ON THE PORCH Rob Grogan Myles Bigenwald
Editor Associate Editor
Photographer Archer Di Peppe Contributing Writers & Artists A.E.Bayne Tom Byrnes Megan Byrnes Collette Caprara C.Ruth Cassell Lezlie Cheryl Ashleigh Chevalier Arch Di Peppe Frank Fratoe William Garnett Lipp Holmfield Ralph “Tuffy” Hicks Sara Hunt Rob Huffman Lori Izykowski Karl Karch Laurena Marrone Jo Middleton Sara Mattingly Amy Millis Amy Pearce M.L.Powers Vanessa Moncure Amy Pearce Scott Richards Jennifer Skarbek Victoria Scrimer James Kyle Snyder Brennan Spooner Jessica Sutton Matt Thomas Christine Thompson Rim Vining Christian Whelan Front Porch Fredericksburg is a free circulation magazine published monthly by Olde Towne Publishing Co., Inc. Virginia Bigenwald Grogan, Publisher. The mission of Front Porch Fredericksburg is to connect the diverse citizenry of Fredericksburg with lively features and informative columns of interest to our community’s greatest resource, its people. Messages from our readers are welcome. All submissions must be received by e-mail by the 19th of the month preceding publication. Writers are welcome to request Writer’s Guidelines and query the Editor by e-mail. Front Porch Fredericksburg PO Box 9203 Fredericksburg, VA 22403 Phone: 540-220-1922 E-Mail: frntprch@aol.com Web Site: www.frontporchfredericksburg.com The opinions expressed in Front Porch Fredericksburg are those of the contributing writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Front Porch Fredericksburg or its advertisers. Copyright 2013 Olde Towne Publishing Co., LLC All rights reserved.
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July 2013
Stars Shine Brightly in the Burg! For UMW Performing Arts-in-the-Community Scholarships
firsts Marking and remembering the “firsts” that pop up in our lives is always an interesting entry into a personal journal or blog, especially when you look back years later at what happened for the very first time over the years. Remember your first kiss? The first time you stood up to that bully on the playground? Your first time at the beach? The list is infinite; the categories endless; the memory-making is the thrilling take-away. Today, we mark the first issue of the magazine’s 17th year, and that sends a chill up my spine. The chill is a “thank you” vibe released to all of you who have supported Front Porch during all or part of our first 16 years. You literally enabled us the life we planned and dreamed of, so thank you! You heard it here first! Just last month, our grand niece Callie Dunn shed her water wings and took her first strokes in the pool swimming on her own. She was proud as a peacock and proclaimed it her “trophy.” Her photo in action made it onto facebook timelines throughout Dunn-family land, thanks to my old reliable flip-phone camera (my first and only, by the way). I even had my first water walk therapy that same landmark day (in the water; not on it, Charles O ‘wise guy’ Squire!) I attended my first Nationals’ game of the year (see Scene & Heard) with friends Chip Reamy and Jack Hyland, and met up with nephew John Pacitti and old friend Wayne Lesonic at the stadium, too.
messages Rob Thank you so much for showing one of my paintings in the Front Porch and publicizing my first solo show! (June issue, page 11) I really appreciate it! Guerin Wolf Dear Front Porch I saw your publication for the first time (the June one marking your anniversary) since moving here from North Carolina a few months ago, and now I already feel connected to downtown. I recognize faces and stores and always enjoy people watching at Hyperion Espresso. Thank you for the reception into Fredericksburg that Front
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By Lori Izykowski music radio station Thunder 104.5, will Patrick A’Hearn, host the evening. associate artistic director of the Riverside
The first anniversary of the release of J Robert Du Bois’ Powerful Peace is July Fourth (I love the release date for this book – perfectly timed!) and I’ll be seeing J Rob for coffee. I would wish upon all of my friends to meet this man some day. Other firsts that quickly come to mind — as I notice my drop-dead deadline clock has ticked on down to the eightminute mark, like the countdown clock on the Food Network’s great show, “Chopped” that I watch regularly; the host bellowing out, “Chefs, you have eight minutes to complete and plate your entrees!” – are “Fresh Air Fund” child, Luiz Sanchez of the Bronx (so close to the Long Island Sound) seeing the ocean for the very first time when he was 9 during a summer spent at our neighbor’s home as part of the program’s service to children. The joy and absolute wonder in his face and body language had moved us all to an emotional “woo!” that day way back in ’65… Or, my first Fourth of July parade at Marine Park, Red Bank, NJ, in the 50’s, where I actually touched a real red fire engine!
to Chicago for a family celebration of her Uncle George and Aunt Susan Bigenwald’s 50th wedding anniversary. She’ll be taking along a piece of Fredericksburg with her in the form of a special golden anniversary gift (can’t say here; George might be reading this!) but here’s a clue: Jenna Anderson So here’s to “firsts. Let me be the first to wish all of you a summer of fine firsts, a meaningful Fourth of July, and a powerfully peaceful life ahead. “Chef, your time is up!
