Places to go and things to see by Gypsy Bev

Posts tagged ‘Sue Dodd’

Salt Fork Arts & Crafts Festival Celebrates 50 Years – August 9-11, 2019

50th LogoArtists, Entertainers, and lovers of the arts have been attending the Salt Fork Arts & Crafts Festival for 50 years. It’s come a long way from that preliminary festival, which was held on the courthouse lawn.

Musical Group R

Entertainment at that first festival was provided by “The Group” with Mike McWilliams, front, Don Mercer, Mike Kennedy, Mike McVicker, and Dale Brenning.

   The one-day downtown Salt Fork Arts Festival was sponsored by the Greater Cambridge Arts Council with Dr. Milton Thompson the president and Don Mercer serving as coordinator. Its goal was to promote all the arts including acting, music, literature, and art. The Best of Show that year went to Nancy Lewis of New Concord for a still life. The evening was spent dancing in the First National Bank parking lot.

Sue Dodd R

Sue Dodd demonstrated her painting skills under a tree at the park at an early festival.

   August 14-17, 1969, the festival moved to the Cambridge City Park as a four-day event. It was advertised as the First Salt Fork Arts & Crafts Festival. That year the newspaper stated there were four tents and 65 artists. Entertainment varied from YMCA Gymnasts and Bexley Puppet Theater to Cambridge Barbershoppers and Sweet Adelines.

Jack Taylor saying thanks R

Jack Taylor says thanks to Bob Amos, Lois Craig and Art Marr who had major roles in that first Salt Fork Arts & Crafts Festival.

   Arthur Marr served as chairman of that first official festival with assistance from Bob and Hannah Amos and Mrs. Lois Craig. Mrs. Claude Nickerson and her committee were in charge of the artists while Bill Coffey handled the performing arts. The Cambridge CB React Club took charge of parking and patrolling. Pavlov Music provided background organ and piano music and Scott Funeral Home provided seating. It was a real community effort.

SFF Fences

In the early years, paintings were displayed on snow fences.

   The Cambridge National Honor Society and members of the Key Club helped by setting up chairs, tables and snow fences. In those early festival days, pictures by artists and student artists were hung on snow fences for display. Young artists have always been a popular and important feature of the festival.

SFF Laura and Rodgers

Pictured at a reception at the Lekorenos home are Shannon Rodgers, Laura Bates (wearing a Rodgers/Silverman dress creation) and Jerry Silverman. Photo by George Lekorenos.

   It was in 1969 that Newcomerstown native, Shannon Rodgers, renowned dress designer for Hollywood stars, gave a donation to the festival and in 1971 began sponsoring the Shannon Rodgers Award. This award was open to all artists at the festival and was voted on by the public. When this endowment ended, the award became the People’s Choice Award.

Mary Beam

Mary Beam painted a picture of the courthouse from her front porch.

   Craftsmen demonstrating their crafts at those early festivals included basket weavers, blacksmiths, ceramic artists, woodcarvers, ironworkers, gem cutters, leather workers and many more. This was to be only the beginning of many years of outstanding juried art at the festival with only hand-made pieces of art being accepted.

SFF Paula Burlingame, Sandy Carle and Bonnie Perkins - Children's Art Fair

Paula Burlingame, Sandy Carle, and Bonnie Perkins make plans for the Children’s Art Fair.

   Crafts were a popular addition at those early festivals as well. In 1971, classes in macrame, woodcarving, leaded glass and apple dolls were popular. Adults enjoyed making quilted potholders and stained glass hangings. Everyone felt a sense of accomplishment.

Lekorenos-4X5

Marie Lekorenos, local artist and passionate supporter, kept scrapbooks of those first festivals. Those scrapbooks supplied most of the information in this article.

   In those early years, the Pilot Club, an international service club of women, served as volunteers to give artisans a break while selling their wares. Kiwanis, Lions, and Rotary provided refreshments on the midway selling hot dogs, ice cream, sno-cones, and cotton candy. Church groups, YMCA, and the hospital auxiliary had food stands available in the big pavilion for hungry visitors.

