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Archives for December 2009

Nominations Sought for “Jewels of the Gem City”

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images-37The Woman’s Club of Dayton Foundation, the YWCA Dayton and the Friends of the Dayton Arcade have teamed up on an initiative aimed at honoring and preserving Dayton’s unique history. They have formed the “Jewels of the Gem City” Committee to select “individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to the historic preservation of Dayton.”

The public is invited to nominate those who have made financial, educational, cultural, promotional or restorative contributions to Dayton’s heritage. Nominations will be reviewed by a selection committee, and the “Jewels of the Gem City” will be announced in March and honored at an event on June 4, 2010. Nominations are due by February 1, 2010, and can be made by downloading a form from www.thedaytonwomansclub.com, www.ywcadayton.org or www.daytonarcade.wetpaint.com. For more information, call 937-432-1957 or email [email protected].

Boot Camp for Future Filmmakers

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95Miami Valley high school students are invited to make a film in 48 hours with Dayton’s best filmmakers.

The Muse Machine is partnering with FilmDayton to present the wildly fun and educational 48 Hour Film Boot Camp. For one action-packed weekend in January, area high school students will work with award-winning Dayton-based filmmakers to learn how to write and direct their own short film. As part of this process, students will also format, storyboard, edit, film, score, and rough cut their films. Finished films will be presented at the end of the Boot Camp weekend on the “big screen” at Wright State University’s esteemed film production facilities. Students who are interested in filmmaking, film school, acting, or just want to get a taste of filmmaking, are encouraged to participate.

at Wright State University’s Film Department
Saturday, January 16, 9am-6pm
Sunday, January 17, 9am-7:30pm; Screenings 8pm
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Registrations will be accepted through December 31, 2009. Registration is $90 for Muse Members. Equipment, breakfast, and lunch are included.

Email Eva Buttacavoli, to register and/or become an $11-a-year Muse Member. Include name, email address, home address, phone number, school, and grade level.

Filmmakers/Instructors
Wright State graduate Filmmakers/Instructors Marisha Mukerjee and Rocky Smith will lead sessions that encompass filmmaking basics, from writing a script to shooting to editing on simple, widely available software programs, and will culminate in the creation of a short film.

Marisha Mukerjee lives and works in Chicago and Dayton; co-produced the feature film The Grind; directed and/or produced numerous short films and theatrical productions for a wide range of venues; and is co-founder of Relief Productions Theater Group and Madrina Films.

Rocky Smith lives and works in Springboro and was the co-producer and co-director of Toughman, which premiered at Wright State’s 2009 Big Lens Film Festival, and was awarded “Best Ohio Short” at the 2009 Oxford International Film Festival. Smith has also worked as a key grip, sound department, stunts, and assistant editor on four award-winning short films for the 48 Hour Film Project.

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For More Information
www.musemachinedayton.com/filmdayton/

About Muse Machine
The Muse Machine is a nationally recognized arts education organization, providing creative experiences and resources for thousands of Miami Valley young people and their teachers since 1982. For information on the Muse Machine see www.musemachinedayton.com.

About FilmDayton
An initiative of the DaytonCREATE project, FilmDayton is a nonprofit, volunteer organization that has spent its first year connecting local filmmakers, encouraging film culture in our community and working to create a richer environment here for future moviemaking.

We are dedicated to boosting economic development in the region and to expanding recognition of the considerable number of young and established filmmakers who live and work in the Miami Valley. For information on FilmDayton see www.filmdayton.com.

Experience the laughter and song of a medieval holiday

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singing2During the Middle Ages and continuing well into the Renaissance, the holiday season was a time when guests traveled great distances to the castles of wealthy friends and family members to feast, dance and exchange news in a celebration that lasted several days. After the rigorous fast of the Advent season, elaborate preparations were made to ensure a truly festive event.

The banquet at Christmas, as on other great holidays, was not an isolated meal, but rather a series of celebrations filled with pageantry and circumstance. After prayers in chapel or at the table, trumpet fanfares signaled the service of specific courses and dishes within the feast. Guests danced, told stories, and sang in enthusiastic outbursts of merrymaking.

Since 1983, the annual Madrigal Dinner, produced each December by the Wright State University Student Union with the Department of Music, has provided the greater Dayton community with a musical and dramatic interpretation of these fabulous medieval ceremonial feasts. What began as a single performance has become an established tradition that spans four evenings and entertains over 1,300 guests.

So, come one, come all, and enjoy traditional English fare, amidst the antics of jesters and manorfolk, dancing and revelry, the Puppet Master, and the wonderfully interwoven lines of the madrigal song. See the Student Union Apollo Room transformed into the Great Hall of Wright Manor where guests are treated to the voices of the Wright State Chamber Singers, medieval dances choreographed by the Tudor Rose Performing Troupe, and the music of Wind in the Woods Early Music Ensemble.

