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Today’s Email Announcements

Southern Highland Craft Guild Demos on the Parkway in May

Below is a listing of juried members of the Southern Highland Craft Guild that will be presenting free, educational demonstrations at Parkway Craft Center during the month of May.  Demonstrators are scheduled between the hours of 10am and 4pm, taking a lunch hour at their discretion.  The public is welcome to attend these free informative events.

May

6th – 11th – Marlow Gates (natural materials; broom making)

13th – 15th – Tom Turner (wood; carving)

20th – 22nd – Lee Entrekin (wood; Native American flute making)

26th – 27th – Ronnie McMahan (wood; carving)

28th – 30th – Lin Oglesby (fiber; crocheting, knitting, yarn plying)

28th – 31st – Sandy Adair (fiber; needle tapestry weaving)

If you would like to have more information please contact Ellen Schaller by replying to this email or by phone as listed in the signature line.

The Art Cellar Gallery: 2016 Season Schedule

Local Color
Robert Eoff
May 28 – June ll

A Different Light
Margaret Salisbury
June 16 – July 2

Art, Fact and Fiction with William Dunlap
Evening Conversation with the Artist
June 26, 3-5pm

From the Artists Hand, Celebrating Clay
Tim Turner
July 1 – 4
Afternoon with the Artist July 2, 3-5pm

Retrospective
Bryan Keith Smith
July 7 – July 23

Out of the Studio
Norma Murphy & East Fork Pottery
July 28 – August 13

Continued Explorations
Tony Griffin & Gregory Smith
August 18 – September 3

Autumn Exhibition
October 1 – October 31
Open House October 8, 3-5pm

Holiday Open House
December 17, 3-5pm

SHIIP Saves Medicare Beneficiaries Millions in North Carolina

North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin is proud to announce that the efforts of the Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program county coordinating sites helped North Carolina Medicare beneficiaries save nearly $54 million in 2015.

SHIIP, a division of the N.C. Department of Insurance, trains coordinators and volunteers at partnering agencies across the state to provide free, unbiased counseling about Medicare in their communities. In 2015, The Lois E. Harrill Senior Center assisted 551 consumers in Watauga County, saving residents $219,488.

“Not only do our SHIIP counselors know the ins and outs of Medicare, they genuinely care about helping others,” said Goodwin. “They make sure people have the information they need to make important decisions about their health care coverage, often saving them money in the process.”

SHIIP counselors can help Medicare beneficiaries compare Part D Prescription Drug Plans each year during the Open Enrollment Period, Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, to determine the most affordable plan that meets their needs in the coming year. SHIIP can also help people apply for the Extra Help low-income subsidy and other Medicare cost-savings programs.

If you have questions about Medicare or Extra Help, contact SHIIP at 855-408-1212 to speak with a trained counselor or find contact information for your county’s SHIIP counseling site. SHIIP can answer questions about Medicare, Medicare Part D, Medicare supplement, Medicare Advantage and long term care insurance. SHIIP also helps citizens recognize and prevent Medicare billing errors and possible fraud and abuse through our N.C. Senior Medicare Patrol program.

Learn more at www.ncshiip.com.

Music Makers Blues Revue and BBQ May 14 in Hickory

Celebrate six legendary musicians, rooted in traditional Southern blues, during Hickory Museum of Art’s Music Makers Blues Revue & BBQ on Saturday, May 14. See the multimedia exhibition We Are the Music Makers: Preserving the Soul of America’s Music and join the community in an outdoor, plated BBQ supper to benefit the Museum 5-6:30 p.m., followed by a blues performance 7-8:30 p.m. in Drendel Auditorium on the SALT Block. Admission to the blues performance is free with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Receive early entry to the Music Makers Blues Revue with purchase of a BBQ plate. Plate purchase includes sides and a drink. Beer will be available for purchase and HMA’s Guild will be selling homemade Southern desserts. Order barbecue chicken or pulled pork plates online at www.HickoryArt.org or by calling the Museum at 828-327-8576.

The Music Makers Blues Revue lineup includes Cool John Ferguson, John Dee Holeman, Big Ron Hunter, Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen, Harvey Dalton Arnold and Bubba Norwood.

Cool John Ferguson

There’s not an audience large or small, young or old that Cool John Ferguson can’t touch with his music. Take a witness from Taj Mahal, who said, “Cool John Ferguson is among the five greatest guitarists in the world. He is a force to be reckoned with in the music industry. He is with the ranks of Jimi Hendrix, Wes Montgomery and Django Rienhart.”

 John Dee Holeman

John Dee Holeman is an American Piedmont blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. His music includes elements of Texas bluesR&B and African American String Band music. In his younger days he was also known for his proficiency as a buckdancer.

Big Ron Hunter

Big Ron Hunter is often called the world’s happiest bluesman. He owns a voice that gives people chills. His musical voice reflects a youth on the farm and coming of age as a baby boomer. He joined Music Maker in 2007, and has performed in Belgium, Australia, at Lincoln Center, as well as many prestigious festivals including the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen

A Katrina refugee, Pat Cohen was the Blues diva of Bourbon Street. Since Katrina, she has partnered with Music Maker and performed at festivals and on stages in the United States, Australia, Argentina, and throughout Europe. She delivers high-energy blues, carrying on the tradition of blues divas trademarked by the likes of Bessie Smith and Koko Taylor.

Harvey Dalton Arnold

Harvey Dalton Arnold is a singer, guitarist and North Carolina-native who has a passion for the blues. He sold millions of albums as a member of southern-rock band The Outlaws from 1976-80, and has played at Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall. He has also shared the stage with the Rolling Stones at Anaheim Stadium. Harvey performs a left-handed finger-picking style and slide playing on electric and acoustic guitars.

Bubba Norwood

Drummer James “Bubba” Norwood’s credentials are among the brightest of any Music Maker artist. Known mostly for his long-time association with Ike and Tina Turner, James has anchored the rhythm section for a “who’s who” of blues, soul, and R&B greats.

About We Are the Music Makers

We Are the Music Makers: Preserving the Soul of America’s Music, a multimedia exhibition of photographs, audio recordings and video from Tim Duffy, founder of Music Maker Relief Foundation, in the Museum’s Shuford Gallery, April 30 – July 24. We Are the Music Makers features Southern Roots musicians active during the past 20 years, all photographed and recorded by Duffy in his quest to preserve Southern traditional music by partnering with the artists who make it. The exhibition highlights questions of how poverty, geography and age have limited the exposure of these artists, leading to the widespread idea that the musical traditions they perform have died out.

Hickory Museum of Art is located on the SALT Block, 243 3rd Avenue NE, Hickory. Admission is free. For more information about Museum exhibitions, art classes, field trips, and events, visit www.HickoryArt.org or call 828-327-8576.

Pinto Bean Supper May 7 at Bethelview UMC

A Pinto Bean Supper will be held on Saturday, May 7, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Bethelview United Methodist Church, located on Ridge Road just off Castle Ford Road in Boone.  The menu includes pinto beans, cornbread, slaw, variety of potatoes, variety of desserts and variety of beverages.  Take-outs will be available.  Donations for the supper will be accepted.  For more information or directions, call 828/264-3390.

Watauga Library Closed May 13, May 30

The library will close on Friday, May 13th for an all-day staff training and on Monday, May 30th for Memorial Day.

The main library is located at 140 Queen Street in downtown Boone.

The Western Watauga Branch is located at 1080 Old 421 Highway in Sugar Grove.