Support the Falls Village Children's Theatre!

How lucky we are to have the Falls Village Children's Theatre, which has changed the lives of so many kids in our town. From "The Wizard of Oz" to "Cinderella" to "Annie" to "Guys & Dolls," they have learned so much about hard work and team work. We've been lucky to see shy and awkward kids become confident performers. It's all been possible because of volunteers and donations from the communnity, so if you're able you should definitely attend the fund-raising wine dinner for this year's production of "Beauty and the Beast" at the Falls Village Inn on March 10.

For the Love of Our Library

Zoë Fedorjaczenko reports that the Chocolate & Chile library fundraiser was a huge success:

What do you get when you take twelve simmering crockpots of chili (from vegetarian to venison) made by organizations (from the Fire Department to the Historical Society), add fifteen chocolate desserts (from Scotch truffles to white chocolate cheesecake) and ten different selections of artisanal chocolate (from Chocolate Springs Café to Berkshire Bark), mix in silent and live auctions (with items from a hand knit bamboo yarn scarf to a Harney Tea gift package), toss with a Name that Tune game (with composer Joshua Stone), and combine with in a cold month - otherwise known as Chocolate & Chili in the Village - 2010 style. That’s what those who attended this Falls Village event to benefit the D. M. Hunt Library enjoyed on Saturday at the Old Town Hall in Falls Village. This event brought together the talents of many local bakers and chili-makers; it was even hard to find a parking space, an unusual circumstance in this small town. For all of us on the C/C committee, I thank everyone who came, contributed to, and worked on making this event a fun way to end winter’s tough month of February and benefit the library. We’ll see you next year!150 people (from Falls Village to Kent) in a spacious site? You get a hot time

Pennies from Heaven

Hunt Library booster nonpareil Mary Elling reports:
"The Student Council-sponsored Kellogg Kids Coin Drive for the Hunt and contributed $19.97/per student and they will celebrate with ice cream sundaes. The combined first and second grade class and fifth graders were runners-up and they will get ice cream cups. There was another collection bottle labeled “Help Kellogg Kids Coin Drive” at the Hunt’s circulation desk.
Patrons, especially from Erica Joncyk's beloved story hours, added an extra $53.03 for a grand total of $566.52. Jill Russell and Carol Mroz at the Falls Village Torrington Savings Bank branch deserve kudos for counting the coins."

4th grade winners of ice cream sundae party
Back row: Julie Horowitz, Noah Light, Quiet Thunder, Shelby Parsons
Front row: Brook Dodge, Grace Cohn, Justin Fitch, Olivia Wadsworth, Ciara McElroy


Scott Jasmine and Alex Pecha giving the Kellogg students' contributions to Margo Lewis, President of Hunt Board of Directors

SPRING CLEANING DISCARDS NEEDED FOR TAG SALE FUNDRAISER

Friends of Lee Kellogg School (FOLKS) and the Falls Village Day Care Center ask that when people do their spring cleaning and uncluttering, they help both local organizations by donating their usable items for a colossal cooperative tag sale to be held on the weekend of June 6th and 7th at Lee H. Kellogg School in Falls Village. Donated items, large and small, clean and in good working order, can be dropped off at Kellogg School (on Rt. 126/Main Street) June 2nd through June 5th from 3:30 to 630 p.m.

“This joint-effort tag sale has been a wonderful way for people to contribute to two worthy institutions, without having to purchase a fundraising item or give money,” says Laurie Wadsworth, member of the Day Care board and a FOLKS member.

Items such as furniture, clothing, books, videos, CDs, sports equipment, kitchen and house wares, lawn and garden gear, electronics, hardware, lamps, pottery, artwork, toys and games, etc. are welcome (no large exercise equipment, obsolete electronics, or damaged bulky furniture please). Spring cleaners are asked to set aside a corner of their basement, attic, or garage for tag sale items, adding good condition items that they no longer want or need to the corner pile as they clean. During the first week of June, these prepared items can then be brought to Kellogg School for the Tag Sale.

