Ligonier Valley (PA) Middle School Holiday Concert

CAROLYN’S DAILY POSTS: 2011

LIGONIER VALLEY (PA) MIDDLE SCHOOL

HOLIDAY CONCERT

     December 1961. At the time I was in my senior year at Kensington High School in Buffalo, New York.

     In spite of the fact that my singing voice is the equivalent of producing notes from my far out-of-tune autoharp, the fact that I was being dismissed from class to participate in the annual Christmas concert was truly attractive.

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     Yes, back then they had authentic Christmas concerts, not the watered down holiday concerts the schools produce today. But I digress…

     The actual choir sang from the stage, backed up by a choir which occupied about a quarter of the auditorium seat.  It was fortunate because I could join this support group with no one knowing that I was just lip-syncing. Nary a note flowed from my voice box.

     I joined the choir each year because

An Undisclosed Party Guest Turns 70 in 2011

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

AN UNDISCLOSED PARTY GUEST TURNS 70 IN 2011

     On September 20, 2011, my husband and I osted Mellow Mike, a Ligonier Pennsylvania) creative group that celebrates life with music, poetry/prose readings, and friendship.

     I had spread the word that we would nclude a birthday party for an undisclosed guest. During the wonderful early autumn evening I presented persons present with the following quiz that offered clues to the undisclosed guest’s identity. See if you can identify the undisclosed birthday guest from the clues.

QUIZ

Our guest turned 70 this year.

• No, it’s not Gogi Grant, 1950’s singer of The Wayward Wind and voted the most popular female vocalist of 1956. She was born in 1924, making her 87 years old today.

Our guest was born in Buffalo, New York.

• I went to Kensington High School and the University of Buffalo in Buffalo in that city. I met my husband Monte there—he was a physics professor at the University, and I was a science research technician on campus, preparing to return to college. However, we didn’t meet on campus. We met at

Flight of Valor: Honoring United Airlines Flight 93 Victims

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

FLIGHT OF VALOR:

HONORING UNITED AIRLINES FLIGHT 93 VICTIMS

Scene of Flight 93 crash viewed from a side road

    As the Somerset County Community Band approached its fifteenth anniversary occurring in 2004, its board discussed commissioning a celebratory piece of music. Then the United Airlines Flight 93crashed in their “back yard.” The band’s board changed its focus on the commission from its anniversary to commemoration of the 9/11 event. In 2002 they commissioned James Swearingen, from Capital University in Ohio, to compose the piece. Swearingen based his composition on a well-known hymn, It is Well with my Soul.*

(<—  click on photo for full view)    

 

 

 

A generous Ligonier crowd sat under a sky of blue decorated with artistic white clouds, listening as musical notes produced by the Somerset County Community Band floated through the air. A soft cool breeze, holding the promise of autumn, blew over them—sweater-weather caused by Hurricane Irene. During the intermission the sky turned into shades of gray, interspersed with patches of white. Darkness descended quickly following the intermission  

     It was in this darkness that the Community Band played Flight of Valor, which received a standing ovation.**

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     Jim Swearingen, a music professor, always wanted to create a composition around one of his favorite hymns, It is Well with my Soul. However, he was waiting for the right circumstance and setting.

     Jim recognized that this hymn as a hymn of choice that is universally accepted during a period of grieving. “It has provided me comfort during these times.” 

     Then David Breen called him, asking if he would be interested in

Annual Labor Day Picnic is a Dog’s Delight

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

ANNUAL LABOR DAY PICNIC IS A DOG’S DELIGHT

     Today, September 4, 2011, my husband Monte walked the path through the woods to my son-in-law’s Annual day-before-Labor-Day Picnic. 

 

     It was hot and humid as Michael prepared barbecued ribs (using three different barbeque sauces) on the grill. Unfortunately, by the time he grilled the hamburgers and hot dogs, the ribs had been gobbled down by the guests and he didn’t get any. 

 

     Michael and Sandy’s dog, Cocoa (a chocolate Labrador retriever), couldn’t get enough water so granddaughter Jordan tried to quench his thirst:

     By mid-afternoon picnickers were forced into the garage by a

Reading the Constitution, Mellow Mike, & Football: Ligonier, Pa., 9/02/11

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

READING THE CONSTITUTION, MELLOW MIKE,

& FOOTBALL:

LIGONIER, PA. 9/02/11

     Tonight was busy in Ligonier, the location of several events. I attended the Reading of the Constitution and Mellow Mike music/reading events held at the Ligonier Theater, which were organized by Diane Cipa.   

