Area Singer is Guest Speaker

Emma Gallant

Pic – (credit Wayne Crause) Emma Gallant, recently selected as one of three National Artists Program representatives for P.E.I. at next month’s Canada Games in Halifax, is guest speaker at the 18 January meeting of Southern Kings Arts Council.  Admission to her presentation is free.

Emma Gallant's Faceook Page

Area Singer is Guest Speaker 

Tom.rath@yahoo.ca

Emma Gallant, one of P.E.I.’s three National Artists Program representatives at the February 2011 Canada Games, will perform and speak at the 18 January public meeting of Southern Kings Arts Council, in Montague.

Ms. Gallant, a Grade XII student at Morell, is an active member of the Island’s musical community, having launched her first CD, This Moment with You, two years ago.  She performs regularly at concerts such as the Peake’s Quay Wharf’s Summer Concert Series, as well as numerous ceilidhs and benefits throughout the summer months.  During the rest of the year, she tries to squeeze in opportunities to satisfy her fans between a full schedule of teaching both guitar and catechism, working at Atlantic Fitness East (Morell), and maintaining her academic studies as an Honour Roll student.

During her presentation at Southern Kings Arts Council, she will talk about her development as an artist, perform a few of her original songs, and respond to questions from fans and other Council members.

 

Southern Kings Arts Council is one of seven regional organizations supporting artists with Professional Development grants and working to promote awareness and appreciation of the arts on Prince Edward Island.  The public is invited to “meet our artists” at evening meetings held on the third Tuesday of each month, commencing at 7:30 pm in the main floor boardroom of Active Communities, Inc., Main Street, Montague. Admission is free.  For more information, contact SKAC President Fran Feher at 583-2888.

Article – Gary Gray Speaks

Gary Gray

 (photo credit – Tom Rath)

Gary Gray of Montague was guest speaker at this month’s meeting of the Southern Kings Arts Council.  His presentation included a reading from Prince Edward Island Tales, published by the Montague Library Writers Guild,.

Gary Gray's Facebook Page

Southern Kings Arts Council – October 2010
Tom.rath@yahoo.ca 583-2888

Writing is more than just an art form, a way to exercise one’s creativity, guest speaker Gary Gray of Montague explained at this month’s meeting of the Southern Kings Arts Council,  “For me, as a stroke survivor, it as both a form of escape, and a way to help me discover and develop what I call my new normal’.

“The stories of my childhood that you read in Prince Edward Island Tales are not just my latest writings.  They are my first writings, too.  I joined the Montague Library Writers Group because I found writing was good therapy for me.”

Always an active participant in community affairs, Gary suffered a major stroke eight years ago while stopping for coffee at the local Tim Horton’s.  After a blurred three weeks of CAT scans and semi-consciousness, he awoke to the realization that his entire world had changed.  He faced major challenges in learning once again how to walk, talk and dress under conditions of fatigue, depression and anxiety.  Even sitting up in order to eat took effort.  A left-handed man with a paralyzed left side has much to learn.

“It’s more than just regaining physical strength”, Gary told his audience.  “After all, much of what we do doesn’t happen in the hands, but in the brain itself.  I had to battle memory loss and fuzzy thinking, and somehow teach my brain how to survive and succeed under these new conditions”.

Part of his progress stemmed from involvement in a new writing group formed at the Montague Library.  “By putting words down on paper, I helped clear my thoughts and my thinking patterns.  That, plus my involvement with the Heart and Stroke Foundation, gave me new accomplishments – skills, strengths and reassurance that while I’m not necessarily the old Gary Gray, I am the new Gary Gray.  I am surviving and succeeding in my new normal”.

The Southern Kings Arts Council exists to support the arts community, and to enhance public awareness and appreciation of the arts inj this region of Prince Edward island.  Guest speaker meetings are held in the Boardroom of Active Communities, Main Street, Montague, at 7:30 pm on the third Tuesday of most months, and are open to the public.  Admission is free.  For more information on our meetings, or on how to apply for financial support for artistic projects, please contact SKAC President Fran Feher at franflakes@yahoo.

Meeting Postponed and A Reminder For Grant Proposals

Hello everybody,

Well, the weather is certainly making things a little difficult in the travelling department. Given today's weather conditions, I have decided to postpone this evening's meeting to tomorrow, Wed Feb 16. It will, of course, still take place at the Active Communities Boardroom in Montague at 7:30 pm.

