Christmas Choirs at Kendal

For fans of choral music, the approach of the Christmas season offers the propect of enchanting concert opportunities. This year did not disappoint the residents of Kendal at Granville, for the Amelia Room was recently the site of two such concerts. 

On Sunday, December 14, the Chamber Choir from Granville High School performed a cappella a set of secular seasonal pieces. The choristers were talented and lively – think television's "Glee" – and their youth and enthusiasm reminded the audience of the jolly side of the season. 

The very next day, December 15, our home-grown choir of residents, the "Kendaliers," presented a thematically contrasting concert featuring carols and sacred music, reminders of the religious origin of the holiday. Under the leadership of Teddy Westlake, the Kendaliers have now performed in three consecutive Christmas seasons, and each year's performance has been better than its predecessor. The audience was invited to join in with the singers at various points, and the evening closed quietly as we all sang the moving prayer, "Dona Nobis Pacem." The residents have ample reason to be proud of the Kendaliers' fine work.

Observing Hanukkah atKAG

Beginning in 2005, our first year here at Kendal at Granville, members of our Diversity and Inclusion Committee have arranged for our observance of Hanukkah each year. 

This required a lot of study on the part of committee members since none of us were Jewish.  Much of the execution of the plan which evolved for our observance fell to Eloise and me.  This was probably due to the fact that Eloise lived in Granville before moving to Kendal and knew Jewish people in the area and over the years my husband and I had several close Jewish friends and had also participated in community dialogs between Christians and Jews in the Philadelphia area. 

Together with the full committee we established a simple format for our observance of Hanukkah.  Our menorah   is set up on a table close to the main entrance to our community building.  At sundown on the eight days of Hanukkah residents are invited to join in the lighting of the lights and  the saying of the traditional blessings and prayers. 

On some nights we have been privileged to have Jewish couples from the area join us.  These have been special times because they have shared with us the meaning of and the customs associated with Hanukkah.

This year it has been our very good fortune to welcome into our Kendal community two new residents, Steve and Connie, who are Jewish.  They have joined enthusiastically in community activities bringing us fresh new ideas. .  Our Hanukkah observance was greatly enhanced by their participation.  One particularly interesting aspect was their nightly show and tell about their collection of menorahs.  I personally learned from them and look forward to learning more as I get to know them better.

 

December-January Fiber Arts Exhibit

The first week in December the Fiber Arts Group and the Gallery Committee were busy with the final steps involved in hanging the fourth Fiber Arts Exhibit in our Art Gallery.

Preparations began late in the spring of 2014 with a call to residents and staff members to identify who had fiber arts works available for an exhibit.  Apparently the majority of our fiber artists had spring fever because the response to that call was almost nil. After pondering as to the reason for such an unexpected poor response it was decided to put out a second call based on the assumption that the timing of the first missed the mark. 

This time there were so many responses it was decided to divide them into two groups: one a show of works made by residents and staff members and another of pieces they owned but made by others. Thus began the process of planning the exhibit

Items were brought to the Fiber Arts meetings for inspection and a detailed list was prepared with a brief description including the dimensions of each preparatory to creating a plan for hanging and the necessary labels.

The Sunday and Monday before the exhibit was to be hung items were brought to the Fiber Arts Room where they were checked to be sure they were ready to hang.  When  needed,  hooks and wires were attached.

 

On Tuesday morning everything was transported to the Art Gallery and the Gallery Committee hung them.  At 5:00 p.m. a wine and cheese reception officially opened the show which includes quilts and quilted wall hangings; quilted and knit vests; knit, woven, and stitched jackets; knit sweaters and cardigans; knit scarves; hooked rugs; a variety of counted cross  stitch  pieces (beaded, black work, and samplers);  and items woven from home spun yarn which had been hand dyed; and more.

 

The reactions of those viewing this exhibit indicate that the results are worth all of the time and effort that went into its creation.   Not mentioned above are the many behind the scenes efforts of the maintenance, housekeeping, and dining staff essential to the success of an exhibit.  All of it adds up to illustrate how residents and staff come together to make Kendal at Granville a good place to live and work.

 

A Hip Hop Farewell to a Kendal Favorite

Kendal at Granville residents were startled earlier this fall to learn that Tiyana Payne, our Human Resources director, will be leaving us for California in January to pursue a career as a hip hop artist. You read that right. An HR expert during the week, Tiyana has been a performance artist on the weekends and in her spare time. We had known of her hobby and were cheering her on. But now she has decided to give full time to her career in music. We feel her imminent departure as our loss, but we stand with Tiyana in hoping and believing that she will find success and fulfillment as a performance artist.

Happily, before heading west, Tiyana agreed to give a concert for her friends here at Kendal. It was a memorable and lovely gift.

The day chosen for the concert was last Sunday, November 30, and by the 4:00 p.m. starting time the Amelia Gathering Room was filled with well-wishers. Tiyana spoke of how she had enjoyed her time at Kendal. She introduced her mother, Tina Pearce, who was helping out with keeping the sound system operating in an appropriately supportive fashion. Then Tiyana sang. Her first piece, written to honor her mother, rang with the love that an adult child feels for a parent whose guidance had been pivotal in the child's development. Three other songs followed, generally crafted to capture Tiyana's ambitions and efforts to establish herself as an artist in the world of hip hop. On two of the pieces she was assisted by her gifted daughter Tatiyana. 

                                                                photos by Vic Feldmiller

I'm no music critic – and I know almost nothing of hip hop – and so all I can say about the concert is that I was overwhelmed by the driving energy, exuberant wordplay, and propulsive rhythm of the songs. They seemed literally breathless. They conveyed excitement and happiness and determination. They were uplifting. 

When the concert was over, an audience that was at once charmed, delighted, and impressed thanked Tiyana and Tatiyana with full applause and then moved forward to wish them well personally. Tiyana leaves Kendal with her fans hoping that her career will bloom and that we can all come to say that we knew her when . . . !