Whitehouse speaks at Kiwanis

The Kiwanis program this past week was by Ray Whitehouse, presenting a program on ham radio operations.

We discovered a lot of information we didn’t realize; just some of that being its important role in emergency communication, and the importance of ham radio operators practicing their skills regularly, and keeping their equipment maintained, so that they are ready for emergency communication.  To learn more about #hamradio, visit http://www.arrl.org.

To learn more about #Kiwanis Club of Danville – our opportunities for learning, fellowship and service to the Danville area – please comment or message us here. Also, feel free to email nicholsphilip3@gmail.com or robertc@stuartpowell.com.

Rotarians Hear About Danville’s Sister Cities Program from Insiders

By DAVE FAIRCHILD

Danville Rotary

Dr. Milton Reigelman, Liz Orndorff and Brandon Long gave Rotary members some entertaining insights into early attempts to get a Sister City program started, followed by tidbits from recent and planned future exchanges between Danville and our sister city, Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. Reigelman is the Chairman of the Sister Cities program.  

Early on an ad hoc committee sent out letters to cities like Paris, but never got any answers. So, after three or four years the committee “sort of disappeared.”  Later, then-Mayor John Bowling reappointed the committee with better leadership.  The new committee drew up a list of the criteria they wanted in the candidates. The committee wanted an English speaking person with some connection to Danville. It had to be fairly accessible for people to access by air transport and so forth. The result was Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland. Danville and Carrickfergus have been Sister Cities for the past 10 years.

The exchange program representative has most often been cultural ambassadors. Orndorff was our the artist exchange representative. Long, who has been selected as this year’s artistic exchange representative, will be the second. 

Orndorff ‘s visit was in 2012. Georgia de Araujo, director of Boyle County Public Library, was selected as Danville’s Sister Cities Cultural Ambassador for 2014. Ron Scott, Danville’s city manager, and wife Janis were the culture exchange representatives in 2015.

Speaking of highlights of the relationship that has developed, Reigelman remembered a musician, Chris McGucken, who arrived on the first day that Danville could legally sell alcohol.  

“Well, Irish people drink a lot, you know. All the sudden, I saw Chris carrying a case of beer on his shoulders through the streets of Danville.  He had a lot of people following him taking pictures.  When I asked why he did it, he said, ‘I heard Danville liked to be known as The City of Firsts.'”

The selection process is complicated, and started off with about 10 being nominate and then down to three with the final selection made by a committee in Carrickfergus. The other candidates this year were local author Heather Henson and musician Travis Lee Kern.

After returning to Danville, Orndorff wrote the play, “The Search for Tinker Doyle,” and this year the Pioneer Playhouse will present her sequel,  “The Return of Tinker Doyle.”

Orndorff started by saying, “I found out that it’s a lot more fun if you take somebody with you. The people of Ireland were wonderful. And they love Americans. They also love bluegrass music. We had a hard time getting to hear Irish music because they kept playing bluegrass music.

“My friend and I stayed in a condo on at sailboat marina. We could look out our window and see Carrickfergus Castle, built by the Anglo-Norman John de Courcy over 800 years ago. It is in Carrickfergus on the northern shore of Belfast Lough.”

While in Carrickfergus, the mayor took Orndorff and her friend to a performance by a performing arts group called Uplift. The children ranged in age from 6 to 18, and the talent of those young people was astounding. The dancing and the singing was extraordinary, all from a Broadway showcase. They sang songs from “Oklahoma,” without having any idea where Oklahoma was located, but they are up there dressed like cowboys singing their hearts out.  Orndorff was so impressed that she arranged for the West T. Hill Community Theare to sponsor the cast to come to Danville.  Not surprising that show was a huge success here. too. 

Long, creative director of the Community Arts Center, has been at CAC for 11 years. “I always know how long, because my daughter was born a week after I started, and she is 11 now.”  He described his work at the center as keeping things on track and working well for both the community and the artists we represent.

Long will be taking his wife, who is also an artist, with him on his trip to Carrickfergus in May. 

“We are both thrilled to be representing the community and ourselves, and getting a chance to learn all we can about how art is created in Northern Ireland. I’m not sure what we will be doing when we get there. I would like to do some murals. Hopefully find out how they do murals. How have they adapted modern art to a town with so much history? What is the approval process?”

Long said he is spending time thinking about what kind of art is distinctly Kentucky that he wants to take to Carrickfergus. He is considering sculptures that reflect a relationship between the natural materials and their surroundings (sometimes call “Earth Art or Earthworks).”  

He brought a piece he has created using material from a tobacco barn roof.  The idea is such art is unique and strongly tied to Kentucky.  He is also interested in learning what similarly unique material he can find to make art tied to Carrickfergus’s history.

Heart of Danville wins awards