVED

The library as a community gathering space
Libraries have always been repositories for books and sources of information. They are now becoming de facto community centers, where members of the community gather for educational, entertainment, enrichment and social interaction. The Montclair Public Library offers many opportunities for members of the community to join regularly-scheduled groups and gatherings: Bridge Group, Chess Workshop, The Write Group, Current Events Discussion Group, Knitters Group, T’ai Chi and Tea, Toddler Time, Babies in the Library, Family Storytime, Storytime en Español, Books & Bites Reading Clubs, Mother Goose Storytime, Homeschool Meetings, Minecraft, Teen Advisory Board…and more! Check out the offerings on the website and find what matches your schedule and interests. 

A tribute in brick
Did you realize that you can literally pave the way to a successful future for your community library? The MPL Foundation offers the opportunity for you to recognize or commemorate a person or event with an engraved brick paver on the plaza in front of the library … a unique way to go down in Montclair history. 

DID YOU KNOW? 

1893 The year that the Montclair Public Library was established as a free public library was a banner year within the community and around the country. Katharine Lee Bates wrote America the Beautiful and Colorado accepted women’s suffrage. Cracker Jack, Cream of Wheat, the ferris wheel and the electric car (really!) made their debuts. Closer to home, Thomas Edison set up the first movie studio in West Orange and Montclair was building community: In addition to the library, new establishments include Saunders Hardware, the Bank of America Montclair Center branch, the Montclair Golf Club and Upper Montclair’s Mountain Avenue Station. Also, Montclair artist George Innis produced some of his finest works with Montclair as inspiration, including Sunburst, November Montclair and Hazy Morning. Fourteen of his works were exhibited in the World’s Columbian Exposition (the Chicago World’s Fair).

1942 In February, 1942, the Montclair Public Library became the first public library in the United States to have a computerized circulation system. The International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) provided the Library with the first‑ever punch card data processing system and equipment to record the loan and return of books. Librarians from all over the world visited Montclair to witness this pioneering venture. 

CELEBRATING OUR DIVERSITY

Cuentitos: ¡Storytime en Español!
The library now offers a bilingual storytime for ages 2–6. Check the web site and newsletter for dates and times. Enjoy a storytime session of books in Spanish, and bilingual English and Spanish texts. Spanish speakers and non-Spanish speakers welcome!

Black History Month Celebration
MADLOM Drum & Dance and Author Rita Williams-Garcia Celebrate Black History Month on Saturday, February 22 at 2 p.m. with a drum and dance performance by local MADLOM students. All ages are welcome. Registration required. After the performance, award-winning author Rita Williams-Garcia speaks. Author of One Crazy Summer and P.S. Be Eleven, Williams-Garcia is known for realistic portrayals of teens of color. Her works have been recognized by the Coretta Scott King Award Committee, American Library Association, and Parents’ Choice, among others. Books will be available for purchase, courtesy of Watchung Booksellers.

@THE LIBRARY

“Crazy 8s Club” bedtime math
Both parental instincts and neural research recognize the “brainy benefits” of bedtime stories. Parents might want to consider adding “bedtime math” to the daily routine. The Crazy 8s Club is a  high-energy math club that can start getting kids fired up about math. Who would’t love “glow in the dark geometry,” “spy training,” or “toilet paper Olympics”? The club meets Mondays at 4:30 through March 10. 

Consumer Reports online for free
Anyone with a Montclair Public Library card can now access Consumer Reports online. This library-funded subscription provides expert ratings on anything from digital cameras to snow blowers to toys. With the popularity of the print edition in the library, this online service guarantees that library patrons will have access to product reviews 24/7. 

Every ’zine is an e-zine with Zinio
The library announce a new service: access to Zinio, a digital magazine app available on mobile devices with more than a hundred magazines.

Getting the community reading
Summer is a time for reading…for everyone! “Literary Elements” is the theme for the 2014 Summer Reading Program combining science and literature in a variety of programs sure to pique your interest. Come to a stargazing night, learn the science behind Star Trek or discover the Golden Ratio. Read some of today’s best science writing, learn to write your own science fiction tale, and enjoy a series of science fiction films.
__________________

FEATURE STORY:

YOGI BERRA’S LEGACY OF SERVICE
Team spirit, community spirit

Basketball superstar Charles Barkley famously claimed, “I’m not paid to be a role model.” Fortunately for Montclair, Yogi Berra does not share that opinion. He embraces his leadership role in the local community and community-
at-large, and embodies the concept of “role model.”

And we are richer for it.

It would be easy to consider Yogi Berra’s finest legacy to be his sports accomplishments as a player, coach and manager. His legacy is impressive: Berra is one of only four players to be named the Most Valuable Player of the American League three times and is one of seven managers to lead both American and National League teams to the World Series. Berra appeared in 21 World Series and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in baseball history and was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in a vote by fans in 1999.

It would be equally easy to consider Berra’s greatest legacy to be that of an
“accidental philosopher,” as he is perhaps the most-quoted athlete of all time.
He is known for his delightfully-mangled “Yogi-isms:” “90% of the game is half mental.”

However, it is Berra’s enduring career as a role model that is his finest legacy. Yogi does not give back to the community because he is paid to do so, or shamed or bullied into doing so. He does not serve as a role model as a publicity stunt or self-aggrandizing opportunity. He engages in service to the local and wider community because it is the right thing to do…it is what he expects of himself. And, to use Yogi’s own words, “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.” At the age of 88, he is still building that legacy of service.

From Norfolk to Normandy
In 1943, the New York Yankees signed Berra and sent him to Norfolk in the Class D Virginia League. A year later, he had put his career on hold, joined the Navy and was participating in the D-Day invasion at Normandy as a gunner’s mate on a rocket launching boat. Based about 300 yards off-shore at Utah Beach, the rocket launching boats provided cover for the landing crafts.

His Navy service earned him numerous awards, including the Purple Heart, a
distinguished Unit Citation, two battle stars, a European Theatre of Operations ribbon, a Good Conduct medal and Normandy’s Médaille de Jubilé. Sixty years after the war, he received the Lone Sailor award from the U.S. Navy Memorial, an honor given to sailors who are “living examples of how service to country changes lives and helps develop leaders.” Most recently, he was a recipient of the inaugural Bob Feller Act of Valor award, recognizing the military service of baseball hall-of-famers. 

An all-’round great guy, on the diamond and off
During his years as a ballplayer, Yogi Berra was noted for being an all-’round nice guy, demonstrating traits like sportsmanship, respect, perseverance, loyalty and tolerance. He was one of the ball players who readily accepted the black players after the reintegration of baseball. Both ballplayers and the public like him …immensely. Pitcher Whitey Ford said “I’ve heard all the Yogi stories and been involved in some, but when I think of Yogi, I realize there’s so much to him—he has a great family, he’s honest, and he helps his friends any way he can. The only thing bad I can say about Yogi is he never bought me a beer.”  

A willing role model
Yogi has long embraced the opportunity to be a role model to young people. He has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to lend his name, fame and time to causes, to give back to the community and inspire the next generation. In Montclair, these causes embraced by Berra and his wife Carmen have included the Montclair Art Museum, the Salvation Army, scouting, Mountainside Hospital, the YMCA, the Montclair Public Library and the Clara Maas Medical Center Foundation, to name a few. Beyond his local community, his causes have been as widespread as the Hazleton Integration Project in Tampa, the East Hampton Artists & Writers softball fundraiser in New York, Realizing the Dream in Atlanta and the Bob Hope Classic in Laquinta, California. Berra’s legacy was celebrated at the Baseball Assistance Team’s 24th annual “Going to Bat for B.A.T.” Fundraising Dinner. At the event, Berra’s son, baseball player Dale Berra, had this to say: “There’s something distinctly different about my dad. People can’t put their finger on it. It’s quite obvious to me what it is. And the word is humility. It’s what makes him who he is. It’s what makes every person who meets him say, ‘My God, that’s one of the greatest baseball players in history, and he’s no different than the guy across the street.’”

Berra’s legacy continues
The values reflected in his life and accomplishments—respect, tolerance, and sportsmanship—inspired the creation of the Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center, located on the campus of Montclair State University, in 1998.

The Yogi Berra Museum is the best opportunity of ensuring that Yogi’s legacy 
of “giving back” endures well beyond his lifetime. While the permanent exhibits 
primarily recount and celebrate his athletic accomplishments, traveling exhibits,
programs and camps reflect his dedication to giving back to the community and to promoting the concepts of respect, sportsmanship, integrity and service. 

