WANTED:

 Volunteers to help with the Chamber's hot dog / hamburger stand during the Parade on July 6. Two hour shifts available.  

A couple of grills we can borrow (we will not use your propane!) on July 6. We will return it before your evening BBQ!

Contact the Chamber if you would like to work for a few hours and / or if you have a grill! We appreciate it. 

There are some natural neighborhood rivalries within Brandon.  For instance, a gentleman in Forestbrook was recently overheard remarking that folks in Mt. Pleasant "couldn't make a root beer float, much less a parade float."  Similarly, a woman from Carver Street wondered aloud how residents on Maple Street possibly could build a parade float when "they couldn't even make an inflated beach ball float in a kiddie pool!"  That's some pretty good trash talk if you ask me; hopefully, we'll see some quality floats as a result!        

            "The Universal Language of Color and Art" will open at the Chaffee Art Center on Thursday, June 13^th and run through June 22^nd at the main gallery at 16 South Main Street. There will be two wine and cheese receptions for the public, June 14^th and June 21^st from 6 to 8 p.m.

       Michael Salem of Rutland, in memory of his mother who passed away in 2010, is presenting the exhibit of Shula Salem's work. Shula was an internationally recognized multi-talented artist who was a painter, a musician and writer.

            Born in Israel in 1924 to a pioneering family from the Soviet Union, she moved to West Lafayette, Indiana in 1947 and married Samuel Salem. They moved to Akron, Ohio in 1951, where Sam served as an executive at General Tire Corporation. The couple had three sons.

            Shula's artwork has been displayed in shows in both the United States and Israel.  The multi-media artworks, described by art critics as abstract expressionism, have won numerous awards and are included in private collections in Ohio, Texas, California, New York Massachusetts and Israel.

            With her diverse background, Shula both spoke and wrote in several languages. She began writing as a child and continued to write throughout her adult life, having completed more than fifty books. Shula published poetry in the United States and children's books in Israel.

            The Chaffee Art Center will be open on June 13, 14 and 15 from noon to 6 p.m. and again on June 20, 21 and 22^nd from noon to 6 p.m., with a later closing the evenings of the receptions. The paintings will be available for purchase during the exhibit.  For more information, please call (802) 775-0356 or e-mail: info@chaffeeartcenter.org.

TO PLAY IN THE CONTEST, HERE IS THE DIRECT FACEBOOK LINK. JUST CUT AND PASTE IN YOUR WEB BROWSER:

  https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Little-Pressroom/157882127598546?ref=hl

BRANDON MUSIC UPCOMING EVENTS

Tricky Britches is a group of young musicians who will put a swing in your step as soon as you hear them!  They play old-time country music with a bluegrass kick and the spirit of a street-corner jugband. 

Tricky Britches formed in 2009, playing on street corners across the country as a means of paying for a road trip.  As their popularity soared, they gained momentum and began to focus on songwriting and original material.  Their influences included John Hartford, Hank Williams, Bill Monroe, The Stanley Brothers, The Grateful Dead, The Everly Brothers and traditional American folk music.  Members of the band are: Jed Bresette, Seth Doyle, Tyler Lienhardt and Ryan Wilkinson.  Each plays a variety of instruments with honed skill.

Sam Pfeifle of the Portland Phoenix reports that "In an age of auto-tune and manufactured music, Tricky Britches isn't just a throwback - they're a look forward.  We can comfort ourselves in the warm embrace of three-part harmonies, fire-breathing fiddle and mandolin licks, and the thump-thump to the gut of a stand-up bass."

General Admission is $15 with the pre-concert dinner available for just $15.  Reservations are encouraged. Venue is BYOB.  Call (802)465-4071 or e-mail info@brandon-music.net  for reservations or information. Brandon Music is located at 62 Country Club Rd. Brandon, VT 05733.

The Art of Joan Curtis at Brandon Music

June 14 - September 2, 2013

This summer, Brandon Music showcases paintings by local artist Joan Curtis in an exhibit "At One with Nature: New and Revisited."  In describing the show the artist speaks of wanting to extend an earlier theme: imagining (on a visionary level) that human beings could learn to co-exist with earthly climate changes and increasingly dramatic weather events.

In a new series of paintings, titled Peaceable Kingdom, Curtis depicts us -- again in a fantasy vision -- living at peace with the animal world and with wild creatures in danger of losing traditional habitats. Historically the Peaceable Kingdom theme (for example, Edward Hicks's famous paintings of the 19th century) depicts lions resting with lambs and the like.  In this contemporary work, the paintings titled Peaceable Kingdom symbolize how humans could learn to find space for our wild neighbors, and perhaps delay the sadness of extinction.

Curtis's imagery evolves from sketches in journals.  Her overall themes are not pre-planned but are instead arrived at after a handful of new paintings are completed. In addition to acrylic paintings such as these, the artist is known for colorful mixed-media sculpture utilizing papier-mâché on solid supports and for her colored-pencil drawings.

Beginning in 1986, Joan Curtis has been active in the Rutland County art community (first Chaffee Gallery and then the Brandon Artists Guild). Since 1980 she exhibited throughout New England and in invitationals elsewhere.  Her work is in the collections of Middlebury College Museum of Art, the Robert Hull Fleming Museum (Burlington, VT), the Fuller Museum of Art (Brockton, MA), SUNY Adirondack (Queensbury, NY), and in many private collections. Currently her work can be seen by appointment at her Brandon studio or during Open Studio weekends in the spring and fall.

