Latest News
Community Mural Draws All Ages to the Wall!
Work on our third Brick House Mural Project, which is located on the
southern and southeastern exterior walls of the Field House in Unity Park, began on July 1st. Artist Kerry
Kazokas met with the children who are participating in the Montague Summer Recreation
program, asking them to brainstorm ideas and thoughts for the mural content and design. Many of them
reflected a desire for nature to be a strong theme throughout the mural, even naming specific types of
birds and animals that they would like to have included. The next day, Kerry went table to table at The
Shady Glen, asking the locals what they would like to see on the wall, and they too expressed a desire for
nature to be a central theme, combined with the history of the village and town. After visiting the Great
Falls Discovery Center with a small group of future muralists, Kerry and BH Outreach Coordinator, Karen
Stinchfield, had a multitude of wildlife images from which details could be collected. Kerry then created a
plan for the mural that incorporates these ideas and themes and rough-sketched it on the 800 square foot
wall space. Then volunteer artists, young and older from throughout the community (more than twenty some
days), started painting, and the mural has been coming into being, quite quickly, ever since. Over 70 community artists, from age 2-82 contributed.
Click here to view photos of the mural celebration!
The mural work has drawn to a close, but
you can still drop by the Unity Park Field House and enjoy watching the final touch ups and embellishments.
The 2008 Brick House Mural Project is funded by Art Angels, a donor-informed grant committee, that
generously bestowed $2,500 in support of this latest mural project, believing that it facilitates
empowerment, transformation, and education through the arts; uses the arts and creativity as tools in the
development of human potential; and increases the presence of the arts in the community and helps the
public experience the value and inherent importance of the arts.
For more information about this mural, past projects, or future murals, please contact Karen
Stinchfield at 863-9576 or kstinchfield@thebrickhouseinc.org
Snackable Shade
 The patio outside the Teen Center is in the process of
being transformed into a snackable and comfortable
garden space. Our friends from Undergrowth Farm in
Gill, along with Brick House youth and staff, worked
together to start fruit, veggie, and herb seedlings that
have turned our conference room into a makeshift
greenhouse. Thanks to contractor Toby Briggs’ efforts
and Blue Sky’s donations, we have plans to build a
pergola for vines to climb and create shade over the
patio. BH Teens, staff, and farmers celebrated Earth
Day by conditioning the garden spaces, transplanting
seedlings, and preparing for the building of the pergola.
THANK YOU to Steve Malsch of Fairview Gardens in
Northfield, for donating the pots and soil for the seed-
lings; Undergrowth Farm, for donating seeds and time to help us get this project from our brains to our backyard; Toby Briggs, for his work on the pergola; Blue Sky Lumber, for donating wood; Sharron Villanueva and Tony Diemand, for donating plenty of rich compost; and Roger Matthews, for loaning us his truck to haul the compost. We can’t wait for the sweet and savory rewards!
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Second Annual HEALTHY
START! Back-to-School Event
at The Brick House Community Resource Center
August 18th * 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
The Brick House Community Resource Center, at 24 Third
Street in Turners Falls, will be hosting its second annual HEALTHY START!
Back-to-School event, giving families the opportunity to begin the new
school year in a positive way, on Saturday, August 18th from 10:00 a.m.
to 4:00 p.m.
Child participants can receive FREE dental screenings
with Lynne Bennett of the Community Health Center of Franklin County
and Dr. Dara Darabi of Avenue A Dental in Turners Falls. Children can
also create Child ID Packets with the Franklin County Sheriff’s
Department, which include photographs, fingerprints, and physical descriptions.