In addition to highlighting Berra’s baseball legacy, the museum’s permanent collection has displays on the influence of immigration and integration on baseball and baseball’s role during WWII. Visitors can discover Berra’s unique responses to bullying and explore an interactive section about the willingness to dream, showcasing the stories of children who became groundbreaking athletes. 

In recent years, a grant from Investors Bank has enabled the museum to
develop a high school team captains’ workshop. The workshop provides leadership techniques to help captains make the whole high school sports experience inclusive and rewarding, while ensuring that hazing and bullying will never occur on their watch. Other museum programs include baseball and softball camps for kids from underserved communities and a collaboration with Scholastic on a character development curriculum. 

Berra is still actively involved with the museum, frequently attending museum events and giving input on museum programs and exhibits. Berra’s annual celebrity golf tournament benefits the museum. 

In his 88 years (and still going!), Yogi Berra has established quite a legacy: playing baseball (and golf), loving his family, serving his country and giving back
to his community.

To use Yogi Berra’s own words: “The future ain’t what it used to be” 

You are so right, Yogi. You’ve made certain that future is better. Many thanks!

MPL has nearly 1000 materials related to baseball, including books, audiobooks and movies. Come check out our baseball fiction or browse the 796s for some great reads. And get yourself ready for opening day by watching a classic like The Natural or The Sandlot!

SIDEBAR

YOGI-ISMS
It ain’t over ’til it’s over.
It’s like deja vu all over again.
The future ain’t what it used to be.
A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.
He hits from both sides of the plate. He’s amphibious.
Never answer anonymous letters.
Half the lies they tell about me aren’t true.
When you come to a fork in the road….Take it .
I don’t mean to be funny.

COMPANION ARTICLE:

Not-to-be-missed museum traveling exhibits:

Smithsonian Hometown Sports Exhibit
Hometown sports are more than just games. They’re a big part of our culture, of what we do and who we are. The Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center is currently hosting the new Smithsonian traveling exhibit “Hometown Teams” and feature a series of exciting related programs.  

Championing respect, combatting prejudice
Athlete Ally is a leading non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging athletes, coaches, parents, fans and other members of the sports community to respect all individuals involved in sports, regardless of perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity or expression. Athlete Ally works with professional, college and high school sports figures to use their influence to help stop anti-gay bullying and discrimination by championing respect, camaraderie and inclusion.

The Allyship exhibit at the Yogi Berra Museum examines the evolution of societal attitudes around inclusion and acceptance in sports, from Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in baseball in 1947 to the courageous strides made by women in the sports world, up to the current social movement to end homophobia in sports. The exhibit focuses on the critical role played by athlete allies in accepting and respecting all athletes.

• FEATURE WRITING: Princeton Day School

OLYMPIC SPIRIT
Unlikely Olympian Michael Ferry ’93

Michael Ferry ’92 embodies the spirit of the Olympics. He glories in the pursuit of his sport more than his own achievements. He perseveres. He recognizes and applauds the achievements of his competitors. He is quite willing to share credit for his success. He gives 100% effort—or more. In short, he is the kind of athlete the U.S.—and PDS—can be proud to call one of its own.

However, Michael Ferry might be considered an unlikely Olympian. He did not spend his youth working towards an Olympic dream, although he remembers devouring news of the 1984 Olympics Game in L.A. in the special Olympic issue of Sports Illustrated.

Michael entered PDS as a second grader, and by middle school, he was playing basketball and lacrosse. He played lacrosse and football in upper school, but his PDS athletic career abruptly ended when he suffered a dislocated knee and shattered kneecap playing football in his senior year. He turned to other interests. Michael enjoyed woodworking and fondly remembers the summer after his senior year, which he spent working with upper school industrial arts teacher Andy Franz building benches, cubbies and other projects for the middle school.

Michael attended Bates College in Maine, majoring in art history and minoring in French. Looking for a way to stay in shape and stay active, and still under the doctor’s orders not to put stress on his knee, Michael turned to rowing, then a club sport at Bates. Michael’s father had rowed in high school, but the sport was new to Michael. He loved it. He enjoyed the feel of the boat gliding through the water, and appreciated the opportunity to admire the scenic beauty of Maine, his progress noted by the occasional moose or other wildlife.

While Bates did not have formal interscholastic competition in rowing, they did participate in meets with nearby Colby and Bowdoin Colleges. In the long, cold Maine winters, the rowing teams had to be content with working on an ergonometer, a type of rowing machine. They even had a Colby-Bates-Bowdoin “erging” contest, where Michael set the record of erging 6 minutes and 2 seconds for more than 200 simulated meters. It was to be his only collegiate win.

Michael and his teammates anxiously awaited the day in the spring when they could get out to real water again, since, as Michael states, “You can only erg so long before you go crazy.” The team was so anxious each year to get back to real water that they frequently would break the ice on the Androscoggin River, hacking away at the frozen shoreline ice to get to the river’s unfrozen middle.

It’s ironic that he embarked on his rowing career at Bates, which is not known for its rowing program, while Michael’s hometown university, Princeton, boasts one of the nation’s top-rated rowing programs. None of this stopped Michael from pursuing the rowing career that ultimately took him to the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

After college, Michael was not invited to one of the elite rowing camps that tend to become the training ground—and proving ground—for future Olympians, but he did participate in a 3-week training session at the prestigious Penn Athletic Club in Philadelphia. This brought him to the attention of the man who would become his coach, Igor Grinko. Grinko invited Michael to start training full time in Augusta, GA.

Michael enjoyed a banner year in 1998. He won gold in quadruple sculls in the 1998 National Championships, and a silver in the double sculls. A third-place finish in the U.S. Team trials earned him alternate status with the National Team. Michael made the U.S. team in 1999 in a quad that just missed qualifying for finals in the world championships by placing 4^th in semi-finals.

In June 2000, Michael competed in one of the most important racing events of his life: He and double sculls partner Henry Nuzum won an Olympic berth at the Olympic Rowing Trials in Cherry Hill, NJ.

Michael was thrilled to be part of the Olympic team, and says, “It is an honor to go and represent the country.” Like all athletes gathered in Sydney, Michael wanted to be the one to hear his national anthem played at the conclusion of the race. However, his medal hopes were not realized, and Michael and his rowing partner placed a respectable 8^th in their category. But Michael was pleased to note that the national anthem that played for his event was played for the first time in Olympic history, with a team from Slovenia winning that country’s first-ever Olympic gold medal.

Michael was glad to learn that the Bates rowing program, now a varsity sport, has produced another national team member, Michael’s teammate and mentor Tom Keister. As for Michael, he is keeping his options open. He plans to keep rowing, and perhaps there will be another Olympics in his future. He is also investigating career options.

No matter what Michaels’ future holds, this Olympian holds a winning attitude that will take him far.

DID YOU KNOW…

Others in the PDS community also pursued Olympic dreams:

PDS rink manager Harry Roulon-Miller was one of 70+ young hopefuls to try out for the U.S. Olympic hockey team to participate in the 1960 Olympics in Squaw Valley, CA. It was a highly-competitive field of players that year, and Harry did not make the team. That year’s U.S. hockey team went on to win “bring home the gold” with a first-place finish.

During the 1980s, middle school English teacher Paul Epply Schmidt trained extensively in fencing, trying for an Olympic berth in the 1984 L.A. or 1988 Seoul Olympics.

Cornelia (Cory) Fischer Sertl ’76 was a member of the 1988 U.S. women’s Olympic sailing team that competed in Seoul. She was an alternate for the two-woman team that won the gold in the womens’ 470.

Published in the Princeton Day School Journal, winter 2000

____________________________________________________

Musical Theme in Harmony with PDS Educational Mission
LIVELY ARTS CURRICULUM FOCUSES ON NOTEWORTHY COMPOSER

Surrogate kithara. Zymo-Xyl. Cloud-chamber bowls. Chromelodian. Harmonic canon. No, these are not nonsensical words from a Dr. Seuss book, but names of musical instruments by the late composer and instrument builder Harry Partch.

Partch (1901–1974), was one of the greatest and most individualistic composers of the twentieth century.

PDS had the rare privilege of having the Partch musical instrument collection, as well as the collection’s curator, composer/musician Dean Drummond, on campus for two days. The collection, formerly housed at the Smithsonian, is on loan from the Newband Instrumentarium at New Jersey’s Montclair State University. The music and instruments of Harry Partch formed the centerpiece of a lively arts cross-curriculum study unit coordinated by poet-in-residence Judy Michaels.

Ms. Michaels was enthused about bringing the Partch collections and guest artists to campus. She explained, “I first heard Partch music back in the 60s, as did (teachers) Susan Daly Rouse, Frank Jacobson and Bonnie Hunter. When the instruments moved to New Jersey two summers ago, I immediately started negotiating.”

