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Jack & Denny Smith Library and Community Center
Opening Ceremony - Saturday, June 2
We, the community and members of the Friends of Mt. Washington School
(FOMWS) are so glad that the building we have worked so hard to have
constructed is finally open to the school and to the public, that we
are having a celebration by Showcasing the Community capabilities!
Join the festivities at the Jack & Denny Smith Library and Community
Center on Saturday, June 2, from noon to 9:30 pm. There will be local
dignitaries, music, dance, theater, children's performances, T'ai Chi
demonstrations, storytelling, art exhibits, food and more!
Jack & Denny Smith Library
and Community Center
June 2 noon - 9:30
Mt. Washington Elementary School
3981 San Rafael, Los Angeles, CA 90065
All ages
welcome and it is all FREE.
Come and see just some of the many, many
ways
your new Community Center can be used
by you in the Mount
Washington
and neighboring Communities. |
The Grand Opening
The Grand Opening of the Jack and Denny Library and Community Center
will be held on June 2, 2007 from noon to 9:30 p.m., and is free to
all, including arts, entertainment, food and drinks! The opening of
this unique building represents not only the final completion of this
nearly 80-year old school, by adding a library, computer lab and
multi-purpose room. It also represents a new venue for the community
arts, performances and associations at the Mt. Washington Elementary
when school is not in session. All performances and participation from
the community for this event has been donated. The school is found at
3981 San Rafael, Los Angeles, CA 90065.
Entertainment will include children's performances, sing-a-longs,
story telling, theater, dancing, mimes, professional musicians who are
local residents, comedians from the Ice House Comedy Store in Pasadena
and performances by two world renowned groups that will highlight the
program.
Here's what's happening and when:
| Grand Opening & Community Showcase
Saturday, June 2, 12noon - 9:30p Jack & Denny Smith Library & Community Ctr
Mt. Washington School
3981 San Rafael Ave
Mt Washington, CA 323.222.4035 NNAPnow@aol.com The fun starts immediately at noon with fire trucks and police cars, cotton candy, burgers and sodas. Our Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and many of our other local dignitaries, council members and representatives will be there to kick off the event such as Assemblymembers DeLeon and Portantino and Councilmembers Huizar and Reyes. From the LAUSD there will be School Board Member David Tokofsky and Scott Folsom, 10th District PTA President. The music will flow, a must see art exhibit will give 40% of its proceeds back to the Community Center, crafts, special readings and the comedy acts will abound. Don't miss the reading of Jack Smith Articles, read by Grayson Cook and hear Curt and Doug Smith comment on articles written by their father, Jack Smith.
Stage performances for Children's Choruses, Mt. Washington Philharmonic, Comedy and Acrobatics with Jan Stuarte Mime Show, Operatic Arts by Veronica Christenson - member of the LA Opera Chorus and then the big show of band talent at 3p. 1:00p The Philharmonic will play lively classics by Hayden, Handel, Mozart and a few Merle Isaac arrangements. 3:00p Gabriel Montes, Zack and Analiese Hagar to the stage.Interspersed with the humor of Jimmy Burns from the Ice House as Master of Ceremonies, The Phantom Quintet's repertoire includes standards, rock and folk with accompanying singer Maggie Barto and dancer Ruth Anne Tarletz. Marty Axelrod and his band will sing a collection of original songs about a small-town girl named Shiloh. Robin Radar and Norm Sancho come up next with saxophones, flutes andgreat vibe, Are you waiting for "O3", led by organist Jack Maeby, is a classic jazz organ trio based in LA. 5:00p (or so) Listen to Joe Kevany and the Haywire Choir, followed by Don Cooper and Judith Ann Warren in Concert.
6:30p T'ai Chi Group of Mt. Washington: At Greg Williams will lead the group's demonstration, which
is based on the traditional Yang Family 'Hand Form' and 'Sword Form.'
7:00p Shaolin Monks Martial Arts Troupe, a 31 member group direct from China, will perform Kung Fu in the outdoor amphitheatre. Mary Mullen and Margo Jim's drum circle will add to the awe to this performance.
8:00p Paul Livingstone and the Arohi Ensemble Concert will provide the music of folk traditions from India, the Middle East, Macedonia, Spain and Brazil. Sponsored by The LA County Arts Commission and the Recording Industries music performance fund through the assistance of the Professional Musicians Union Local 47.