SFF Dick SImcox Big Band 1980

The Dick Simcox Big Band appeared several years at the festival.

   Entertainment included many musical groups as well as a performing arts group from Salt Fork Barn Theatre performing excerpts from “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown”. Cambridge Community Theater also did several children’s presentations. Even the Cleveland Opera Theater came several years and performed “Barber of Seville”.

SFF Frankie Yankovic America's Polka King

Frankie Yankovic, Polka King, drew one of the largest crowds ever.

   A performance that many remember was that of Frankie Yankovic, America’s Polka King. Frankie played the accordion and had two gold records – “Blue Skirt Waltz” and “Just Because”. The crowd for this performance was the largest ever remembered at the festival.

Carol and Bob R

Carol and Bob Jones were singing at the festival years ago. Carol is now Festival Director and Bob is Entertainment Coordinator.

   Back in 1986, Bob and Carol Jones presented a musical program at the festival. Today Carol is the Festival Director and Bob is Entertainment Coordinator. Their enthusiasm for the 50th Anniversary has led to a memorial “Pedestrian Gateway” being constructed at the park at a point where most visitors enter.

Briani Gray R

Brian Gray and his wooden toys have been an attraction over the years.

   While it has been great fun to look back at those early years of the festival, it’s also pleasing to know that it still has the same basic roots. The Salt Fork Arts & Crafts Festival continues to be a juried festival with several artists from those early days still displaying their art.

Russ and Virginia (2)

Russ Shaffer and Virginia Price have displayed at the festival since its early years and will be there this year. Virginia just celebrated her 99th birthday.

   Entertainment continues every hour in the Performing Arts Tent or the Big Pavilion. Craft classes for students and adults are held in the small pavilion throughout the weekend. Admission and parking are still free.

   Set aside some time to join the 50th Anniversary celebration this August 9 -11. Wander through the artist displays in beautiful Cambridge City Park. Have lunch or pick up a snack as you sit and listen to some fine entertainment provided by talented vocalists and bands. Don’t forget to find a special treasure to take home with you to remember this special anniversary.

   50 years is cause for celebration! Make plans to attend this memorable occasion.

The Salt Fork Arts & Crafts Festival is held annually the second weekend of August in the Cambridge City Park in Cambridge, Ohio. Cambridge is located at the crossroads of I-70 and I-77. There are several exits so watch for signs leading to the festival or the city park.

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Art, Cambridge, Festivals, History, Music, Ohio, Uncategorized

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Have a Hoppy Day on the Hopalong Cassidy Trail

Hoppy's Hendrysburg Home

The Boyds’ old home in Hendrysburg is still standing today.

William Boyd began his life in 1895 in the small town of Hendrysburg at the edge of Belmont County. His parents moved to Cambridge when he was but a youngster.

Hopalong East End School

William Boyd attended East Side School in Cambridge until he was twelve.

   Their home was on Steubenville Avenue and he walked to school at East Side School. William Boyd always referred to Cambridge as his “home”.

Second Presbyterian Church

His family attended Second Presbyterian Church in Cambridge.

   The Boyd family attended the Second Presbyterian Church on West 8th Street in Cambridge. Today that church is the Southern Hills Baptist Fellowship.

   As a teenager, the family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma where his father worked as a day laborer. When his father died in 1913, William moved to California where he did everything from an orange picker to a surveyor and auto salesman.

   Because of his stunning good looks, charm and charisma, he soon became an extra in Hollywood movies. Cecil B. DeMille, who became his lifelong friend, arranged for Boyd’s first leading role in a silent film in 1918 at $25 per week.

Hopalong on Topper

Hopalong Cassidy, cowboy legend, appeared with his horse, Topper, in 52 television episodes

   His role as Hopalong Cassidy appeared in 1935 with the film “Hop-Along Cassidy” based on a character created by Clarence Mulford in a 1912 novel. Throughout the rest of his life, he was best known for his cowboy role as Hopalong Cassidy of Bar 20 ranch and called “Pride of the West”. In his black cowboy hat riding on his white horse, Topper, William Boyd starred as Hopalong Cassidy in 66 movies.

