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President: Rob Schimmelpfennig Executive Vice President: Judy Robson Vice President: Mike Fedler Vice President: Bill Kline Treasurer: Rich Vanek Secretary: Debbi Waring BOARD MEMBERS: Baerbel Baginski, WSL Steve Candella Neroy Carter Arnie Esterer Adele Herzog Mary Ellen Higley Ken Johnson Mark Jones Randy Jones Gloria Kaull Kim Laurello Ed Looman Chris McClure Tom Picken Scot Sinkler Linda VanBuren Joseph Varckette Ellen Winer Phyllis Duffy-Zala | ||||
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Executive Director Cindy Rimpela Business Manager Pamela Hammond Public Relations/Marketing Coordinator Shelagh Dubsky Dance Coordinator Lyn Savarise Music Coordinator Meeghan Humphrey Visual Arts Coordinator Phil Mullet Technical Liason Joe Ford Maintenance Coordinator Marquitta Mollick Evening Desk Coordinator
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 2928 West 13th St. Ashtabula, Ohio 44004 phone: 440-964-3396 |
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Posted: Friday, December 13, 2002
Whopee!! HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY – ASHTABULA ARTS CENTER!!! Reaching the ripe “old” age of 50 is often a very black cloud for some, but for a community based organization, it’s really an achievement. I would venture to guess Katharine Hill and her two brothers, Larry and Willard, didn’t even want to think beyond 10 years, let alone 50 years, when establishing the Fine Arts Center in their family’s home on Lake Avenue back in 1953. I just had the pleasure of sitting down with Marian Carlisle, Charlie Sheppard and Corinne Loyd to talk about the very earliest years of the Center. This edition of the Arts Center News carries an article about their recollections. I’m going to tell you a little about my personal memories. Yes, I became a student at the Fine Arts Center for the very first time in the late 50’s when I was just a young child (I’m not going to go so far as to tell you HOW young!). I started at the Center by taking piano lessons. I couldn’t wait to learn how to play. My grandmother – Antoinette Mitchell – was an accomplished pianist, and I had always been enthralled by her talent and expertise. Weekly I trekked to the Center, where I would enter the large front door and timidly walk to the desk area (set up in what had been the Hill family’s formal dining room). I would hand Corinne Loyd $3.50 for my lesson and then view the monthly art exhibit in the front main parlor as I waited for my turn at the keyboard. When the weather was nice my parents might let me ride my bicycle to the Center from our home on Birchwood Avenue. I would “tickle the ivories” for half an hour, pack up my books and return home to practice daily for a specified amount of time until I returned to the Center the next week. I always felt welcome at the Center. Corinne would take the time to talk to me about the art exhibit being presented. She would tell me and my mother about upcoming classes and events. Often I would see other people I knew. I didn’t know then what I know now – the Arts Center helped establish my love for the arts. Throughout my life I have always sought out arts experiences wherever I’ve traveled or lived. I am not a pianist today (oh, I suppose I could plink out a piece with one hand if I had to), but I acquired the knowledge to appreciate what an accomplished pianist can do. I continued my piano studies at the Center until the end of the 50’s. In our next Arts Center News I’ll share my reflections of the 60’s. This is going to be a fun year, interviewing those who have helped to build the Ashtabula Arts Center into what it is today. We hope you will share any thoughts or memories with us as we celebrate what we believe is just the very beginning of our growing legacy. | ||||