Free food (pizzas, burgers, ice creams, yummm), free music (talented jazz, folkart, orchestral and operatic voices-bands-and orchestras) and free balloon art, comedy, art exhibits, and information booths from local groups. Hear how these groups impact our lives: MWA, PTA, ASNC, GPNC, CPNC, HPNC, SRF, Jack and Denny Smith Memorial Fund for Literacy, Friends of the River, Million Trees Giveaway Northeast Trees, Judith Dancoff Writing Workshop, Heritage Square, Audubon Center at Debs Park, Arroyo Arts Collective, Arroyo Seco School, Mt. Washington School. See kids art, hear kids sing-a-longs, do arts and crafts, listen to Jack Smith articles and other story reading in the library, and more. Remember, this building is all about arts and literacy. Go to www.LiteracyLA.org to learn more about Curt and Doug Smith's mission to support small grass roots organizations in the greater LA area that work to prevent illiteracy among at- risk children.
Also, see exhibits from different groups including the Mt. Washington Plein Air Painters, Friends of the River, Million Trees Giveaway, & many neighborhood councils that work to keep our neighborhoods growing & improving.
Kristie Fujiyama Kosmides' Fine Art, donated in the name of the Literacy Foundation to the new building, will be on display. Her creations provide an environment for students that supports awareness of how color and form affect the mind in her abstract minimalism. Her art consists of many different types of painting. Art from the Mt. Washington Plein Air Painters' reflects life on Mt. Washington, the Arroyo Seco and the Los Angeles River. The group has painted landscapes almost every Saturday since 2000 and represent a range of styles, painting in oil and watercolor, making painting a part of their weekly rhythm The opening of this unique building represents not only the final completion of this nearly 80-year old school, by adding a library, computer lab & multi-purpose room. It also represents a new venue for the community arts, performances & associations at the Mt. Washington Elementary when school is not in session. The building, named The Jack & Denny Smith Library & Community Center, focusrs on creating a literacy center as a tribute to Jack Smith, whose legacy is of writing about the Mt. Washington area. All performances & participation from the community has been donated. |
WHY?
The building was named The Jack and Denny Smith Library and Community
Center, focusing on creating a literacy center as a tribute to Jack
Smith, whose legacy is of writing about the Mt. Washington area. His
books, such as How to Win a Pullet Surprise - The Pleasures and
Pitfalls of Our Language, 1982; Alive in La La Land, 1989; Eternally
Yours, 1996 and many others, along with his column in the Los Angeles
Times about life on Mt. Washington have immortalized the Mt.
Washington neighborhood as a sanctuary for quality life in LA. At
www.LiteracyLA. org, information is available about Smith's sons, Curt
and Doug's Jack & Denny Smith Memorial Fund for Literacy. They quote
Cir Richard Steele in their interest to build literacy, "Reading is to
the mind what exercise is to the body." Sir Richard Steele
The June 2nd Community Showcase will show many of the ways the
building can be used, and will include many local talents and their
organizations. The broad community of Mt. Washington, including
Highland, Cypress, and Glassell Parks are able to use this building
for their community meetings, presentations and performances. All
events are to be scheduled and coordinated by the steering committee
of the Friends of Mt. Washington that is made up of representatives of
11 organizations in the surrounding community.
The Los Angeles County Arts Commission and Local 47 will donate the
world-renowned AROHI Ensemble musical concert. AROHI plays creative
world music through original compositions and improvisations, and is
inspired by the deep classical and folk traditions of India, the
Middle East, Macedonia, Spain and Brazil. The group's leader, Paul
Livingstone, is an international artist who performs on a variety of
world strings with a focus on sitar and a unique 9 string fretless
guitar of his own designs. He was rigorously trained under Dasgupta,
Dr. Rajeev Taranath and the living legend Pt. Ravi Shankar.
Livingstone' s ensemble includes members who produce music that
embraces sounds from classical, jazz and hip hop influences.
The world-renowned Shaolin Monks Martial Arts Troupe from the Henan
Province of China has performed at the Kodak Theater eight times, all
which have sold out. Their 30 members create images through their
exacting movements that astound their audiences. This special
presentation is arranged and funded by the Henan Province Chinese
government and will be their only Los Angeles engagement on their tour.
For more information about the June 2 Grand Opening of the Jack and
Denny Library and Community Center at Mt. Washington School from noon
to 9:30 p.m., email NNAPnow@aol. com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
David Brunk
dblovesla@sbcglobal.net
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