FOLKS is the volunteer parent and teacher group for Lee H. Kellogg School. The proceeds from the giant tag sale will be used to help support sports and arts programs, field trips, and special equipment purchases for student activities.

Funds raised will also support the Falls Village Day Care Center’s needs such as art supplies, science materials, playground equipment, books, music, toys and games, as well as capital improvements.

How Sweet It Was!

Maybe it was because everyone was having a simultaneous sugar high, but all the guests seemed giddy at tonight's second annual Chocolate in the Village fundraiser for the David M. Hunt Library. There were all types of chocolate treats to taste and plenty of good things to drink, but the best part was seeing how many smart, funny, generous and interesting people come out on a cold night to support our beloved library.

Dads & Daughters Dancing Together

The World's Sweetest Library

Bibliophiles and chocoholics will converge at the D. M. Hunt Library on Saturday, February 28, for the second annual “Chocolate in the Village” fundraiser. The party will feature chocolate desserts and confections served in hors d’oeuvres -sized portions to encourage sampling of the area's best chocolates and complementary savory treats. There will be drinks for every taste: champagne, wine, liquors, stout, coffee and gourmet hot cocoa. Chocolatier Mark LaPolla of Life By Chocolate will be creating and hand dipping molded chocolates on site. Joshua Stone will present “Name That Sweet Tune”, and there will also be a live and silent auction of sweet treats.

Tickets are available at the library for $20 in advance or $25 at the door. For more information or to reserve tickets call 824-7424.

Children First!

Christmas is really for children, and the best gift you could give the children of Falls Village is a donation toward the Falls Village Children's Theater spring production of Alice in Wonderland. One of the hallmarks of the FVCT since its founding three years ago has been the spring musical which every child in Falls Village can participate in for free. The "No Child Left Behind" doctrine is the spirit of the spring musical (and though it was conceived for the kindergartners through 8th graders several Kellogg alums who are now in high school plan to participate again this year. Where else do you see five-year-olds and 16-year-olds dancing and singing together in a small-town play with professional production values?)

Making this possible requires that local residents and businesses support this fourth spring musical (continuing in the tradition of The Wizard of Oz, Cinderella and Annie.) If you can, be an angel and write a check to the FVCT (and mail it to 25 Deer Road, FV CT 06031) to make sure that the show can go on.

The House That Jason Built*

Our elfin town baker, Jason Young (*with a major assist from Santa Sharon Hamilton), has built a spectacular gingerbread house that his Sweet William's Bakery donated to the David M. Hunt Library. You can buy a chance at the Hunt Library ($2 a piece) to win this wonderful and totally edible house. Even if you don't win, the library does.

Calendar Dinner Dazzles

Not all the tables for Saturday Night's Falls Village Fire Department Calendar Dinner fundraiser were set early on Saturday morning when I stopped by, but here are pictures of those that were by, in order, Toymakers Cafe (July), the Falls Village Historical Society (May), Falls Village Day Care (November), the Falls Village Children's Theater (January), and the Sweet William's centerpiece, his new jumbo gingerbread man for Christmas.

Free Shakespeare!

Each year the Falls Village Children's Theatre is fortunate to be able to treat several children to a day of Shakespeare at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox. This year our program will be on August 9th. A bus will leave Kellogg School parking lot at approximately 11-ish and return approximately 7:30-ish. It is a wonderful day and the shows are unbelievable. Last year one five year old laughed so hard he fell off his seat (literally!) The final details have not been worked out but will include:
Arrival and a picnic lunch (packed by parents)
All will see Mad Pirates and the Mermaid,a spectacular show
Then the group will be split in two. Children entering 7th grade and older (NO exceptions) will see Othello on the main stage. Please review information about Othello to decide if its appropriate for your child.

Younger children will participate in interactive workshops with the Shakespeare actors and their education team. Go to Shakespeare.org for more information.