Some of the related studies for the unit included classroom visits by teaching artist/percussionist Jim Pugliese, who led students through hands-on explorations in music-making using rhythm instruments. Classes also built their own instruments. Middle School English teacher Susan Daly-Rouse said, “I ran out of time for ideas I had to bring the richness of this brilliant composer’s work to my grade VIII students: a day of listening and creating music with found instruments, another day of reading Li Po’s poems to Partch’s music, and a third based on body movement for the Castor and Pollix piece. It certainly was a busy and exciting unit.” Ms. Daly-Rouse appreciated the opportunity for the PDS community to “discover, through Harry Partch’s music, the musician, the sculptor, the physicist, the poet and the dancer in all of us.”

The art gallery tied into the theme with an exhibit and performances of sound sculptures by Roberta Berman, and many teachers developed correlating studies. Mr. Drummond presented workshops specifically geared towards students studying physics, music and fine arts/architecture.

However, the highlight was certainly the concert presented to all students that featured Newband, a contemporary music ensemble playing music and instruments of Partch and Drummond.

In his lecture, Mr. Drummond, a former student of Harry Partch, talked about Partch, the founder of modern “just intonation.” He explained the difference between traditional “Western” musical tonalities and the microtonal music using just intonation. Most music heard in the U.S. is based on the 12 notes of the scale. (Picture white and black notes in one octave on a piano.) The tonal distance between each of these 12 notes is the same, or “even-tempered.” In that same octave on Partch’s organ-like chromedolian, there are 43 tones, with unequal intervals between each of those tones. Mr. Drummond explained that to him, making music with only the 12-tone scales would be like having your drawing efforts limited to a box of 12 crayons. In contrast, the expanded microtonal scale might be more like the box of 48—or even 64—crayons.

The students seemed to agree that this expanded palate of music is different and exciting. Mike Risen, a violist in grade 10, said that he prefers the modern music to the traditional: “It’s different every time you play it,” he said. Tenth grader Rosser Lomax, who plays guitar, also enjoyed the concert immensely. He likened some of the Partch music to that of reknowned Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar and to certain types of traditional Chinese music. This similarity is not surprising, since most “Eastern” music uses microtonality, so vital to Partch’s musical style

Ms. Daly-Rouse said, “The middle school students certainly loved his music and wanted to hear more”—a sentiment echoed by students throughout the school.

Published in Princeton Day School Journal, winter 2000

• NEWS RELEASE: Presbytery of New Brunswick

A BEACON OF TOLERANCE AND HOPE
Westminster reflects and celebrates the community it serves with expanded outreach programs.

Westminster Presbyterian’s mission as a multiracial, multicultural, multigenerational congregation is to stand as a beacon and haven of tolerance and hope within the community. The church supports numerous community services programs: Head Start, Parents for Action, Trenton Youth Connection, Narcotics Anonymous, and Get S.E.T (Scholastic Enhancement Tutoring). This summer the church will expand its educational programming with a 4-week academic camp as well as the annual Vacation Bible School.

William Ingram, the son of a current member of the congregation, designated Westminster as recipient for a $10,000 United Way donation for the church’s Get S.E.T. program. An $8,000 grant from the William P. Sullivan Memorial Foundation, which honors the memory of a State Trooper, was also awarded for the same program. Those funds allowed for the creation of five additional classroom spaces, and an expansion of educational programming to include the summer months.

The summer program will be a particularly appropriate use of funds from the William P. Sullivan Foundation: a 4-week academic camp that is based on a theme of police/detective work. Nearby Paul Robeson Elementary will offer this program to 60 children, while Westminster Presbyterian will offer facilities and support to educate an additional 30 children with the same curriculum. Westminster’s pastor, Reverend Karen Hernandez-Granzen, is excited about the opportunity for partnering: “We’re bringing together the resources of United Way, the William P. Sullivan Memorial Foundation, Paul Robeson Elementary and the church in order to create a safe and dynamic environment for learning for the children of our community.”

The educational facility for the program, Cook Hall, will be re-dedicated on June 23. Also on June 23, the church will hold a holistic health fair, which is open to the community, from 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. The academic camp starts July 8 and ends August 2, running Monday through Friday from 8:30–1:00. The program, for 8–12-year-olds, will be primarily composed of students from Paul Robeson Elementary School, but is also open to other students from the community. This year’s multicultural, multigenerational Vacation Bible School will be offered from July 15–July 21, from 6:30–8:30 p.m. Westminster extends an invitation to the community to attend. This year’s VBS theme will be God’s Great Gallery: Exploring God’s Wonderful Works.