Diane Cipa reads the Constitution

     My husband Monte went to the Ligonier Valley High School football game with my daughter Sandy, her husband Michael, and granddaughter Jordan. Neighbor Dan joined them in the stands later.  Ligonier won the game 49-0. After the game, the band, cheerleaders, and baton twirlers marched through town to celebrate the win. They were accompanied by the police and fire company. 

     The Reading of the Constitution was a second-year non-political event meant to familiarize the participants and attendees with the Constitution. It took slightly less than an

Ligonier, PA: 2011 Summer Music Fades Into Autumn Sports

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

LIGONIER, PA: 2011

SUMMER MUSIC FADES INTO  AUTUMN SPORTS

     This morning I was enjoying my coffee on the patio, reflecting on the coming fall, and reading the newspaper. The weather grew from being very pleasant to being very menacing. I heard thunder rolling in from the west, which became louder as an end of day darkness descended. I had difficulty seeing the newspaper print by the time I saw and heard lightning strikes. I hurried inside to turn on the lights and proceed with my day’s work.

     Ah, yes. September first. Weather roaring in like a lion. Fortunately, predicted to be like a lamb for the Labor Day weekend. When it is over it will truly be autumn, with its routines and schedules settling in. I hope you all had a memorable summer.

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    ‘Tis the end of another summer. In Ligonier, the Chamber of Commerce sponsored Sunday evening concerts on the Diamond ended its season August 28 by hosting the Somerset County Community Band. It included a solo of Frank Sinatra tunes by Mr. Orange, and explanation of the Band commissioned Flight of Valor, a composition honoring the heroes of United Airlines Flight 93. Both received standing ovations from a crowd. Read more by clicking on The 2011 Ligonier (PA) Summer Concert Finale.  

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     Last night my granddaughter Jordan and daughter Sandy invited me to the Ligonier Valley School District’s event where the sports players are introduced amidst a tumult of school cheering.

      The senior sports team players were introduced, and the cheerleaders performed a couple of cheers.

     The band played some. Jordan just joined

Chad Eric Smith in Movie Black Kerchief

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

CHAD ERIC SMITH IN MOVIE BLACK KERCHIEF

     Chad Eric Smith will end his seven-year stay in Westmoreland County with numerous theatrical accomplishments, the most recent being

•      an extra, in the role of a Gotham City Police Department SWAT Team Member, on the set of The Dark Knight Rises filmed this month in Pittsburgh. “Of course, there is no guarantee that I will be seen on screen when the movie comes out,” he wrote on his facebook page.
•      an actor in the role of Charlie in Black Kerchief, a gritty western film. “A good chunk of it was filmed at Fort Ligonier. Other filming locations included random, rural, areas of Western Pennsylvania having no signs of civilization.” It will premiere at the Hollywood Theater in Pittsburgh On Sunday, August 28th, 2011 at 7 p. m.   The trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03EHsM85ZDM

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Chad Eric Smith

     Chad was born and raised in Washington, D. C., to supportive parents Erica Tollett and Jonathan Smith, a multimedia and music producer. He has a brother Zack and a sister Nina Harrison.

     He attended School Without Walls, a public, college-preparatory magnet school in D.C., where he joined an educational group, Teens Against the Spread of AIDS. While  participating in the dramatic skits the group used to present material he discovered  his interest in the theater.

     “I always had a theatrical personality,” he said.

     After graduating he came to Southwestern Pennsylvania to study psychology at the Greensburg campus of the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt-Greensburg). During his four years of study his interest in

Cowabunga! Wowabunga!

CAROLYN’S DAILY POSTS: 2011

COWABUNGA! WOWABUNGA!

     Sometimes a chance piece of information included in a print media article takes you back to the past. This happened while reading an article on Idlewild Amusement Park’s new multi-million dollar wave pool, the single-largest capital improvement project in the amusement park’s history.*

     Idlewild is located in Ligonier Township in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

     The 182 foot-long pool, which delivers seven minutes of waves for every 10 minutes of calm water, is named