For Good

The Know Theatre is Cincinnati’s place to be for evocative live entertainment. One-of-a-kind experiences such as the Cincinnati Fringe Festival and cutting edge programs such as the Jackson Street Market and the theatre’s touring educational program Calculus: the Musical! have established the Know as the go-to venue for the type of contemporary theatre more common in larger cities. 

Now in its 15^th year of operation, the Know has received some prestigious national recognition. 

In October, Know Theatre Producing Artistic Director Eric Vosmeier will travel to the Big Apple to accept a $10,000 grant from the American Theatre Wing (founder of the Tony Awards). One of only 10 theatres nationally to receive the honor, the Know will use the grant to support programming and help attract and retain artists. 

“This grant is a huge boon to Know Theatre’s model, focus and programming,” Vosmeier says.
 
The prestigious award validates the Know’s commitment to innovation and the advancement of contemporary theatre, and provides important support for the theatre’s sustainability. “Know Theatre is at a crucial stage of our development and new funding such as this will be crucial for us to continue to move the organization forward,” Vosmeier says. 

In order to receive the 2012 National Theatre Company Grant, the Know had to articulate its mission, demonstrate the cultivation of an audience and show how artists are nurtured in a way that strengthens the quality, diversity and dynamism of American theatre. 

“It seemed to me that they were looking for a company that takes a diverse approach to what they do,” says Vosmeier. 

He says that the strength of the grant application was based on the Know’s unique approach to programming and the fact that it is producing almost entirely new work. For example, the Cincinnati Fringe Festival brings hundreds of local and national artists together each year to entertain, collaborate and network while artist programs like the Jackson Street Market and educational programs like Calculus: The Musical! play more active roles in education. 

In addition to its innovative programs, the Know continues to look for new ways to fund itself. The institution of the Club of Jacksons, initially a crowdfunding effort aimed at supporting the Know’s production of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson earlier this spring, was a first for the Know and resulted in funding almost the entire production. 

Building on the success of that endeavor, Vosmeier says that the Club of Jacksons will return this year, allowing the community to play an active role in sponsoring a live show by donating one Jackson or several. 

The Know is also working with Brandery 2012 class member Socstock, an innovative funding model that allows individuals to invest in a local small business and receive a return through goods and services. Details are still in the works, but Vosmeier says that returns on investment through Socstock could include anything from tickets, to Fringe passes, improv and acting classes and more. 

Perhaps more than anything, the company’s sustainability is based on its ability to cultivate high-caliber talent that keeps people buying tickets. With a continued focus on original programming, artistic development and sustainable funding, the Know Theatre is on an upward trajectory.

“We want to keep artists here in Cincinnati,” says Vosmeier. “We want them to be able to make a living here and continue to advance contemporary theatre.” 

The grant from the American Theatre Wing boosts that mission by providing the resources that allow the Know to provide health care benefits for the first time to staff, add a few positions and provide a pay raises. 

Expect great things to keep coming from the Know, including several Fringe Encore performances throughout the month of September, the True Theatre series returning in October and special events like the Know Theatre CityBeat Speakeasy NYE party. 

Do Good:

• Purchase tickets to an upcoming show. 

• Donate to the Know. 

• Promote Know productions through your social network and like the Know on Facebook.

By Deidra Wiley Necco

September marks the start of another year for the Cincinnati Wildflower Preservation Society, whose members support free expert lectures and hours of exploration into local flora all year round. In addition to hikes, lectures and partnerships with like-minded non-profits, the Cincinnati Wildflower Preservation Society also hosts photo sharing programs and symposia throughout the year.  This year, the group again shares its expertise during the Great Outdoor Weekend, Sept. 23. At Miami Whitewater Forest, Society hike leaders will explore Dry Fork Creek, in search of glacial relict trees as well as riparian plants. "This area has the highest local diversity of breeding birds, with 112 recorded species, more than most other blocks in the State, in the recently completed Ohio Breeding Bird Atlas," according to the Society's website. "Insects, especially dragonflies and butterflies, will be abundant, along with fish, reptiles and amphibians." In the past year, member donations have allowed the Society to support the efforts of the Western Wildlife Corridor, the Arc of Appalachia and the Midwest Native Plant Conference. The group also sponsored a student at the Edge of Appalachia Science Camp. Upcoming programs focus on the largest and most diverse plant families on the planet--daisies--and the threat presented by the Asian Longhorned Beetle. From fall foliage walks to guided winter hikes, the Society's free offerings provide nature-lovers with plenty of options for exploring and learning. Do Good: • Join the Society. Active membership costs just $12 per year and supports programs every month of the year. • Beware the Asian Longhorned Beetle! Watch this video to learn the warning signs.  • Download the latest schedule of Society events. By Elissa Yancey Follow Elissa on Twitter

