Don’t Miss the Last Block Party of the Summer! Join us THIS FRIDAY NIGHT, September 1, on Main Street from 6-10 PM. Great music, fun entertainment, delicious food and more! See below for a schedule of entertainment, participating merchants and vendors and sponsors.  Be sure to follow Gloucester Block Party on Facebook for updates!

The Gloucester Rotary Club will publish a 12-month Cape Ann photo calendar for 2018 as a fundraiser. All profits will go to the Gloucester Rotary Club’s efforts to raise money that supports the many community and international activities in which the club is involved.

In Order to publish a beautiful calendar, the Club is requesting high quality digital photos that show the unique beauty of Cape Ann throughout the year– landscapes, seascapes, harbor scenes, sunrises/sunsets, boats, wildlife, etc. As we will be featuring one photo per month, we need images from each season: winter, spring, summer and fall. Photographs from Gloucester, Rockport, Essex and Manchester will be accepted.

Full contest rules and requirements are available online at www.gloucesterotary.org. All entries must be received by 12:00 p.m. on Friday, September 29, 2017.

More information about the Rotary Club of Gloucester is available online at www.gloucesterrotary.org and www.facebook.com/RotaryGloucesterMA .

The mission of Rotary International is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through its fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.

The special exhibit currently on display at the Rose Baker Senior Center is a group show featuring works by eighteen artists. The artists meet in the Senior Center art room with Art Director Juni Van Dyke on Tuesdays and Thursdays to advance their skills in painting and drawing. This exhibit demonstrates the wondrous individuality of each of the 18 artists in the group.

Pictured starting on the left in in the back row are: Natalie Daley, Doreen Ross, Geri Dammeyer, Barbara Maddix, Helen Burgess, Barbara Jobe, Judy Menicocci, Gen McNamara, Ed Leavitt, and Kay Carpenter. And in the front row are: Diane Taka, Juni VanDyke and Pippy Giuliano.

In describing the show, Juni VanDyke said: “Based on years of observation, it is my belief that creativity is best brought forth through encouragement rather than that which is generally associated with ‘method teaching’.  For sure, there are certain ‘formal principles’ of art-making:  harmony, balance, variety, proportion, etc., but if a person has the time and the passion for art process, he or she will likely move forward toward those principles with requisite success due, in large part, from the accumulation of artistic decisions associated with years of caring about how things look.  Environmental decisions; clothing decisions; home furnishing decisions; even table setting decisions; are just some of the artistic decisions that come into play as we go about our daily lives. Whether or not we are aware that these artistic decisions are grounded in ‘formal principle’ is irrelevant. Our artistic decisions accumulate over time and can be applied to whatever creative medium (water-color; pastel; oil; collage; etc.) is in play.”

Juni went on to say “My purpose in the classroom is to affirm and to encourage the individuality of each artist, and to celebrate and share evidence of their accomplishments. In sync with today’s current issues related to art therapy and aging:  I lean on the words of renowned psychoanalyst Erik Erikson (1902-1994):‘THE ARTS KEEP US VIALLY CONNECTED TO ONE ANOTHER AT ALL STAGES OF  THE LIFE CYCLE’.”

 

Congratulations and thanks to all the artists whose work is currently on display:

Ed Leavitt, Pippy Guilano, Doreen Ross, Joanne Maddix, Natalie Daley, Anthea Brigham, Barbara Jobe, Florence Martin, Kay Carpenter, Judy Menicocci, Tony Johnson, Bob Quinn, Mary McCarl, Barbara Maddix, Helen Burgess, Valerie Sadler, Judy Magee, Gen McNamara, Rosemary Whynot, Joanne Parisi and Ginny Dench. Their works reflect the principals of Juni’s teaching and each artist’s unique approach and style.

 

The exhibit will be on display until the end of September in the main lobby of the Rose Baker Senior Center at 6 Manuel F. Lewis Street in Gloucester. The show can be

Find Your Inner Teacher

By Linda E. Saris and Glenn Burns

Perhaps you have raised children and, like most parents, helped them with homework and surrounded them with enriching extracurricular opportunities and lots of wanted (and unwanted) advice. Or perhaps you are working, studying or retired and have an interest in passing down you expertise to the next generation.

As students yourselves you knew which teachers were great – the ones that sent home interesting projects – the ones that stimulated you (or your child) to think and explore new ideas.

So now is your chance to bring out your inner teacher and translate your skills and experience as a professional (or parent) or a hobbyist with a particular expertise and get a group of middle schools excited to learn more.

LEAP for Education and the Salem Public Schools are partnering to provide all the 6^th and 7^th graders with the opportunity to expand their horizons and learn and do something new in STEM, Digital Design, Media and Marketing, Arts, Business, Law, Government, Civic Engagement or Fitness.

The success of this enrichment opportunity will require the recruitment of twenty volunteer community instructors to share their experiences.

What does a community instructor look like? We are looking for professionals (current or retired), college students or parents. No teaching experience is required. You will be paired up with a school day teacher or paraprofessional. All you need is a passion for working with youth and an area of interest and expertise you would like to share in an engaging, hands-on way.

LEAP will be using curricula and lesson plans prepared by Citizens Schools, a widely recognized non-profit based in Boston MA. Community teachers do not have to prepare lesson plans as they are all done. They will, however, be able to adapt any of the lesson plans.

LEAP will support community instructors by arranging speakers and field trips and providing any supplies needed.

If you have 3 – 6 hours to spend a week from September 25^th through December 11^th from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm on a Monday and/or Wednesday, please contact Kayla Dorst at 978-740-6667 x 114 or email her at kdorst@leap4ed.org.

For more information and to peruse curricula and lesson plans, go to LEAP for Education’s website: http://www.leap4ed.org/programs/expanding-horizons/collins-curriculum/

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Linda Saris is the Executive Director of LEAP for Education, a Salem-based academic program providing academic support, enrichment, college access and advising services to over 500 youth on the North Shore. Ms. Saris is a long-time Swampscott resident.

Glenn Burns is the Principal of Collins Middle School in Salem, MA