Admission to the theater and the programs that day are being donated by John Harney & Associates. The FVCT does ask that each child contribute a minimum of $5 for the bus.
Attendance is limited and is on a first come, first serve basis. Contact Denise Cohn before July 10.
.

Falls Village Rules!

Willy Blass, Israel Fitch and Jeff Vanam of Falls Village's Battle Hill Forge at Trade Secrets in Sharon on Saturday May 17.

That may be a bit of hyperbole, but certainly Trade Secrets, the big plant and antiques sale for Women's Support Services, would not be the same without the participation of so many Falls Villagers, including the gang from Battle Hill Forge (photo above--click on it to see bigger) on Route 7, which made its Trade Secrets debut yesterday. They brought their extraordinary hand-forged metal arbors, plants supports, fencing as well as sculpture and chain mail. Their wattle fences, which are used for defining flower beds and borders, are all the rage among serious gardeners. Battle Hill's tent was next to Tommy Scott's very busy Falls Village Flower Farm booth (they're neighbors in real life, too) so it all seemed very familiar. Cyd and John Emmons of Gardenalia are Trade Secrets stalwarts and so are volunteer coordinators Deb Munson and Karin Gerstel. As always, Bunny Williams was schmoozing, shopping and being thanked by everybody because Trade Secrets was launched at her house on Point of Rocks Road seven years ago.

A Day To Celebrate (Twice!)

Talk about timing! On the eve of the FVCT's production of Annie, the Falls Village Community & Cultural Center learned that it had been awarded a $200,000 STEAP Grant from the State of Connecticut, which should go a long way towards opening the doors of 103 Main Street.

Dinner Theater

This is not only mud season; it's pasta dinner fundraising season. Following in the foosteps of last week's amszingly successful 8th grade lasagna dinner, the Falls Village Children's Theater is hosting a fundraising dinner on March 15 that will help pay for the free production of Annie featuring more than 30 kids (ages 5 - 16) from Falls Village on March 28 & 29.

Will You Be Mine?

Dear Erica,
We cannot imagine life in town without Story Hour. We live for Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Your creativity, ingenuity and big heart are an inspiration every day of the week.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Your Secret Admirers on Canaan Mountain Road


Tell someone in town that you admire, cherish, or love them this Valentine's Day on the Falls Village Blog. This first-time fundraiser will benefit the Falls Village Children's Theater Company's production of "Annie."

Here's how it works. Email me Dan.Shaw@att.net
a JPG of a drawing or photograph, along with a message up to 100 words), which will be published on the blog from February 12 - 14. You can use your name or be a Secret Admirer. Then send a check for $10 to the "FVCT" at 25 Deer Road, Falls Village, CT 06031. (Since this is Falls Village, we are working on the honor system.) The great thing about a blog is that there is unlimited space so everyone can be on it and it will be archived for years to come. And you can buy as many messages as you want!

Let's spread love and help the kids get their show on!

See another example of a Blog Valentine below.

Our Sweet Library

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt."
--Charles M. Schulz



It's no secret that children's librarian Erica Joncyk is a chocoholic, and she was the inspiration for a new library fundraising party called Chocolate in the Village, which will take place at the D.M. Hunt Library on Saturday February 23, from 6 to 8 PM.

Designed as an antidote to the late winter blues, the party promises to be a chocolate-lover's dream come true with chocolate desserts donated by the town's best amateur and professional bakers; wines, teas, coffee and hot cocoa; a live auction of chocolate gift baskets as well as a wine tasting; door prizes and live music. The event is being organized by Zoe Fedorjaczenko, Mary Elling, Candice McRee, Laura Munson, Sharon Hamilton and Erica Joncyk. The event's charming, hand-drawn logo--a chocolate tsunami engulfing the D.M. Hunt Library, Toymaker's Cafe and the Falls Village Community & Cultural Center--is the work of Sergei Fedorjaczenko. (If you click on the image, you can see more detail.)

Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Call 824-7424 for tickets and information.

