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Life Essentials

Chalk About It Recruiting Artists for May 21st Event

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Chalk About It is the Miami Valley’s original chalk art festival and scheduled for May 21, 2016 at The Greene. Chalk art, or street painting as it’s known in Europe, has its origins back to the 16th century. Today it’s a creative art form by which a block of street is turned into a beautiful piece of art. Essentially, the asphalt is the canvas and the medium is environmentally friendly pastel chalk. Chalk festivals are gaining in popularity throughout the US, and are usually found in the south. Dayton is one of only a handful in the state.

Last year’s debut event proved to be a great success, in spite of the rain. Local, national, professional, amateur and students competed for the most votes. First prize went to Colleen Scott of Columbus, OH. In addition to Ms. Scott, participants included: Tiffany Kelly of Miamisburg, Lori Hughes of Galloway, OH, Erik Greenawalt of North Huntington PA, Heather Morrisey of Germantown, OH, Suzy Richardt and Ray Goerig both of Dayton. Chalk About It will again feature the anamorphic (3D) art of the award winning chalk artist, Jennifer Chaparro.

Chalk About It artists will have the opportunity to compete for cash prizes and will be invited to a meet and greet with the guest artist. Participating artists will receive chalk, snacks throughout the day, and of course a chance to win best of show. Artists can submit an application to participate at www.lifeessentials.org.chalk

Chalk About It benefits Life Essentials and its unique and specialized programs that enable seniors and people living with mental illness to have a greater quality of life and take charge of their mental and physical health.

About Life Essentials
Life Essentials provides professionally delivered services which promote and enhance the quality of life for vulnerable adults through intensive advocacy and recovery-oriented programming. Life Essentials provides the only adult guardianship program in Montgomery and Greene Counties. In addition, seniors living with mental illness participate in an outpatient program designed to assist them in their recovery. Peer Academy is a unique program designed to train individuals in recovery to work as peer supporters. Life Essentials receives funding from the Montgomery County Human Services Levy, ADAMHS Board and the United Way.

Chalk Art Comes To Life At The Greene Today!

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15930723563660212125The streets of The Greene will come alive today as artists create living art using only pastel chalk to bring awareness to national mental health awareness month from 10am – 10pm!

Watching art come to life is considered a performance art and has an immediacy that gives every piece a uniqueness that can never be truly duplicated. You can vote for your favorite, by making a donation to Life Essentials!

Take part in a family scavenger hunt and a kid’s chalking area. Wind down with a block party in the evening. The event will support Life Essentials’ unique and specialized programs that enable seniors and people living with mental illness to have a greater quality of life.

Special guest artist Jennifer Nichols was born into an artistic family.  Her grandfather, Harry E. Stinson, was a recognized Sculptor, Painter and Art Professor.  Jennifer’s formal art training started in high school, and she began to accumulate awards and sell her early watercolor paintings.

Later, Jennifer attended UCLA, graduating with a degree in Design, focusing on costume & clothing design.  She continued to pursue painting while working in advertising and raising her two daughters in Dayton, Ohio.  Jennifer’ work was exhibited at various galleries and events in Ohio between 1992 – 1999.  She also was very involved with the Dayton Visual Arts Center, serving as their president and as a board member and contributing artist.

In 1999, she moved to Palm Beach, Florida.  In 2004, Jennifer and her daughters began participating in the Street Painting Festival in Lake Worth, Florida, which is the largest street painting event in the United States, attracting 100,000 visitors each year.   In 2012, Jennifer founded the International Street Painting Society, as a way to help other street artists connect and be more successful, and help street painting be seen as a legitimate art form.

Jennifer’s work shows a unique talent for capturing faces and expressions.  By working to duplicate the colors and shading of the original art, Jennifer stays true to the original work of art.  Using soft pastel chalk on pavement or concrete surfaces, these large works of art are washed away after each event.  Jennifer’s philosophy is that street painting is as much about the performance and execution, as it is about the art.  The immediacy and challenges of the “canvas”, weather and medium make each piece special and unique.  Usluggo_solo_springlever_hiresUsually over the course of 2 days, each piece comes to life before your eyes.  Constantly looking for new challenges, she is open to new materials and processes, and will chalk on just about anything.

David Zinn temporary street art is composed entirely of chalk, charcoal and found objects, and is always improvised on location. Most of these drawings have appeared on sidewalks in Ann Arbor and elsewhere in Michigan, but some have surfaced as far away as subway platforms in Manhattan and construction debris in the Sonoran Desert. Zinn’s chalk work began in 2001 as an excuse to linger outdoors, but has since achieved global notoriety through the sharing of photos on Facebook, Huffington Post UK, The Cheezburger Network, Street Art Utopia, and Archie McPhee’s Endless Geyser of Awesome. His most frequent characters are Sluggo (seen here) , a bright green monster with stalk eyes and irreverent habits, and Philomena, a phlegmatic flying pig. As of 2013, there have been a lot of mice as well.

5K Derby Day Dash to Benefit Life Essentials

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derby_day_startLife Essentials helps people who slip through gaps of community services. Through a dedicated network of volunteers they provide over 25,000 hours of service each year to people in the greater Dayton area.  Their services and programs  help seniors and individuals living with mental illness. They aim to decrease isolation by providing participants with volunteer caregivers, guardians and help with small home projects.