Cyclists in the Queen City don't want any more "ghost rides," to commemorate fallen peers like Ronald Richardson, who died after being hit by a Metro bus. So as they ride tonight to honor him, supporters will also launch a new version of a proactive program they hope will raise awareness of the importance of sharing our roadways.

Queen City Blinkies, an initiative to provide free front and rear bicycle lights to riders, revives an effort started in 2008 by 7 Hills Racing. In its new incarnation, QC Blinkies, supported by Queen City Bike and the local cycling community, serves as a way to express the importance of safe riding, and safe driving, especially in the wake of recent deaths.

"This has been a really trying time for bicyclists in Cincinnati," says Nern Ostendorf, executive director of Queen City Bike. "The urgency for safer roads has never been more apparent. Bicyclists across the city are grieving, organizing and supporting one another."

Adding lights, often more than one or two, is one way cyclists can make their presence known on city streets. But no matter how conspicuous the rider, a sense of conflict remains. (Just read the comments section of any story about cyclists and drivers and you will see it.)

She notes that while Queen City Blinkies and other educational efforts, such as billboards, are important, the bigger issue involves how we, as a community, want to live. "Right now, most of our streets are designed to move cars across the city as fast as possible, with the greatest volume possible," Ostendorf says. "Of course that will create problems between cars and cyclists."

That speed-focused design, she contends, does little to increase quality of life for any citizen. "I want my city, my neighborhood, and my street to be a place to visit and enjoy rather than somewhere to move through, and I believe that most people, cyclists or not, want those things for their communities, too," she says.

One simple, though challenging, answer is to lower speed limits—as with pedestrian accidents, high-speed collisions with cyclists tend to be more serious and more often fatal.

And it turns out that slowing down may help more than cyclists. A pilot project study in Philadelphia showed that lowering speed limits not only made streets safer for motorists and cyclists to co-exist, it lowered the rate of car accidents overall.

"We need to be creative and experimental even in how we understand and move traffic," Ostendorf says. She advises neighborhood groups to take action on their own, to request lower speed limits and speed bumps when necessary to make streets and sidewalks safer for all residents, whether they are 8 or 80.

Do Good:
• Support Queen City Blinkies by donating to buy lights.

• Obey the law. Driving a car? Remember, it is illegal for cyclists to be on the sidewalk, so give them time and space as they share the road. Cycling? Remember, if you coast through a red light, you're reinforcing the kind of stereotypes that can hurt your riding peers.

• Enjoy good food and conversation at the Hyde Park Farmers Market Bikegarten.

By Elissa Yancey
Follow Elissa on Twitter

The Requiem Project, the nonprofit arts organization that makes its home at the Emery Theatre in Over the Rhine, continues to build this fall with a five-event series called "Art Moves Here," which debuts with the Sept. 20 opening of a FotoFocus-affiliated exhibit called "Handsome" by Chris Hoeting.

Hoeting built "Handsome" specific to the Emery's nooks and crannies, knowing that his show would run in tandem with Midpoint Music Festival performances at the site as well as a showing of Mike Disfarmer's beautiful and sometimes unsettling portraits, set to be on display starting .

Like so many other endeavors over the past year, "Handsome" reflects the power and the potential of the Emery to occupy an emerging space in the local arts scene—to bring together art forms, artists and neighbors and together, to build a stronger, vibrant and diverse community.

As part of Fotofocus, "Handsome" uses prints and mixed media to explain culture, in this case the culture illustrated by Western movie director John Ford, who became fascinated with the story of lawman Wyatt Earp and his stories. Hoeting's work plays with the archetypes of Ford's day, deconstructing them and analyzing their meaning and cultural relevance.