For more information on any of Westminster Presbyterian’s programs and services, please call Rev. Karen Hernandez-Granzen at 609/695-8025.

This article was written for use by the Presbytery of New Brunswick.

 

• SPEECH: An Accidental Peace Activist

AN ACCIDENTAL PEACE ACTIVIST

My name is Jill Marshall-Work. I am very honored to be part of the Peace Ambassador Exchange team and I am delighted to be able to visit Japan for the first time. I live in central New Jersey, about an hour’s drive from New York City. I would describe myself first and foremost as an artist, and also as a communications professional and an educator. There are times when I also feel qualified to describe myself as an ‘accidental peace activist.’ I will explain that in a moment…

My theory on peacemaking is that it must simultaneously occur from the top down and from the ground up. When I refer to the top, I am talking about governments, who must commit to finding ways to peacefully co-exist with countries and cultures and political systems that are very different from their own. These are the people who have the power to make the choice between war and peace, between nuclear proliferation and nuclear disarmament and between retribution and reconciliation. There are barriers to peacemaking at the government level: politics, cultural differences, lingering bitterness over past events, personal agendas of the decision-makers, revenge quests, power struggles. I applaud the peace activists and organizations that make it their mission to arm themselves with information and lobby these decision-makers, to ensure that those in the power understand that no matter who wins a war, everybody loses. The human costs will always be staggering.

However, a government commitment to peace by itself is not enough. If we look at the continual violence that again and again disrupts government peace efforts in places like Northern Ireland and Israel, we must realize that the government efforts in peacemaking must be accompanied by a commitment to peace by the general population of each country.

So when I refer to peacemaking from the ground-up, I am referring to the grassroots efforts that allow multitudes of individuals from different countries and cultures to meet each other and find common ground and make a commitment to peace on a one-on-one basis. There are also barriers to peace at the grassroots level: differences in race, religion, culture and societal norms, unwillingness to accept that a different point of view is not necessarily a wrong one, and lack of opportunities to “put a human face” on the people perceived as the enemy. There are countless organizations and individuals that promote peace-related initiatives from the ground up: the Red Cross, the Peace Corps, Wilmington College’s Peace Resource Center, international student exchange programs, missionaries, Doctors Without Borders, and of course, the World Friendship Center.

I would say that many artists would qualify as ‘accidental peace activists,’ who contribute to the one-to-one peacemaking efforts. When I compose a song, write a poem, take a photograph, or develop a musical, the main purpose of these activities is usually not to promote peace. The main purpose is to entertain, or to elicit emotion, or to make people stop and think, or to express ideas or tell stories that are important to me. This is true of most artists, whether they are dancers, actors, or musicians; playwrights, writers, poets or composers; painters, sculptors or architects; photographers or filmmakers.

But sometimes, the ideas expressed by artists can be consistent with peacemaking efforts. The arts can speak directly to the heart, communicating in a way that can break down or bypass barriers of language, culture and politics. A shared appreciation for artistic endeavors can be the common ground that brings together people of very different backgrounds. How can I not see the beauty of the Japanese heart and feel a connection to your people when I am awestruck by your architectural masterpieces and the artistry of your gardens, or when I am caught up in the subtle grace of Japanese interpretive dance or experience the power of taiko drumming, or when I am moved to tears by your poetry. When I met a PAX team from Japan several years when I lived in Wilmington, Ohio, one team member read some poems by hibakushas. The images and language of those poems will stay with me forever. Likewise, I can immediately call to mind a French painting that captures my imagination, a sculpture in front of the Dachau concentration camp in Germany that still haunts me, or a Mexican folk song that makes me laugh.

I only hope that my artistic efforts can likewise bridge the barriers of language and culture. One of my efforts does have a peace theme. The musical I am currently researching, Journey of a Thousand Cranes, is about a group of Japanese and Japanese-American individuals who are trying to make peace with their pasts, with their former enemies and with their dual cultures. I will read you a segment of the lyrics from the title song:

JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND CRANES
In a journey of a thousand cranes,
if we make a link, then we start to think
that warfare must cease.

With a journey of a thousand cranes,
we go place-to-place, we meet face-to-face,
and try to find peace.