This Sat, May 4th you’ll have a chance to to participate in their annual Derby Day Dash.  This annual 5K Run and Walk involves every age group including fun runs for the little ones like the tot trot for 3-5 year olds, the Gallop for 9-10 year olds.  All kids receive a medal and the top 3 each get a trophy.  Teams are welcome too, with prizes for Best Name and Largest Team.

The professionally designed course starts and ends at Island Park and snakes along the Great Miami River. Once everyone has finished the race, prizes are awarded for participants in various age categories, farthest distance traveled, and best hat! More than $2,000 in merchandise and gift certificates are awarded at the race.  Check in begins at 8am the race starts at 9am. You can register online at www.active.com.

 

 

Hats & Horses – Derby Doings in Dayton

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Every year as May roles around there is  a lot of talk about the Kentucky Derby.  Recipes start floating around for the quintessential Mint Julep or Derby Pie.  Women start discussing hats- and this year the talk was kick-started early due to the Royal Wedding. Heck, I even know the difference between a downbrim and a Fascinator, something my grandmother would have been so proud of, if she were still here.  People that never seem to care about horse racing suddenly talk handicapping. Last year I enjoyed the Derby Day Brunch at Brio, but never even saw the race.  This year something got into me and I’ve decided to make the trek down to  Churchill Downs.  So if you want to get caught up in all the hoopla,  here are some great events to celebrate the greatest two minutes in sports.

Color of Energy hosts  a Derby Day Preview Party
Wed, May 4th 6:30pm

Kicking off  “And Their Off,” a horseracing photographic exhibit by John Engelhardt, A Color of Energy gets you ready for The Derby . John is a longtime employee of River Downs in Cincinnati and a resident of Oakwood.  He has a great collection of horseracing scenes that tie in with the upcoming Kentucky Derby. Color of Energy gallery will be hosting along with Judge Dan Gehres and Tom Archdeacon.  The party will feature Engelhardts photos, Ed Meyer a professional handicapper from Kentucky gives his derby predictions and a live throughbred race horse will be outside!!  It wouldn’t be a true Dereby party without the singing of Run for the Roses & My Old Kenutcky Home and Dale Walton will be on hand to do that!  Sidebar will be serving Hotbrowns and Derby pie and providing a cash bar. Original jockey silks will decorate the day and this will be a great forum for Derby stories, history and a preview to what promises to be a great event.

13th Annual Derby Day Dash 5K and Youth Fun Runs
Sat May 7th 8am – 11am

Start the day off by participating in The Derby Day Dash, a charitable fun run that benefits Life Essentials, an organization that helps people who slip through gaps in community services. The day is family friendly and consists of a 5K run/walk, a Tot Trot for ages 3-5, a Kids Canter for the 6-8 year olds and the Guys & Girls Gallop for ages 9-10.   All events start and finish at Fifth Third Plaza in downtown Dayton.  The first 75 registered children between the ages of 6 and 10 will be fitted for a free safety helmet.  All children registered will receive a free ticket to the Beach Watherpark.
There are also team contests with prizes for the largest team, best team name and as appropriate for the day, a hat contest.  Don’t worry, a hat check will be provided for racers, as no hats are to be worn during the race. After the races their will also be drawing for door prizes.  For more information call 586-0545 or email

The second annual Crown Jewels™ of Dayton Derby Day Brunch Sat, May 7th 10am – 1pm

The event generously hosted by Brio at The Greene includes a buffet brunch and in true Derby-style, mint juleps. Other activities will include a “Hat Strut” by our guests, a silent auction and roaming models from merchants at The Greene. Guests will also get their picture taken by the official Derby Day photographer and everyone will receive a Run for the Pink Roses commemorative glass.

All proceeds from this Crown Jewel’s™ event go to further the work of the Kettering Medical Center Foundation’s Women’s Wellness Fund. The fund provides free screening and diagnostic mammograms, breast ultrasounds and prostheses to uninsured women (and men) in our community. It also provides education on breast cancer and other women’s health issues through the Cindy Wilde Vogel Memorial Library located at the Kettering Breast Evaluation Center. Procedures may be scheduled at any accepting mammography facility in the area (not just a KMC affiliate) and the Women’s Wellness Fund will cover the cost. To date over 8000 people have been able to use this life saving service.  Tickets for the Crown Jewels Derby Day Brunch are $40.  Many of the calendar models are selling tickets for this even or you can call Tina at 937-259-7927 to order your tickets.

JLD Derby Party
Sat, May 7, 4-8pm

The Junior League of Dayton invites you to put on your Derby hat and sip Mint Juleps while you watch the most exciting tow minutes in sports with them as they host a watch party at The Wine Loft at The Greene.  Tickets run $30 for members and spouses, and $35 for non-members.  Tickets include 2 drink tickets and a spread that will include Hot Browns, Pimento Cheese Toasts, Mint Julep Lamp Chops, Shrimp & Cheese Grits and Thourghbread Pie.  You can purchase tickets online or by mailing check to the Junior League of Dayton Office. Ticket Purchase Deadline is Friday, May 6th at Noon.