Brandon Music is open for 10AM to 6PM daily (except Tuesdays), with their Café serving lunch and afternoon tea from Noon to 5:30PM. Call 802-465-4071 for more information. www.brandon-music.net Brandon Music is located at 62 Country Club Road, Brandon, VT.

BRANDON TOWN BAND-The Brandon Town Band Summer Concert Series runs from June 18 through August 20 in Brandon's Central Park.  The weekly Tuesday night concerts begin at 6:30 and feature a variety of traditional band music, as well as Broadway and contemporary popular music. The Brandon Town Band consists of local adults, students and professional musicians.  In case of inclement weather, the concerts will be held in the Brandon Town Hall. Please note there is no concert on Tuesday, July 9.  

Tour Vermont's Top 10 Civil War Sesquicentennial Exhibits and Events

Dairy Weekend at the Sheldon Museum: June 14 and 15

June is Dairy Month, and to celebrate, the Sheldon Museum will present a series of entertaining programs the weekend of June 14. The festivities are taking place in conjunction with the Sheldon's current exhibit, From Dairy to Doorstep: Milk Delivery in New England. On Friday, June 14 from 4-7 PM, don't miss the Must Be The Milk truck at the Sheldon. It's a traveling educational component of the New England Dairy Promotion Board. The visit is part of a limited-time tour during June when the truck is stopping at various venues throughout New England to celebrate our dairy farmers and the value they bring to our land, community, economy, and health. The Sheldon Museum is the only stop the truck will make in Addison County. Visitors will have an opportunity to sample award-winning Vermont cheese and other dairy products and enjoy interactive activities - spin the prize wheel and win! The travelling milk truck is a work of art. Stop by the Sheldon, view the truck, enjoy dairy samples, and raise your glass in support of your local dairy people.

Also on June 14, to further celebrate milk, Roger Allbee, former Vermont Secretary of Agriculture, will present a talk on the history of dairy in Vermont at 6:30 pm.

The next day, Saturday, June 15, bring the whole family to the Family Fun Day from 10 am to 2 pm at the Sheldon. This event is free with Museum admission. If you like pies, come early! A delicious variety of pies, cookies, sweet breads, and cupcakes will be sold to benefit the Museum. Children of all ages can play with toys and games, learn to sew a patchwork quilt block, enter the jump rope contest, and enjoy the Henry Sheldon Puppet show A Bear Story.  The museum's Children's Hands-On Room offers little ones the opportunity to write on slates, dress-up in 18th and 19th century costumes, read stories and try the trundle bed.  Music will be a big part of the day too. The whole family will enjoy listening to lively tunes on the back porch by O'Hanleigh's Cindy Hill & Tom Hanley or tapping their toes to the banjo beats of Mike Connor and friends! Make it a Family Day at the Sheldon Museum.

During the weekend, be sure to visit our newest exhibits too.  From Dairy to Doorstep: Milk Delivery in New England, in partnership with Historic New England, tells the history of milk delivery from the days of the horse and cart to modern times.  It also features artifacts from Monument Farms Dairy as well as an extensive collection of cheese and butter making artifacts from a private collection. 

Town Bands uses early photographs of the Rutland City Band and the Middlebury Town Band as well as samples of band uniforms and musical instruments from the Sheldon Museum collection to illustrate the importance of music in the social life of Vermonters during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The exhibit anticipates the Museum's annual Pops Concert and fireworks on Friday, June 28, 2013.

The Henry Sheldon Museum is located at 1 Park Street in downtown Middlebury across from the Ilsley Public Library.  Museum hours: Tues.-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.(5-7 p.m. for Arts Walk) and Sun. 1-5 p.m. Research Center hours: Thurs. and Fri. 1-5 p.m. or by appointment.  Admission to the Museum is $5 Adults; $3 Youth (6-18); $4.50 Seniors; $12 Family. For more information about the exhibit and related programs, visit www.henrysheldonmuseum.org or call 802/388-2117.

Vermont Philharmonic to Play at Sheldon Museum's 21st Annual Pops Concert 

The Sheldon Museum's annual outdoor Pops Concert and fireworks are a summer tradition for Addison County families. Celebrate the anniversary of Independence Day with a concert of Broadway standards, pops, and patriotic music on Friday, June 28, 2013 performed by the Vermont Philharmonic, followed by a glorious fireworks display on the mountain view meadow behind the Mahaney Center for the Arts at Middlebury College. The grounds will be open at 5:30 p.m. for picnicking with the concert beginning at 7:30. (Rain site is Nelson Arena, where the acoustics are good and the space ample for casual suppers.) The evening will close with vivid fireworks-rain or shine. Be sure to bring flashlights, chairs, blankets, and a picnic.

The Vermont Philharmonic was founded in 1959 by Jon Borowicz and is Vermont's oldest community orchestra. Today, the Philharmonic's member-musicians, more than 60 strong, are committed to the orchestra's two-fold mission of sharing their love of music with audiences of all ages and encouraging young musicians to dedicate themselves to their musical education. The Borowicz Scholarship, awarded annually by the orchestra to a Vermont high school musician, provides the opportunity for the winner to perform with the Vermont Philharmonic.

FLOWER GIRLS WANTED FOR INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE