Event date: June 13 (rain date June 20)0).
“It’s about community spirit and connecting. It’s about getting children to feel ownership and pride in their community by becoming actively involved..."
Entry forms available at the Ballston Spa Public Library, bspl.sals.edu/ Deadline for entries:
May 20th.
Birdhouses are available at the Ballston Spa Public Library while supplies last. For further info, contact marklouisco@gmail.com The creative, patriotic flagpole in Wiswall Park, Photo by Mark Blech
An original ‘Thomas the Train’ engine
Impressive decorations: pebbles, gemstones, and a penny roof! For event organizer Mark Blech—a sculptor who worked for 25 years in Atlanta’s film industry before relocating to Ballston Spa— the birdhouse event is all about bringing people together. “It’s not about winning,” he says. “It’s about community spirit and connecting. It’s about getting children to feel ownership and pride in their community by becoming actively involved. Nowadays, it’s so important to make people feel empowered within the place that they live, and not disillusioned or separated from the world around them. We need to nurture that feeling in people, young and old, so they know that they’re an important part of a bigger family, a bigger future, a bigger community than just themselves and their own families.” When it comes to Ballston Spa’s Birdhouse Competition, it truly takes a village. “So Quality basics are a must. many people come together to make I am CRAZY for this white this happen, ” Blech explains. “Curtis Lysse blouse - thank you Lumber supplies all the lumber for
Pam for suggesting it!
saratogaTODAYnewspaper.com
the raw-built houses, as well as many additional supplies. Each year they supply us with more lumber—and we always run out of birdhouses! We also have a great partnership with the high school woodworking class. This project gives the kids real life experience in fabrication and production.” When Blech first broached the birdhouse idea to former Mayor John Romano, the village board not only vigorously endorsed the project but allotted funds to help with promotional posters and supplies. “Our new mayor, Larry Woolbright, has actually created an Arts Council to help support the arts in Ballston Spa,” Blech says. “That has never happened before. The dedicated workers of the Department of Public Works mount all the raw-built birdhouse entries along major village streets, then take them down in November. They also hang all the originals along the fitness trail. “The Ballston Spa Business & Professional Association generously helps with advertising and distribution of information. Shopkeepers hang posters, create buzz, and contribute their time, energy, and ideas in countless ways. And Andrea Simmons and her staff at the Ballston Spa Public Library are incredible. They distribute the birdhouses, collect the finished entries, and
catalogue each one so we have an accurate record of who built what.” Original entries have made a stunning addition to the Jim Tedisco Fitness Trail, subtly blending art and Nature and inspiring travelers along the woodland path. Mark Blech envisions filling the entire trail with the community’s creative endeavors. “In fact,” he reports, “this year we’ll be working with the different elementary schools and middle school to create a mural-like banner—a fence wrap, as I call it—that will stretch across much of the chain link fence that was recently put up along the trail for safety reasons. The fence is a necessary part of the nearby construction and development. But we can use it to our advantage to showcase our children’s artwork. It’s all about community involvement and getting children to feel ownership and pride in their community. “With the globalism of the internet and the cell phone era, it’s great to feel that you’re connected with the world,” Blech adds. “But people need to feel connected with the people around them, too. It’s a new era, but we need to remember where we come from and that ‘one-on-one’ connection.” Without a doubt, Ballston Spa’s Birdhouse Competition is becoming bigger and better every year, creating a tremendous source of village-wide pride while offering other communities an inspiring model of hometown ingenuity and spirit. SS SPRING 2020 | SIMPLY SARATOGA | 93