Thursday -Saturday, Dec. 10-12, 2009, 7:00 p.m. Wassail Reception, 7:30 p.m. Dinner
Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009, 5:00 p.m. Wassail Reception, 5:30 p.m. Dinner

Tickets run $35-50, wine extra

puppetTo Reserve by phone: (937) 775-554

On the menu:

  • Wassail
  • Medieval Sallat
  • Beefe and Leeke Pie
  • Appyl Almynde Stuffed Turkey Breast
  • Wylde Ryse Blend
  • Honey Glazed Carrotes and Parsnips
  • Brannbrede
  • Bûche Noël
  • Plomme Poddyng

Santa Claus Pub Crawl in Oregon District

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santa-1This kind of  Pub Crawl has been happening in cities around the country for 15 years or so. It was originally started by a small group of friends as a means of raising some Christmas spirit – and having some fun at the same time. Brian Young moved here from Denver, Colorado where he’d participated for years and  brought the event to Dayton! The first year there were 14 people.  Two years ago the event grew to 80 and last year it more than doubled. It was pretty amazing to watch over 150 Santas, elves, angels, reindeer wander through the Oregeon District.

This year’s even on Sat, Dec 12th promises to be even bigger and better!  More prizes — more fun! No covers when dressed as Santa or festive holiday characters!

Cost of admission is a $10 unwrapped toy (or a $10 monetary donation), which will be donated to Montgomery County Children Services and Toys for Tots. The toys/money can be dropped off at The Dublin Pub or The Trolley Stop.

Costume contests are getting better every year! Dress up and be creative! Prizes are at stake!

The schedule is:santa+claus_with+cristina+and+jaione

Dublin Pub: 6 to 7:30 p.m. (drop off toys)
Trolley Stop: 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. (drop off Toys and sober group picture)
Blind Bob’s: 8:30 to 10 p.m. (contest winners announced)
Tumbleweed: 10 to 11 p.m. (holiday shot specials)
Oregon Express: 11 p.m. to midnight (great dance band)
Newcoms/Ned Peppers: midnight to closing (more dancing)

Each bar will have drink specials, TBA.

See you all there — and don’t forget your $10 unwrapped toy for a child!

Don’t drink and drive: Stay at the Crowne Plaza down the street for a special rate of only $69. Call 937-224-0800 and ask for the “take the elevator home” special.

So spread the word, get your Santa suit and we’ll see you there!

Could You Be A Friend To The Humane Society?

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FOHS_LogoImagine yourself selling bakery treats and never having to worry about gaining a pound from them!   A dedicated group of volunteers  do this every week  at the Animal Snackers Bakery at the 2nd Street Market.  They sell over 70 varieties of treats, including poodle puffs, doxie doughnuts, pomeranian pizza plugs, rottie biscotti and kitty crunchies.  There are also dog and cat toys and bandannas that have been sewed by other volunteers.

More volunteers are needed to help with these and new projects to raise funds in order to give more dogs and cats a happy life.  If you are interested in helping these neglected animals find a a new home there is a volunteer meeting being held the second Tuesday of each month, so the next one will be Tues, Dec 8th at 6:30pm at the Humane Society of Greater Dayton at 1661 Nichols Road.


Pottery for a Cause

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Pots for CharityLooking for a way to give a great handmade gift while also giving back to the community? Local potters David Chesar, Kate Chesar and Geno Luketic have combined their skills to create twelve unique ceramic pots that will be up for auction on eBay now through December 11th. All proceeds from the auction will be donated to the Miami Valley Foodbank, which provides hunger relief efforts throughout Montgomery, Greene and Preble counties.

This is the fifth year for the charity pottery auction; each year, event organizer David Chesar has selected a different organization to benefit from the auction. Past beneficiaries have included Daybreak and Dayton Southwest Weed and Seed.  The firing costs for this year’s pots were donated by John Bryan Community Pottery.

Pots for CharityThe pots are on display at the University of Dayton’s ArtStreet Studio D Gallery until December 9. ArtStreet is located on the 300 block of Kiefaber Street; for more information, visit http://artstreet.udayton.edu or call (937) 229-5101.

To view the pots online or place a bid, please visit http://www.ebay.com and search “ArtStreet pots.”

This Dayton Life: A Tapestry of Stories

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The Neighborhood
By Zet Arcilla

You’ve been there for me
When I lost the woman I had
Dedicated my life to.
When I was in pain and sorrow
When I lost my hope
You’ve been there for me
When I said, “I do.”
When there’s no purpose in my living
You’ve been there for me.
When I went away
And stayed away so long
You’ve been there for me.
I returned to you,
My lovely city.
You’ve been there for me.

Beautiful, isn’t it?

This poem was written by Stivers School for the Arts student, Zet Arcilla, as part of a Rebuilding Together Dayton service project called This Dayton Life.