Children should have such packets created annually throughout childhood
in order to assure that the information is up-to-date. Activities with
the outreach staff from the Community Health Center of Franklin County
will teach children and parents about healthy food choices and portion
control, and The Brick House will be offering delicious free healthy
snacks to everyone who attends the event. Free school supplies and face
painting will also be available
In addition, fire prevention information and activities
have been supplied by the Turners Falls Fire Department, along with
information from several local non-profit organizations and programs,
including the Community Health Center of Franklin County, Big Brothers/Big
Sisters, Montague Catholic Social Ministries, Montague Parks and Recreation,
Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Gill-Montague PTO, the Community Partnership
for Children, Greenfield Even Start, and The Brick House. So, give your
kids a healthy start and come by The Brick House on August 18th!
For more information on this event or other Brick House
programs, please call 863-9576.
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CALL TO ARTISTS
Arts & Icicles * December 1st & 2nd
A soon-to-be-upon-us event is the Arts &
Icicles Turners Falls Open Studio and Downtown Walking Tour on December
1st and 2nd, during which we will be holding our fourth annual consignment
art gallery, where your items can be available for sale at The Brick
House for two days. The Brick House takes care of display and staffing
the shop, and BH receives 35% of any sales, which goes toward BH programming.
While this is not a juried event, we will be cognizant of the balance
of the items available for sale, out of fairness to the various artists
who are involved with the event. We feature many items that fall into
the $5 to $50 range, giving the public the opportunity to purchase quality-made
pieces for holiday gifts, but we also welcome artwork that falls above
that price range as well.
If you would be interested in taking part in the consignment art gallery,
please contact Karen
at The Brick House (413-863-9576) or e-mail her at karen@thebrickhouseinc.org and she will send the paperwork out to you.
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The Brick House & Power Town Mural
Last summer, as the teens and staff from BH began clearing
the way for The Brick House Mural Project and scrubbing the walls,
it became very clear very fast that the local “"littles"”
(a term of endearment for the young children who live in the Power
Town Apartments just behind BH) were interested in getting
involved. They helped scrub the walls, apply primer, and even paint
some of the background, and they take great pride in their part as
they share it with their neighborhood friends.
Before the project was even finished, BH staff and artist-in-residence Kerry Kazokas were talking about doing the back of the Langknecht/Peterman building, on which the original mural exists, with “the littles” as the artists, during the summer of 2007.
Now, thanks to Kerry and a group of children ages 3+,
the second wall of our mural project has been completed. After spending
a couple of weeks worth of hot July and August afternoons painting
(and cooling off with the hose) the mural took shape as a collaboration
between the youths, Kerry, and a couple of teen interns (Chelsea and
Desiree) to assist. If you get a chance, stop by our building and
walk down the alley into the Power Town parking lot and check out
our murals!
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Thanks to Camp Kewanee!
Camp Kewanee recently donated an air hockey table to our teen center. Now, more than ever, there is something for everyone at The Brick House every afternoon. Whether you want to play air hockey, foos ball, ping pong, pool, use our computers, or hang out and play some music, we've got you covered.
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Teen Center Hits Its Stride
The Brick House’s Teen Center is as vibrant as ever, and pulsing with energy. Recent months have seen new programming including COPLAR, a GLBT group organized by Athecia Greene, a former Teen Center participant turned volunteer and local activist; a series of media literacy workshops, brought to us by Megan Greene (no relation) a GCC student and member of our community who was interested in sharing her knowledge on deconstructing media messages; and two new programs run in partnership with Power Town Apartments, led by Teen Center participants.
The effort to fix and reopen the Montague Skate Park has also been headed by a group of Teen Center participants who meet regularly to work on the park and discuss plans for fundraising, maintenance, and general operation. We at The Brick House are all very proud to see our local youths so engaged in the community and actively trying to make a difference—more so than many adults. Of course, you’ll also see many of them helping out with the Great Falls Art Fest from entertaining kids with face-painting and arts-and-crafts, to acting as wait-staff for the art vendors. They are always willing to step up and help out when needed, and for this we can’t thank them enough.