A world of difference, a world apart.
But there’s no difference
when meeting heart-to-heart.

In a journey of a thousand cranes,
we meet one-to-one, our searching is done
and peace is all that remains
from a journey of a thousand cranes.

I have many more artistic works that do not specifically have peace themes. I am working on a musical for children with a theme of accepting those who are different. Another musical is a comedy, where my goal is for people to laugh and enjoy themselves. Another musical dramatizes a violent labor strike in early 20th century America, emphasizing the difficult choices that faced the townspeople. My photography usually focuses on travel and architecture. My poems and pop songs generally celebrate family life and occasions, such as my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary, my first Christmas as a parent, my sister’s success in earning her pilot’s license, and the emotions that my husband and I experienced in pursuing international adoption. But even these non-peace-related artistic efforts can transcend language barriers. So in this respect, I consider myself an ‘accidental peace activist,’ a person who produces artistic works that may not be about peace, but still may foster a greater understanding and a mutual appreciation between people of different cultures.

As part of my preparation for this trip, I decided to learn a bit about the Japanese art of origami. With help from friends and family, I folded a thousand paper cranes to bring with me to present at the Peace Day ceremonies in Hiroshima with a thousand wishes for peace from me, my family, my students, my church and my community. The crane-folding inspired me to write a song, entitled Peace On Your Wings, which I present as my gift to you.

PEACE ON YOUR WINGS
We will write peace on your wings and you will fly
’til your messages of hope are written on our common sky.
We will write peace on your wings, and you will fly.

We will write love on our hands and we will dare
to extend a hand in peace and find new friendships everywhere.
We will write love on our hands, and we will dare.

We will write hope on our feet, and we will run
to the corners of the earth until the race for peace is won.
We will write hope on our feet, and we will run.

We will write joy on our hearts, so all will see
one-to-one we’ll build a peace until we’re one community.
We will write joy in our hearts, so all will see.

Thank you for your time and thank you for the opportunity to be here today.

Delivered in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at events attended by A-bomb survivors (Hibakusha) and peace activists while serving as a member of the 2001 PAX (Peace Ambassador Exchange) team.

• GAMES: Original word games

DESIGN/COPY: “Food Rhyme Pyramid,” original game
for start-up magazine, NJ Food & Dining

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DESIGN/COPY: “Spotlight on Veggies,” original game
for start-up magazine, NJ Food & Dining

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COPY/DESIGN: “Running Hot & Cold;” original game for start-up magazine, Menu-zine, with a theme of “Hot Treats for Cold Days”

• THEMES: Taglines & Themes

Taglines for public library

• Ask us. We answer to you.
• Yes, we are smarter than a fifth grader.
• The easy answer to difficult questions.
• The community renewable resource.
• The Library: Come see what’s in it for you.
• You never know what you’ll find @ The Library
• Inspiration starts here.
• The answer people.
• Look no further.
• Expect more. Find more.
• We’re here for you.
• Exceeding expectations. Always.
• Books and beyond. Way beyond.
• Information • Education • Inspiration
• Find more. Learn More. Know more.
• Not your average library.
• Your hometown advantage.
• The community “go-to” place.
• Enlightenment. Enrichment .Entertainment.
• Something for everyone.
• You’ll find it all @ The Library.

*************

Taglines for ATF Explosion Detection/Accelerant Detection Canines

Fido fights firebugs.
Fido finds firebugs.
Kibble-powered “Burn Unit”
The Nose Knows
It Takes a Muzzle to Solve the Puzzle
Sensitive Snouts Secure “Cease-Fire”
Dogs Discern the Burn

(the last options was selected and used)

Taglines for Washington State Patrol Fireworks Safety Campaign

Have Fireworks Fun Without 911.
Make fireworks safety a priority!

Defuse the Danger
Make fireworks safety a priority!

Practice Safe FX
Make fireworks safety a priority!

The answer to the burning question…is fireworks safety!

Practice Burn Concern
Make fireworks safety a priority!

Doctors Against Skin Grafts
Make fireworks safety a priority!

PERSONAL FIREWORKS require
PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY
Make fireworks safety a priority!

(the last options was selected and used)

• NEWS RELEASE: SUNY College at New Paltz

Joe Cardillo & Company, Poetry with Music

Poet Joe Cardillo and Company will bring their musical poetry performance to SUNY, the College at New Paltz. They will perform on Friday, May 5, at 8:00 p.m. in the Lecture Center, Room 100. Cardillo’s selected readings will be accompanied by Thomas Savoy and John Hill, who provide a musical backdrop of acoustic and electric piano and guitar.