A Knit-In for Peace

The Falls Village Congregational Church has come up with an innovative and fitting way to commemorate Martin Luther King Day. On Monday, January 21 at the church's Miner Hall, the congregation will host Knitting for Peace, which is open to all members of the community. Organized by (above, from left) Akke Jasmine, Ashley DeMazza and Mary Atwood, the day's goal is to make sweater vests, mittens and scarves for orphans in the former Soviet Union, Mongolia, China and Nepal. The sweaters will be delivered overseas by an organization called Warm Woolies. The church will donate wool for anyone who wants to participate, and master knitter Akke will offer expert guidance.

Already, some twenty people have promised to spend part of next Monday knitting and crocheting, and the organizers hope more people will attend and share a pot-luck lunch. The Knit-In goes from 9 AM to 3 PM, and you can come for an hour or stay all day. For more information, email Ashley DeMazza or call her at 824-1437

Rain Delay

The 1st Annual Scarecrow Contest, sponsored by the Falls Village Children's Theater, and Community Harvest Hoedown, sponsored by the Friends of Lee Kellogg School, have been postponed until Sunday in hopes of better weather. Some 45 scarecrows--with names such as "Chercrow", "Hanna Scaretana", "Over the Falls", "Darth Wader" and "Mummy Dearest"--will be erected on Main Street and Beebe Hill Road.

S is for Synchronicity

Without planning, it seems that Falls Village is having a de facto Fall Festival this coming weekend. The Falls Village Children's Theater has signed up 42 individuals, families, volunteer organizations and businesses to make scarecrows, which will be erected on Main Street and the Town Green on Saturday morning with voting from noon till 3:30 PM with prizes awarded in five catgeories: Scariest, Funniest, Most Theatrical, Best Look-alike, Most Falls Village. The FVCT will sell cider and donuts out of the future home of the Falls Village Community & Cultural Center (which will be getting a new roof next month and still needs donations to pay for the project.) F.O.L.K.S. , the Friends of Lee Kellogg School (aka the PTA), has organized a Community Harvest Hoedown on Main Street, which will be closed to traffic, so there will be dancing in the street in front of Town Hall from 2 - 4 PM. In the evening, the Falls Village Congregational Church will hold its annual Halloween Ham Dinner, and on Sunday morning Falls Village Day Care will hold its second annual pancake breakfast in the Senior Center. It's a harmonic convergence demonstrating that Falls Villagers (despite their differences) share a common commitment to children, charity and community. Raindate: Sunday, Oct 28. Call 824-4303 if the weather is questionable.

A Word to the Wise . . .

Two years ago, Pulitzer Prize winning author Frank McCourt spoke at the 8th annual Evening of Words & Music, and he packed the house, raising several thousand dollars for the D.M. Hunt LIbrary. Laura Munson, who cares deeply about the library (following in the footsteps of her benevolent parents) vowed that she would find the next celebrity to read at the annual September event. It's taken her two years to find one with a free Saturday night in September. Enthusiastic and indefatigable, Laura has been writing letters and making phone calls to well-known actors and actresses who live in the northwest corner, and this summer she was able to get a firm commitment from Edward Herrmann, who lives in Salisbury. Mr. Herrmann, as she always calls him, is an actor with a conscience and he will be reading selections from the the Nobel Prize winning playwright and polemicist George Bernard Shaw. Laura is thrilled that Mr. Herrmann (who will be appearing in the hit TV show "Gray's Anatomy" this fall) will be bringing a serious literary presence to the evening. She is also jazzed by two musicians who will be making their Words & Music debuts: June-Elizabeth May Conti, a 12-year-old violin prodigy from Sharon, who is a champion fiddler and has already performed at Carnegie Hall. and singer Antwan Johnson of Falls Village, who won last year's Northwest Idol Competition at the Warner Theater in Torrington with his rendition of the Temptations' "My Girl." Of course, the Joint Chiefs will perform, too. The folk and bluegrass trio are loyal supporters of the library and have played at Words & Music for ten years in a row. Tickets ($18) are available at the Hunt Library, Mountainside Cafe, Town Hall and Toymakers Cafe.