Notes from
the High C's
Rockaway Music and Arts Council
by Sharon Gabriel
Date: October 9, 2009 from a column appearing in
The Wave of Long Island
Well, here it is a few weeks past
our 25th Fall Festival and I think I've just recovered from all the
excitement. Things started out a little damp on
Saturday, the first day of the festival, but we went on with the event as
planned and surprisingly there were many people attending. In fact,
some folks came strolling in before we were actually open. The weather changed
on and off all day but thank goodness we never had a read
downpour, just kind of drippy all day. Through all of that, the karate kids did
their thing, Ronald McDonald walked around entertaining everyone,
there was hot coffee and tea for breakfast and everyone who came out in the not
so great weather seemed to have a good tune. Of course,
we were a little damp from being out all day and we wrapped everything up at
about 4:30pm.
Sunday, however, was a different story. The sun shown bright and
beautiful and we had a spectacular day. As you may have seen in the paper the
week after the festival, there were lines of adults and kids everywhere. In
walking around the festival I found some wonderful new vendors and purchased
several things for holiday gifts and I found other folks doing the same thing.
Since I'm a big kid at heart, I really enjoyed Davis Designs by
Jayne Davis. Jayne's tent was all doll clothes and the most adorable ones you
have ever
seen. I picked up a child's size canvas tote bag with a picture of Miley Cyrus
on it and beaded fringe around the edge, just right for my seven year old
grand cousin. There were even tiny little doll backpacks and knapsacks. The
whole display was just adorable. Another vendor, Frank Cerrone of Designs
in Detail had standard sized chopping boards that you would used in your
kitchen. They were hand painted and each board had painted designs in the
center made, not with a brush, but with toothpicks. Each board was individual
and at the top where you have the hole to hang it up, there was a bow the
same color as the board. Wonderful gifts, inexpensive, and I bought one for
someone for the holidays.
My favorite, The Pickle People were sold out before the day ended
and I didn't get my pickles.
Rob's Smokin' Barbeque had the best chicken wings and the gyro's were great at
another food
vendor. No I didn't eat all of that in one day....but in two days, yes.
As we folded our tents on Sunday afternoon we felt we had a very
successful 25th Anniversary and much credit goes to our Festival
Chairman,
John Musumeci, our Vendor Chairlady, Fern Liberman, and all of our Board members
who work so hard all year for this one weekend and our festival
volunteers. Besides those, there are our sponsors, the new ones who were
mentioned in my last column as well as Green Mountain Coffee and others, and
our special "go-to" guy for the past 25 years, Marvin Eisenstadt. There is
nothing you can ask from Marvin, Sweet n Low and Cumberland Packing, that is too
much. Need place to store some festival material, put it in Marvin's garage.
Need place for big boxes of supplies, store them at Cumberland in Brooklyn.
Marvin has two of his fellows, Adrian and Diego available to help out at the
festival each year and we couldn't do it without them and you may also find
Marvin
under one of our tents helping out during the festival. You know those "Burma
Shave" signs on Seagirt Boulevard in Far Rockaway, Adrian puts them up each
year, taking them from storage at Cumberland. Of course, Marvin has a special
place with me as he held my hand when I had to get stitches on my nose. Don't
ask, it's too long a story, but he's the best.
On the Saturday of the festival, Beach 144th Street and
the Boulevard was named "Barbara's Way" in honor of Barbara Eisenstadt. While
most of us at the
RMAC could not attend because the Festival was starting, we were all there in
spirit as Barbara had been the driving force behind everything we accomplished
over the past, at least 25 years. We all miss her and as I pass 144th
Street I look at the sign I smile.
As a special tribute to Barbara, we were to have a concert at Beach
Channel High School this past spring when the School Construction Authority came
in
and told the school the auditorium would have to be closed, so there went our
concert. However, in Barbara's memory we will be having a very special
Fine Art & Photography Exhibition and Sale at West End Temple beginning on
Saturday evening, November 14th. At this preview there will be
cocktails,
hors d'oeuvres and music and invitations will be going out shortly. On Sunday,
November 15th, the show will be open to the public and you may come
and
purchase fine art and photography items if you like.
For More Information Contact:
Rockaway Music & Arts Council, Inc.
P.O. Box 0171, Rockaway Beach, NY 11693
Tel: 718-474-6760
Internet:
rmaa@rockawaymusicandarts.org