Cardillo, an assistant professor of English and creative writing at the Hudson Valley Community College, has published many books, including A Legacy Of Desire and Turning Toward Morning. He is recognized as one of the most widely-published poets in America. Cardillo’s credits range from national tours to books to literacy magazines to a soon-to-be-released MTV video.

Admission is free, and all are welcome to attend this evening of poetry and music. This event is made possible with support from Poets and Writers, Inc., which is founded by the Literature Program of the New York State Council on the Arts. Additional funding is provided buy the SUNY Faculty Scholar Program and the SUNY New Paltz English Club.

For further information, contact the English Department at 914/357-2720, the Student Association at 257-3070, or Project Director Gail Vorbach at 257-2634.

• POEMS: Poems, lyrics

poem/story written for BANNED BOOK week
at public library:

STRIKE UP THE BANNED!

Once in a happy and faraway land,
no one thoughts books should be challenged or banned.
People read histories and mysteries galore,
non-fiction, fairy tales, classics and more!

People knew access to books is required
to keep our brains challenged…enlightened…inspired.
Then came the words fervent booklovers dread:
“Should J.D. Salinger ever be read?”

“No Arthur Miller…lock up The Koran.
Steinbeck and Hawthorne wrote books we should ban.
Padlock The Talmud, put Freud in seclusion.
Challenging Darwin’s a foregone conclusion.”

Soon many voices chimed in to complain,
“Ban C.S. Lewis, James Joyce and Mark Twain.
No Maya Angelou; Chaucer’s risqué.
Banish The Bible. Lock Dickens away.”

“Ban the Anne Frank; No And Tango Makes Three.
Put Harry Potter behind lock and key.
Get rid of Junie B. Jones and Thoreau.
Ditch Dr. Seuss; even Shakespeare should go!”

Yet still in libraries, doors open wide,
sharing the treasures the books hold inside.
So celebrate books—show the world where you stand.
Open your mind…read a book that’s been banned.

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song written for peace themed school concert, Winfield School

PEACE IS GROWING © 2006

Say a prayer or hold a hand
Build the school the village planned
Soon we start to understand
Peace is growing in every land

Share a smile or shed a tear
Soothe a pain or calm a fear
Soon disputes will disappear
Peace is growing here

Plant the seeds of hope, nurture them with kindness
Cultivate each seedling….watch them grow
Give the seedlings shelter, warm them with love
Then reap the harvest of peace from every seed you sow

Write a note or make a call
Hang a snapshot on the wall
Friendship makes the world seem small
Peace is growing within us all

Teach a skill or teach a song
Teach a child that hate is wrong
When we start to get along
Peace is growing strong

Peace is growing

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song written in honor of candidate for pilot’s license

GIVE ME THE SKY © 2002

Give me the sky, give me a new day to try
until I’m floating…flying…
Touching a cloud, saluting mountains below as I pass them by.
Pink morning glow reflects in rivers below
as I am launching…lifting…
I’m wrapped in the dawn’s enchantment when I fly.
Give me the sky.

Skimming the trees, and playing tag with the breeze,
as I go roaming…rambling…
Give me this world, a eagle’s view of the earth as seen two miles high.
Breathtaking days, a mid-day sun that’s ablaze
as I go sailing…soaring…
I savor the scent of freedom when I fly.
Give me the sky.

I was born with the need to seek beyond the horizon
for the thrill the journey brings.
I was born with the dream of setting sail on a rainbow.
All I need is wings.

Into the blue, a sun-embraced rendezvous
as I am circling…searching…
Time disappears as daylight turns into dusk with a hushed goodbye.
Sunset aglow, I swoop through shadows below
as I keep diving…dancing…
I’m kissed by the mystic twilight when I fly.
Give me the sky.

I was born with the need to seek beyond the horizon
for the thrill the journey brings.
I was born with the dream of setting sail on a rainbow.
All I need is wings.

Lighter than air, upon a wing and a dare,
as I keep cruising…climbing…
Dreams taking flight, until the universe hums the the moon’s lullabye.
Chasing a star, I know that I can go far
if I keep reaching…rising…
I dance with the stars and planets when I fly.
I need to fly.
Give me the sky.