In an Emery season that includes showcasing pieces by Andy Warhol and hosting dance and music performances, the theater's co-founder and artistic-executive director, Tara Lindsey Gordon, sees "Handsome" as a highlight.

Do Good:

• Attend the "Handsome" opening reception, Thursday, Sept. 20, from 6-9 pm.

• Mark your calendars for FotoFocus events over the next month.

• Visit the Emery's new website for more information.

By Elissa Yancey
Follow Elissa on Twitter

Her words are precise, deliberate. Her pace is slow and measured. In her voice remains a slight sweet drawl of her native Eastern Kentucky.

As her spoken words unfold, it becomes evident that Pauletta Hansel has spent a lifetime surrounded by the lyricism of language, a language heavily influenced by the storytellers of the Appalachian Mountains, her father and communities of other writers, poets and artists.

But hers is far from the life of the solitary poet.

The award-winning author of four collections of poetry is spending this fall – as she has for years - leading community-based workshops for writers as part of the Urban Appalachian Council and through Thomas More College and the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.

On Sept. 24, she and three other authors will present “Our Beloved Community,’’ a collaborative performance of story, poetry and song created by the authors and residents of Over-The-Rhine. Each author interviewed Over-The-Rhine residents, wrote from those experiences and then came together to craft the performance, which gives voice to the residents.

“This was really an opportunity to create something bigger than myself,’’ she says.  

Hansel, 53, of Paddock Hills, is also co-editor of Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel, the literary journal of the Southern Appalachian Writers Cooperative, and was the co-director of the Grailville Retreat in Loveland, where she continues to lead writing workshops.

Most recently, Hansel was named the first Writer-in Residence at Thomas More College in Crestview Hills.

Community and teaching have always been important to Hansel’s writing and her work is now part of repaying all those who supported – and continue to support – her work.

Her first mentor was her father, a college professor and not a writer.

“In my father’s eyes, books were more important than food,’’ she says. “It was a part of my nature and my nurture.”

She started writing poetry while a young teen as a mechanism to help her deal with the intensity and emotions of her pre-teen years. But it quickly evolved into who she was.

“I suppose it started as a verb and not as a noun; the writing started as a need to communicate to myself,” she says. “But I was a writer as opposed to the aspirational.”

Two things helped catapult her writing: She grew up during the 1970s’ resurgence of the rich tradition of Appalachian writing and storytelling; and a poet – who was part of school Poet in the Schools program - lived with her family.

“I really connected with her. Here was someone who made a living at writing and was a poet throughout her life,’’ she says.

While Hansel finds that she must set aside time by herself to write, various writing communities sustain her.

“I cannot talk enough about the value of a writing community … writing is a solitary act, but it is the act supported on the context of community.”

She recommends that writers find havens of support and places where they will be able to “drop down into that psychological space” necessary to write. For her that is an annual trip to the Sisters of Loretto Motherhouse, in Nerinx, Ky., about 60 miles from Louisville. She has been going there since 1996.

Hansel finds her retreats and communities in other places as well, including in teaching.

“I love to teach. For me, writing and teaching are interconnected. It’s really good work,’’ she says. “I am so grateful for those who taught me. In the days of yore when arts and crafts were handed down through journeymen and apprentices … it’s like that to me.

“It’s like my way of passing it on.”

Do Good:
•    Attend Our Beloved Community performance at 7 p.m., Sept. 24, at the Main Library, 800 Vine St.

•    Find a writing program or retreat at grailville.org.

•    Attend an “Eat and Create” brownbag lunch with Hansel at Thomas More College from noon to 12:50 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12. The series is offered the second Wednesday of each month through December.

By Chris Graves

Jim Guthrie and his wife Deanna Heil have lived in Newport for about 20 years. The dynamic duo of architects met while studying at UC’s DAAP. While they planned a life far west of the town of their alma mater, a poor job economy left them little choice but to bloom where they were planted.

Now Guthrie, who works for Hub + Weber Architects, and Heil, who started City Studios Architecture in OTR, are in their second home and raising three kids, aged 16 to 10. Guthrie took over as chair of Art Off Pike this year. In anticipation of this year's festival Sept. 30, Soapbox asked him to share his thoughts about the event and its latest incarnation.