Also a reminder that the deadline for grant proposals is close of business today Feb 15, 2011.

Your Chairperson,...
Fran

Lily Levesque - Young Writer is Guest Speaker At Recent SKAC Meeting

Lily Levesque

Pic (credit Tom Rath) – Lily Levesque, Grade Six student at Montague Consolidated,  read her stories to an appreciative audience at Southern Kings Arts Council’s November meeting

Young Writer is Guest Speaker  

16 November 2010  tom.rath@yahoo.ca

Dipping into her tickle-trunk imagination, Lily Levesque of Montague pulls out as many as two to three stories and verses a week.  Some are illustrated with her drawings, and all feature the kaleidoscope of characters, settings and plot twists that signify a budding talent.

Just ten years of age, Ms. Levesque is an enthusiastic member of Montague Library’s Reading group and the Library’s Junior Writers Group “Young minds With Sharp Pencils”.  A Grade Six student at Montague Consolidated, she spoke about her literary activities to an entranced audience at the 16 November meeting of Southern Kings Arts Council.

Although her mother, Sandy MacKay, takes no credit for Lily’s talent, Lily’s uncle Ronnie writes stories, and her cousin Carla has published several books.  Other influences include a tradition of being read bedtime stories written by the late Shel Silverstein, and her own interest in books that trigger ideas for short stories.

One such story is about Cowboy Bob, whose fear of horses is eventually overcome, allowing him to ride off into the sunset. Another features the young man picked by Santa to stand in for him after an unfortunate tipped-sleigh accident. A third is her short verse called simply Germ.

Ms. Levesque may be seen on stage at Georgetown during their winter pageant, and someday, you might hear her playing guitar.  In the meantime, however, you’ll typically find her busy at schoolwork during the day, and attending Guides or other groups some evenings. Otherwise she’ll be at home reading books or multi-tasking on her computer with Messenger, YouTube and Games operating simultaneously, exercising fingers and mind as her tickle-trunk imagination replenishes itself.

Southern Kings Arts Council supports artists across the Region with Professional Development grants, and also works to promote awareness and appreciation of the arts.  The next public meeting is Tuesday 18 January 2011, at 7:30 pm in the main floor Boardroom of Active Communities, Inc., Main Street, Montague.  For more information, contact SKAC President Fran Feher at 583-2888.

tom.rath@yahoo.ca

Southern Kings Arts Council Welcomes Local Photographer Feb 15th, 2011

Glenn Saunders

Southern Kings Arts Council welcomes photographer Glenn Saunders of Murray Harbour as Guest Speaker on Tuesday, 15 February.  The public meeting is free of charge, and starts at 7:30 pm in the Main Floor Boardroom of Active Communities, Main Street, Montague.

Saunders and his wife operate Country Charm Bed and Breakfast, and Forest and Stream Cottages.  His scenic and action photographs support Island East Tourism's promotional campaigns, and are marketed online at glennsaundersphotography.com web site. 

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Area Photographer Is Guest Speaker - Southern Kings Arts Council

Glenn Saunders

Press Release

Article Submission – Area Photographer is Guest Speaker 

Southern Kings Arts Council  

Tom.rath@yahoo.ca  583-2888

Ask many visitors to Eastern Prince Edward Island what drew them here, and chances are it will be the images of beaches, lighthouses and other iconic scenes captured by Innkeeper Glenn Saunders, guest speaker at the February 15 public meeting of Southern Kings Arts Council, in Montague.

Glenn and his wife Joan operate Country Charm B&B and Forest & Stream Cottages in Murray Harbour.  As part of his contribution to fellow tourism operators in the Island East Tourism Group, Glenn has donated hundreds of photographs over the past ten years for use in promotional literature distributed world-wide in print and electronic versions.

In addition, his web site, glennsaundersphotography.com , is a repository of scores of images, each dated, described, and categorized by the artist, as a source for commercial buyers and licensees.   

Southern Kings Arts Council is one of seven regional organizations supporting artists with Professional Development grants and working to promote awareness and appreciation of the arts on Prince Edward Island.  The public is invited to “meet our artists” at evening meetings held on the third Tuesday of each month, commencing at 7:30 pm in the main floor boardroom of Active Communities, Inc., Main Street, Montague. Admission is free.  For more information, contact SKAC President Fran Feher  at 583-2888