Laura with Hoppy cut out

Laura stands alongside a life-size cutout of Hopalong in a room filled with his memorabilia.

   For 25 years, Laura Bates, the best friend that Hoppy ever had, organized a Hoppy Festival each May to honor this hometown cowboy, who went on to be a movie and television star. She also displayed her vast collection of memorabilia at the Hopalong Cassidy Museum, which is no longer in existence.

Laura at Country Bits

Laura Bates checks the display of her memorabilia in the window of Country Bits.

   Today some of that memorabilia is on display in a window at Country Bits in downtown Cambridge on the corner of Wheeling Avenue and 7th Street and in a couple of other stores downtown. Look carefully in store windows and on building walls to find memories of Hoppy.

Laura Full Mural

This mural by Sue Dodd captures Hoppy’s life from “Hendrysburg to Hollywood”.

   As you enter Downtown Cambridge on Southgate Parkway, take a glance to the left to see a beautiful mural done by local artist, Sue Dodd. This depicts the life of William Boyd entitled “Hendrysburg to Hollywood” with accurate information and detailed pictures.

hoppy-talk

Laura shared this copy of the first edition of “Hoppy Talk”, which she wrote and distributed.

   A great place to start your Hoppy Adventure would be the Guernsey County Senior Center where there is a bronze statue of Hopalong Cassidy. When the festival ended, Laura wanted to be sure his memory lived on in the area so with the help of many Hoppy friends, she raised funds to have a statue created.

Hoppy and Alan

Alan Cottrill, the sculptor, stands beside the bronze statue he created of Hopalong Cassidy.

   Wanting only the best, she contacted Alan Cottrill of Zanesville, whose statues appear around the world. Funds were raised and dedication of the statue took place in June 2016. Fans stop by often and if you’re lucky, you might find Laura Bates there to tell some Hoppy stories.

Hoppy Monument

Hoppy look-alikes from Alabama, Ohio, California, and North Carolina proudly stand by a monument to Hopalong Cassidy on the grounds of his former elementary school.

   At the corner of Wheeling Avenue and Highland Avenue, there is a monument dedicated in 1992 at the site of the school William Boyd attended. In the early 1900s, it was called East Side School, which later became Park School. When a new school was built there in 1956, William Boyd donated money for playground equipment. He always kept in touch with his hometown.

Hoppy Grace

A picture of Grace Boyd, Hoppy’s wife, can be found at the Guernsey County Senior Center.

   When Grace Boyd, Hoppy’s wife, came to the festival, she always made a stop at Park School. Children looked forward to her visit as the beautiful, charming lady had great stories to share. Her picture can still be found at the Guernsey County Senior Center.

   If you look closely, you’ll also see little bits of Hoppy’s history in unexpected places. At the Christ Our Light Parish, there is an engraved brick on the patio in his memory. In Northwood Cemetery, there is a monument to his brother, Frances Marion Boyd, who was born in Cambridge June 13, 1906, and died December 29, 1906.

hopalong-cassidy and Topper   William Boyd didn’t sing, dance, or play sports. He simply became Hopalong Cassidy, the Gentleman of the Bar 20, who smiled, waved and shook hands. Hoppy was everyone’s Mr. Good Guy and his favorite drink was nonalcoholic sarsaparilla.

   Thanks to Laura Bates and the Friends of Hoppy, the memory of William Boyd, best known as Hopalong Cassidy, will live on for generations in Cambridge.

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Art, Cambridge, Festivals, History, Ohio

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Pat Graven Stays Close to Nature

 

Pat Graven 001

These wave petunias bloomed during the week of Christmas.

Look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better.

~Albert Einstein

Take time to smell the roses. Pat Graven takes time to enjoy the peace and quiet of the countryside and wants her garden to blend in. The area around her home flourishes with plants that are natural to the area. It’s her place to relax as she works with her plants, and leaves the cares of the world behind for a little while at least.

     But Pat didn’t always live in the country. In fact, she was a city girl from the Cleveland area. There, her grandmothers influenced her life at an early age. One grandmother had a passion for roses and would gather rose petals in the morning to make a facial. The other grandmother would only eat things that were grown on the farm. You can see how Pat came to love nature.