Q: How did you get interested in Art Off Pike in Covington--I mean, you're a Newport guy, right?

A. I attended AOP a few years ago for the first time. The second time I participated as an artist—I dabble as an inner-demon catharsis.

I volunteered on the committee last year. And this year, I was thrust into the Chair position because I stood still when someone asked, "Who wants to be Chair?" Everyone else took one step backwards. 

Q: Explain what it is for readers who haven't experienced it before. 

A: Art Off Pike is an urban street festival celebrating artists and downtown Covington. It was created by the Westside Action Coalition (a neighborhood coalition) eight years ago as an event (an ice cream social) capitalizing on local artists living and working in Covington and has grown from there.

This year, we'll have more than 70 artists displaying their wares for sale, between $10 to $400 generally.

We'll also have an area for kids art activities called "Picasso's Playground" which will be run by area arts organizations. You'll find coloring, water color, collage, doll making, bubbles, ice cube painting, hooping, finger painting and ceramics.

Q: What's new about the celebration this year?  

A.    This year there will be coffee!!! And lots of food. Both of which were painfully absent last year. We've signed up Deeper Roots Coffee, C'est Cheese, Cafe de Wheels, Lime, Yankee Doodle Pretzels and streetpops.

Q: What role have you played in the festival?

A: I'm the chair ... so I do everything that I can't get anyone else to do. But mostly organizing and occasionally begging. We have a great committee of folks - Natalie Bowers with the City of Covington, Jean St. Jean with My Nose Turns Red, Joan C. Lee (community leader), William Dickson with Haney, Chris Henry (community leader) and Chris Meyer.??

Q: Can you talk about the AOP posters a bit? 

A: The posters, and all the collateral material really, grew out of an effort to distinguish Art Off Pike from other art festivals. 

We wanted to recognize the urbanity of Covington instead of apologize for it. We wanted to recognize the beauty in the grit. So, we made an effort to make every piece of collateral material as authentic and real. 

We started out mailing "save the date" baggies to 100 of our best friends which contained hand stamped and numbered cards. We handed out business cards that were the same (stamped, signed and numbered). We walked around Pike and Seventh Streets in Covington (where the event is held) and took pictures of the cool things we noticed. We printed these images on corrugated cardboard. 

Each poster is individually spray painted, signed and numbered. There are eight copies of five versions for a total of 40 (41 actually).  These were distributed to the area businesses and supporters that love us. I'm particularly proud of the posters and have to thank William Dickson and his firm Haney for helping us out.??

Q: When was the first time you heard about/went to Art Off Pike? What was your impression? 

A: It was like a yard sale for artists. And there's a certain amount of cool to that. It wasn't pretentious. It was a community. We want to grow ... but we don't want to lose that.??

Q: Describe Covington's art scene and how Art Off Pike fits in with it.
 
A: Art and Culture are so important to cities - particularly the urban cores. You may have read recently that the Covington Arts District as a city designated zone no longer exists, but the arts initiative is absolutely alive ... just evolving, unrestricted by boundaries. Covington has recently been recognized by the governor's arts and cultural district certification.

Covington's Mayor and Commission fully support the arts both personally (with their wallets) and politically. It's a recognition that Arts and culture do impact the bottom line economy. Covington is unique in that it has a city supported and staffed Gallery at AEC, but also many other arts organizations including Baker Hunt, Carnegie, Behringer Crawford, Madison Theater, Madison Event Center, concerts at the Basillica, the Ascent, public sculpture; and private groups like Bldg Gallery who regularly bring in international artists for shows and public art projects.

AOP is the original arts event that Covington's Full Spectrum was based on. Capitalizing on all the artists - ceramists, painters, playwrights, musicians, singers, performers, living and working in Covington. 

?Q: Anything you think people should know about the art scene in Northern Kentucky that they don't know already? 

A: It's there. I think the different incarnations, designations and zones and the disintegration of those zoning designations can confuse people. I think it's not where it needs to be; not where it will be. It has to come from within, and there are some energetic people working on fostering the artist community and it's going to happen (inside Covington joke).??