The Avenue A Music Project continues as usual on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons. Our recording studio is utilized constantly by teens that are looking to hone their musical composition and recording skills. With the aid of a generous donor, we were able to purchase some new instruments: an African talking drum, a xylophone, and a baritone ukulele—all chosen by participants. Every day sees new collaborations and an array of sounds coming from every direction. It’s also the time of year that teen musicians grab their acoustic guitars and sit outside the Teen Center (in the patio that some of them helped to build) and share songs with one another, and anyone who happens to be passing through the alley. A few of our young musicians, who earned their stripes performing at our monthly open mics, have graduated to the larger stage and will be performing at the Great Falls Art Fest—keep and eye out for Fashionable Tom and the Crooked Hats, and Dave Ramlow-Sachs. Also, be on the lookout for the 5 th volume of our compilation CD, including recordings in a wide variety of styles from folk to metal to hip-hop. The CD, which is a fundraiser for the Music Project will be on its way during the summer.
We look forward to a busy summer at the Teen Center, filled with music, games, BBQ, and (almost) anything else that our participants suggest. This will be the first summer in the history of the Teen Center that we will continue to be open five days a week. If you’re a teen and would like to come check us out, we’re open Monday-Friday from 3:00-6:00, except for Thursdays when we’re open until 8:00 for Movie Night. If you’re an adult interested in seeing our space and our programming, you are also welcome to come tour the facilities. For more information on our teen programs contact Jared Libby, Youth Programs Coordinator, at 413-863-9559, or visit www.thebrickhouseinc.org.
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Six Local Contractors Come Together to Pave the Way for The Brick House!
It all started when James Kazokas, of K & S Contracting in Northfield, attended an event at The Brick House, celebrating the culmination of The Brick House Mural Project, for which his sister Kerry was the Artist-in-Residence. Standing in the alley that lies between BH and the building on which the beautiful fifty-six foot mural was painted this past summer, James and BH Outreach Coordinator, Karen Stinchfield, were discussing the programs that BH offers and improvements that were being made to the building. Karen, not realizing that James is a contractor, made a comment about how the staff would love to have the alley paved so that it could be level usable space. James said that he might be able to help make that happen.
And make it happen he did! After a few conversations with Karen and a trip to The Brick House for measurements, James went to other contractors seeking donations of man and woman power, machinery, tools, and the hot mix required to make this wish come true. What he ended up with was a fabulous team who came out on the chilly morning of October 26th to create a beautiful level alley and usable space beneath the stairs that lead to the BH office. James was joined by Dan Mailloux of Northfield, from Mailloux Asphalt Paving; Ernie Raymond of Bernardston, from Wiggins Hydroseed; Doug Stafford of Montague, from Felton Paving Company; Max Antes of Deerfield, from Bob Cook Excavating; and Dawn Kazokas of K & S Contracting. Lane Construction of Northfield donated the hot asphalt mix. Lane had also previously donated a ton of gravel for the recently finished patio area that abuts the alley.
The teens and local children have always congregated in the area just outside of the Teen Center, playing music and hackey sack in the sun, but the pavement was in terrible shape and it was a cause for concern when children would ride bikes or roller skates down the alley. This new level space expands the usable area significantly and even offers an opportunity for the installation of a basketball hoop (does anyone have one they’d like to donate to the cause?).
James Kazokas went above and beyond any hope for assistance by bringing together a group of sometimes competitors and asking each of them to give some portion to this project, be it workers, materials, or machinery. By doing so, this great gift has been given to our organization that thrives through giving to the community in which it resides, so this gift will continue to give for a long time to come.
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Teen Center Gets an Entertainment Upgrade
For quite a while the Teen Center has provided users with musical instruments and computer access. Now, with the addition of a pool table and a foos ball table, there's always something fun to do in the after-school hours. Open every weekday afternoon (with the Avenue A Music Project on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and drop-in hours the rest of the week), the Teen Center is a great place to go to unwind from school and find some free entertainment and activities. There is something going on nearly every weekday of the month so stop by and check it out or call Jared at 863-9559 to find out what's going on...and Jared will always take a challenge at pool or foos ball!
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