Pat played the shopkeeper

This talented lady even played the shopkeeper in “The Magical World of Dickens”.

     Before coming to this area, Pat worked with the police department in Cleveland as a dispatcher. But once she saw the hills and streams of Guernsey and Muskingum counties, she was hooked.

Pat lime tree 001

Her lime tree needs a lot of sunlight.

     Here she quickly learned to enjoy the tranquility of the countryside. Her love for animals makes living here extra special as her yard is filled with deer, wild turkeys, rabbits, squirrels and many, many birds.

     She seems to have a special attraction for birds as when she finds a dead bird along the road, she’ll stop and carefully pick it up with plastic gloves. Then she buries the bird with a plant, to let it continue to have value.

Pat Sphere Collection

Springtime daffodils are surrounded by a few samples of her special sphere collection.

     Over the years, Pat has picked up spheres of various metals and glass, making an outstanding collection..many from around the world. A special one she picked up on one of her trips to Ireland, a land she enjoyed “just because it feels good there”. She also has treasures from her trips to Mexico and Hawaii. But now, she is content to enjoy her home and surroundings.

Pat Paintings

Galway Bay in Ireland on a moonlit night inspired Pat to paint the picture she is holding.

     This very unique lady also has a talent for painting. Pat didn’t even realize she had this ability until she went to a class taught by Sue Dodd, who was an inspiration. Pat said, “I never would have painted if it weren’t for Sue.” Pat also works with Dickens Victorian Village to create heads for their mannequins.

Pat flower garden 001

Flower gardens such as this can be seen all over the hilltop where Pat lives.

     When Pat decided to begin planting flowers around her home, her first thought was to find plants that would attract hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. When Pat does decide to take a short trip these days, Baker’s Acres – a favorite greenhouse – is her destination.

Pat aloe

Throughout the year, Pat enjoys her rose geranium, citronella and aloe plants.

     In 2006, Pat decided to join the OSU Extension Master Gardener program in Guernsey County. This group of gardeners gives many volunteer hours to the community to make it a more beautiful place to live.

Pat favorite orchid

When Pat grew orchids, this one was her favorite.

     Pat’s goal in joining was “to learn to manage the land properly” since she lives on a farm. Her yard is like none other. In Pat’s eye, “A flower is no more than a weed in disguise.” She loves weeds and has created an unusual and interesting setting by using native plants in a most eye-catching way.

Monarch Butterfly

Pat’s grandson, Joseph, captured this Monarch butterfly having a nectar taste treat.

     Most of what she has learned has been by trial and error. Every year she experiments with a few new plants just to see how they will thrive in our local climate. But you’ll still find many traditional coneflowers, salvia, primrose and lilies surrounding her many artistic garden statues and yard art.

Pat Bathroom Greenhouse

This large bathroom greenhouse is a great place for her jasmine and other plants to thrive.

     Her eyes light up and her face breaks into a smile as she tells you about her latest projects. Just recently her jasmine plant has blossomed for the second time this year. According to Pat, “My whole house smells heavenly.”

Pat Master Gardener

In 2017, Pat was named Master Gardener of the Year.

     In 2017, Pat was named the Guernsey County Master Gardener of the Year. Working with the elementary school children and young ag students to teach gardening skills gives her real pleasure. Often she even has gardening classes at her home on the hill.

Pat and Garden Club friends sharing their straw bale garden.

Kathleen, Vi and Pat, all Master Gardeners, share information about using straw bales as containers for plants.

     Her easy going manner and cheerful smile open the door to many conversations with friends and even strangers. If Pat happens to be stuck in a long line at the store, she doesn’t complain. Her first thought is, “Who can I strike up a conversation with?” Her words of advice to everyone would be, “Happiness is in your destiny. You need not be in a hurry.”

Pat's flowers 001     Would she consider going back to Cleveland and leave this peaceful countryside? “People are so nice down here, why would I ever go back to the city.” The community certainly hopes she will continue to spread her joy of volunteering in so many ways for many years to come.

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Cambridge, Gardens, Nature, Ohio, Uncategorized

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