Do Good:

• Show AOP some love on Facebook.

• Make a day of it. Attend the festival Sept. 30.

• Check out more Covington neighborhood action at the Center for Great Neighborhoods.
 
Compiled by Elissa Yancey
 Follow Elissa on Twitter

Teen girls face a range of challenges—emotional, physical and psychological—as they navigate the sometimes choppy waters of adolescence. Hearing from young female leaders who have made it through those tough years and followed their own paths to success can offer insights and inspiration.

That's the idea behind the Leadership, Education And Development Conference for High School Girls, this year hosted at Northern Kentucky University Oct. 16. (Registration for the free conference closes Sept. 14.)

At the one-day conference, attendees will hear from Olympian Dominique Dawes as well as local female business and community leaders, who will share their stories on success, finding meaning and happiness in life and developing relationships.

Do Good:

• Register for the conference before Sept. 14.

• Find out more about the NKU Institute for Talent Development and Gifted Studies.

• Like the Mean Stinks campaign on Facebook.

Some might say that the City of Cincinnati gets more beautiful every day, what with the continued development of its urban core and riverfront, an ever-expanding “green” construction movement and a treasure trove of amazing parks and public spaces.

Keep Cincinnati Beautiful (KCB) works to ensure that the surrounding environment keeps pace by creating innovative and award-winning programs that encourage recycling and conservation practices among schoolchildren, and make it easier for folks to save the old VCR in the basement from a landfill.

KCB earned notable recognition in July when Keep America Beautiful recognized the organization’s Sustainability in Action and One Stop Drop programs at its annual assembly of Ohio affiliates in Columbus.

While many public schools strive to set environmentally friendly “green” goals, KCB noticed that schools struggle to meet them.

“There is a misperception out there that ‘green’ programs create more work for school staff and faculty,” says Brooke Romaniw, KCB public awareness and volunteer coordinator. “We wanted to find a way to reverse this perception and help Cincinnati Public Schools educate both students and adults.”

As a result, Sustainability in Action (SIA) was born. Funded by partners including P&G, Hamilton County Recycling and Solid Waste District and the City of Cincinnati Office of Environmental Quality, SIA is a three-year program that engages students in hands-on activities that work to forge “green” habits.

Launched in January 2012, the SIA program focused first on waste reduction in school lunchrooms. Each day at lunch, students were taught to sort the waste on their trays, identifying items that could be recycled or composted.

Students at Dater High School, Rees E. Price Academy, Roselawn Condon, Rockdale Academy and Silverton Paideia were part of the pilot year.

“The students saved tons of waste from landfills during the pilot and benefitted from hands-on experience,” says Romaniw. Some students took it a step further by creating their own compost bins and gardens.

As the recipient of Keep America Beautiful’s Civic/Nonprofit Award, SIA is set to begin its second phase, focusing on energy conservation during the upcoming school year. The idea is that by year three, participating schools should be ready to take over the programs themselves.

“We’ve found that schools really see the value in this program,” says Romaniw. “It is exciting to see children building sustainable habits that have the potential to change the future for the better.”

KCB won more national recognition for its One Stop Drop event, which launched in November 2011. It won the America Recycles Day Award from Keep America Beautiful. Romaniw spearheaded the development of One Stop Drop to make recycling unusual items convenient. While curbside recycling saves many items from the landfill, it does not accept things like electronics and number 5 plastics.

During the One Stop Drop, you can drop off these types of items, drive-thru style, with free refreshments available.

By partnering with 2TRG, the Cincinnati Zoo, Hamilton County, the City of Cincinnati and Whole Foods, the One Stop Drop program reached hundreds of people in just a few hours. Items like old cell phones, batteries, dried-out pens and markers, plastic bags and number 5 plastics were collected.

“We are pioneering the way for schools and our community, and are proud to lead the pack,” says Romaniw.

What are you doing to keep Cincinnati beautiful?

Do Good:
•    Help students learn to sort recycling in the Sustainability in Action program. Email Brooke Romaniw.

•    Mark your calendar for the 2012 One Stop Drop coming in November.

•    Find out what Keep Cincinnati Beautiful has in the works; like the group on Facebook.

By Deidra Wiley Necco