Step
back!”
And now we are at 2013 – “Where does the time… ?” Alexis will be 21 next month and this month makes her first solo excursion by air when she travels Porch gives to new readers who pick it up for the first time and get addicted to it every month! I wish I could go back in time and read the 191 issues that I missed. Jim Reynolds Downtown
is all of eight years old, is already interested in photography, and it shows — He took the cover shot of Don and Christi Doherty’s home on lower Caroline, all decked out in patriotic pride for the Fourth of July. Good job, Christian! Nice look, Doherty’s! Happy Fourth, everyone!
If you’ve ever watched or heard about the popular Dancing With the Stars show on ABC-TV, you know what to expect this summer when Dancing With the Fredericksburg Stars premieres on the Mary Washington campus featuring 10 community leaders. The event will provide the community with a fun night for a good cause - raising funds for UMW Performing Arts in the Community Scholarships to be awarded to regional students who excel in music, theatre or dance at the University of Mary Washington. These students give back to the community, not only in musical, theatrical, and dance performances on campus, but also as volunteers, working with area school programs, producing talent shows at senior homes, performing at City events, and more. In this local version of the wellloved national show, the 10 regional “stars” will be paired with professional dancers from Strictly Ballroom Dance Studio in Fredericksburg to compete for the People’s Choice Award. The Fredericksburg stars are currently rehearsing with their professional partners to perform the rumba, samba, cha cha, and other ballroom favorites. The performance also will include a panel of judges who will offer commentary following each dance. Performers will include J. Martin Bass, retired lawyer and judge; Caressa Cameron-JJackson, (upper right) Miss
America 2010; Mary Katherine Greenlaw, mayor of the City of Fredericksburg; Richard V. Hurley, president of UMW; Ellen Killough, president and CEO of the Fredericksburg Area Museum and Cultural Center; Richmond McDaniel, senior vice president of CBRE; Fred M. Rankin III, president and CEO of Mary Washington Susan Garnett Spears, Healthcare; president of the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce; Deirdre Powell White, president and CEO of DPW Training & Associates, LLC; and Bill Young, CEO of Virginia Partners Bank.
Dori Eglevsky, Center, community volunteer, and Corey Von Ginkel, member of the National Dance Council of America,
will judge the performers and determine the winner of the coveted mirror-ball trophy. Audience members will be provided ballots to cast their votes for the People’s Choice Award winner. “I firmly believe that the exposure to the arts is a hallmark of a liberal arts education,” Rankin said. “We are blessed in this community to have a myriad choices to enjoy, from the downtown galleries to the performing arts available at the University of Mary Washington.” Dancing with the Fredericksburg Stars will begin at 7 p.m. on Saturday, August 17, in George Washington Hall’s Dodd Auditorium. The event will be followed by an outdoor “under the stars” reception. Tickets are on sale at http://fredericksburgstars.umw.edu for $75, plus a $5 processing fee, of which $65 is tax deductible. Seats are selected and reserved at the time of purchase. For more information, contact (540) 6541065. Lori Izykowski is an Executive Assistant at the University of Mary Washington.
Days Gone By Courtesy of the William T. Garnett Collection
Kevin Bartram, (above) director of the UMW Philharmonic Orchestra, and Penny Wack, a disc jockey at country
NOTE: Thanks, Jim. The Virginiana Room at the headquarters of the Central Rappahannock Regional Library on Caroline Street has a copy of most of the 191 that you can read in-house there. Online at frontporchfredericksburg.com, you can read all from 2012 and all so far from 2013. Click “past issues.”
About the cover: Archer Di Peppe put his grandson, Christian Archer Whalen, to work with him on this one. Christian, who
Downtown Fredericksburg in the 60’s, before the Civil Rights Act was passed, was not all-inclusive. This Fourth of July, we pause to remember our God-given equality, and independence for all, not just for some.
Reach William T. Garnett Antiques at 540-424-2448.
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