So where did the summer go? And New Year? Really, I have not written a note here since June and the Vision Festival???
Well, thanks to Arts for Art here we go again: it’s Vision Collaborations’ season already! Actually it started tonight, but I was stuck at the keyboard by a couple of deadlines. Still, worth checking the program here, as it goes on until Saturday.
So what have I been doing that kept me so busy?
Well, amongst other endeavors, the newest and most fascinating thing I did was to help co-develop the French language and culture unit, using journalistic expertise, for a pilot educational exchange program (a collaborative effort of CUNY and a wonderful not-for-profit, Make A Better Place.)
Also, I went to New Orleans a couple of times, still working on that long piece about the city and all that’s at stake in its rebuilding. This project has taught me quite a lesson about the human spirit, and the very strong political and personal backbone that is quite unique to the people of New Orleans I met through the years.
During my last stay, I went to see the progress at Wesley United, a place I had visited some time ago, where a group of dedicated people are saving a piece of history and building a center that will give the local youth a shot at the music and film jobs the city hopes to create with its development as “Hollywood South”. With the help of local experts, apprentices, and volunteers, progress is made at Wesley: solid, steady – I want to write “obstinate”, because it goes on against all odds, and without the glamour glow of some other (worthy) causes.
This week, “Restore United” launched a donation campaign: adopt a brick, adopt a pew, put your money down and your name up in history. The drive for funds ends Friday and yes, it’s tax-deductible. All the details are here.
The upstairs of the church, future site of the performance/teaching center