After my first DaytonMostMetro post, I was contacted by Caitlin Closser, AmeriCorps Outreach Coordinator with Rebuilding Together Dayton. I admit I was unfamiliar with the program, but one thing I love about Dayton is that it’s big enough to have programs like Rebuilding Together Dayton, but small enough that they don’t hesitate to connect with you.

nrd_westwoodRebuilding Together provides home repair services to local residents. The emphasis is on the elderly and disabled, but low-income homeowners might qualify as well. The services can be simple: installing a GFCI outlet to accommodate complex medical equipment in the home of a special needs baby. That might cost up to $100.00 per unit to install, and typically they are only installed around sinks- sources of water- so that’s about $300.00 for two in the kitchen and one in the bathroom, and it’s not complicated. But it is necessary. And for some families, $300.00 represents difficult situation.

Fred Dewinter
By Brett Bower and Jordan Thompson

Every person has his story. Some are more solemn than others, but all are stories, just the same. As Fred was speaking, we began to form an image of what his personality was like. He speaks with an unusual accent that is part southern and part urban, which we think is awesome. He’s humble and straightforward. Although he isn’t really the talkative type, he’s ready to tell his story.

Fred Dewinter has lived in Dayton for over 20 years, and he says that this city has been, for the most part, good to him. “I like Dayton a lot; it’s been good to me and my loved ones,” he stated. He said that he had seen a lot of changes over the last 18 years. Even though he didn’t elaborate, we understood a couple of the changes that he had implied, for example, many of Dayton’s jobs leaving. Then we asked him to name his favorite thing about Dayton. Fred told us that Daytonians are always willing to help out a person in need. We agreed with Fred when he said this, and we also feel that this is one of the most valued aspects about Dayton. …

westwood02Services might be extensive. They recently rebuilt a front porch and completed extensive roof repairs to a home that was damaged during Hurricane Ike. A complicated and expensive project that many of us would find daunting, even with insurance. For some, it’s truly an impossible situation.

That’s technically what Rebuilding Together Dayton does, but the real story here is in the lives that have changed because of the work, and Caitlin went to the creative writing class at Stivers to have students tell the stories of homeowners who have been helped by Rebuilding Together.

Margaret Harden
by Bryan Manger and Francesca Snyder

“I’ve never been one to conform . . . living in the city is absolutely refreshing,” Margaret Harden, who goes by “Charlie,” said about moving to Dayton from the suburbs. Charlie has lived in the Dayton area for 30 years and in the historic district of the city for 15. She has seen the neighborhood “evolve a lot” through her years there and has found it “interesting to watch.” Charlie’s home was chosen for the Christmas in April project. Seventy people, everyone from the Girl Scouts to the Air Force, from Miami Valley Hospital employees to interior designers, came around to help work on her two-story Victorian. “It was absolutely amazing . . . like lots of ants all over my house,” she said, her face lighting up at the memory. Since the project, she’s been “looking for a way to help, give something back”…

You have to wonder how these student’s lives will be enriched forever by this simple storytelling project- a direct and intimate understanding that “Everyone has a story, every story has value.” You are invited to share This Dayton Life and “an evening of storytelling” when the Stivers students present the homeowners with the completed This Dayton Life project:

The Homeowner’s Story
Everyone has a story, every story has value.

We brought together a group of Rebuilding Together Dayton’s past homeowners and a class of talented Creative Writing students from Stivers School for the Arts. The students conducted interviews then wrote stories about the people they met. The result of these meetings is a rich tapestry of living history from some of the cornerstones of Dayton’s neighborhoods.

Join us for an evening of storytelling as the students present these incredible stories to the homeowners for the first time.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009 at 6:00 pm
First Baptist Church of Dayton

Homes tell stories. What’s yours?

Contact Rebuilding Together Dayton, to find out how you can participate.

Photos: Rebuilding Together Dayton. Used with permission.

Students Prepare Local Foods Chili Dinner

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chilliUD’s Intro to Foods class has partnered with Miami Valley Grown to source and prepare a free chili dinner. On the menu, white chicken chili as well as a vegetarian chili, homemade cornbread, pumpkin and apples desserts, spiced cider, coffee or tea.

Planning began in early September as Treva Jenkins, Outreach & Education Chair for Miami Valley Grown and Pat Dolan from UD’s Nutrition & Dietetics Department brainstormed on “how to give students an experience in how to process, freeze and then prepare a meal using locally produced ingredients,” according to instructor Dolan.

smalllogoWith donations from Miami Valley vendors like KJB Farms, Mile Creek Farm, Breaking Ground, Knollwood Garden Center and The Spice Rack as well as local gardeners Cindi Rehm, Ken Carman and Thelma Jenkins, students had over 80 pounds of local tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, carrots and pumpkins to work with. “This is an excellent experience for students who have lived thinking vegetables come in a can or frozen,” Dolan shares. On the day of the event, 25 students from 2 classes will spend the morning prepping, cooking and preparing the dining room in the community kitchen of the church. A group of volunteers from the University’s Student Dietetic Association will then be on hand to serve the meal.

Event Coordinator Treva Jenkins says, “This event is all about promoting and serving local foods, freshly harvested and prepared as well as raising fund to help others in our community.” While there is no cost for the local foods dinner, donations for The Foodbank will be gladly accepted.

WHEN: Thursday, December 10, 2009 from 5 – 8pm

WHERE: First Baptist Church, 110 W. Monument Ave, 3rd Floor Dining Room
Free parking on the N.E. side of building. Use East side entrance.

Historic Holiday Home Tours

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It’s Christmas Time in the city!  Last week, Downtown Dayton had their annual Holiday Festival that included the popular tree lighting.  And over the next couple weekends, two three of Dayton’s most popular historic districts will be presenting their own holiday home tours.  If you have ever wanted to see some beautifully restored historic homes, there is no better time than around the holidays – and these tours give you an opportunity to see several.

sptourFirst up this coming Saturday December 5 is the 2009 Historic South Park Holiday Home Tour.  Eleven homes will dazzle and delight, including grand Queen Annes, quaint cottages, and majestic Victorians. Carolers in Victorian garb will fill you with memories of Decembers past.

This self- guided tour begins Saturday at 12N and ends at 7PM. (The ticket window will close at 5PM.) Cost is $10 in advance and $15 the day of the tour.  Admission price includes a sumptuous dessert buffet at the beginning of the tour. Plan to spend two hours enjoying the sights.

To reserve tickets, please visit www.historicsouthpark.org or call (937) 603-4893. (Tickets will not be mailed.) On Saturday, pick up your tickets and begin your tour from Hope Lutheran Church, 500 Hickory Street. (Turn west off Wayne Avenue onto Hickory. Enter through the church parking lot.) Park free at Hope and Emerson Academy across the street. A shuttle will be available to transport guests back to the parking lots from the most distant home.  Check out the WDTN Bucher’s Beat story with our good friends Bill & Amy, whose house is on the tour:

Next, Dayton’s Oldest Historic District would like to invite you to be part of its annual Holiday Candlelight Tour on December 7, 8, and 9.  A liveried guide will escort you as you tour beautifully decorated historic homes.  The last home on the tour will offer you Victorian Sweets, Champagne Punch and Coffee.  Four of the District’s finest restaurants are participating in a dinner/tour option.  They are: Jays Seafood; Thai 9; Coco’s Bistro and Pacchia.  Check out their website for more details.

Then the following weekend on December 11-13 head over to St. Anne’s Hill for “A Dickens of a Christmas in St. Anne’s Hill” with guided tours of some of Dayton’s most beautiful historic homes. The tours are led Dickens2009by guides costumed in period dress and feature live entertainment followed by a visit to the beautiful homes in the historic St. Anne’s Hill neighborhood, each decorated for the season.  The tours will conclude with a delicious old-fashioned dessert and a visit to the gift shop.

Tours begin every half hour, starting from 4:30-8:00 p.m. on Friday, December 11th; 1:30-8:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 12th; and 1:30-6:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 13th. Tours last approximately two to three hours, including entertainment, home tours, and dessert. Tickets this year are $18 each, and may now be ordered online at www.stanneshill.org. Due to the popularity of the event, the schedule of tours sells out quickly and advance tickets are required.

The 2009 tour will begin at the High Street Gallery, located at 48 High Street.  The tour will conclude with a tour of the popular Bossler Mansion, a landmark structure built in 1869.  This magnificent home is considered Dayton’s best example of Second Empire architecture.  Guests can snack on a classic dessert, browse Victoria’s Parlor Gift Shoppe, walk by the newly renovated Stivers School for the Arts, and enjoy a view of Downtown Dayton.

“A Dickens of a Christmas In St. Anne’s Hill” is the Miami Valley’s oldest continuously running historic home tour, having debuted in 1983.  Proceeds from the tour will benefit the St. Anne’s Hill Neighborhood Association, and are used to maintain the neighborhood’s historic character.

So which tour do you plan to take?  Of course, you can always do both!

Uno’s Pizza with Santa

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Treat your kids to a very special lunch with Santa Claus as Uno’s Pizzeria santabrings Santa in to hear holiday wish lists from deserving boys and girls. From 10:30 -11am the man in the red suit will mingle with the little ones, followed by your lunch ordered from the menu.  There is no extra charge for this, but reservations are required.

Santa will make appearances Sat, Dec 5th, 12th and 19th at the restaurant at 1900 Main Street, downtown. Call Uno’s at 910-8000 to make your reservations.  And don’t forget your camera!