The Brick Store Museum’s Bauman Family Contemporary Gallery kicks off its summer season with Peggy Johnson: A Jeweler’s Life, a legacy exhibit showcasing the work of Maine jeweler and innovative artist Peggy Johnson.

The exhibit opens June 24 and runs through Aug. 1. The exhibition of her work will be accompanied by several Maine jewelers who recently received donations of Johnson’s tools.

According to a Brick Store Museum news release, “Maine jewelry artist Peggy Johnson died in August of 2020 on Munjoy Hill in Portland. She had lived in that neighborhood for the past two decades but began her jewelry career in the 1970s in Philadelphia. The arc of her more than three decades-long career was spent creating both original production and one-of-a-kind pieces. Those years saw many manufacturing innovations that she employed to make her work.

“The museum exhibition will trace not only Peggy’s individual creative path, but also celebrate the way in which contemporary jewelers and metalsmiths continue to integrate handmade work and new technological developments within the field to survive and thrive into the 21st century.”

A companion display, The Legacy Show, will include work by several Maine jewelers and metalsmiths who received donations of some of Johnson’s tools. Exhibiting artists are Shelby Goldsmith, Danielle Gerber, Nick Rossi and Ann Thompson. Metalwork related to the exhibition will be for sale with a percentage of funds directed toward supporting a new generation of Maine jewelers and metalsmiths.

One of Johnson’s signature lines was called Housewearables, and consisted of miniature versions of household objects. She was particularly fond of tea and the museum will host a memorial Tea Talk and Cream Tea with Marianne Russo of Nellie’s Tea, of Scarborough on Friday, July 9 at 3:30 p.m.

The event will have limited, socially distant, seating. For tickets and more information, visit www.brickstoremuseum.org or call the museum at 207-985-4802.

Maine Community Foundation awards grants

The York County Committee of the Maine Community Foundation has awarded $71,154 in grants to 13 nonprofit organizations or communities.

Grant recipients include:

Caring Unlimited, Sanford, to update and expand its mobile advocacy, increasing the availability and accessibility of critical domestic violence support services throughout York County.
Fair Tide, Inc., Kittery, to expand a pilot program aimed at securing permanent, affordable housing for people experiencing homelessness.
Heart of Biddeford, to bring advanced training related to diversity, equity, and inclusion to Heart of Biddeford’s board, staff, and working partners.

The York County Fund is a permanent endowment that supports projects and nonprofits that strengthen communities in the county. Applications go through MaineCF’s Community Building Grant Program and are reviewed by a committee of local leaders. The next proposal deadline is Feb. 15, 2022. Application, guidelines and a complete list of recent grants can be found at www.mainecf.org.

The York County Fund is built through donations from the community. For more information about the fund, contact Gloria Aponte C., MaineCF senior program officer, at 207-412-0847or by email at gaponteclarke@mainecf.org.

KHS student earns scholarship for civic engagement

Kennebunk High School senior Elizabeth Mills received the 2021 Edmund Muskie Democracy in Action Award in the amount of $500. Mills is the second recipient of this award, given annually by the Democrats of the Kennebunks and Arundel to a senior who best exemplifies the spirit of civic engagement, participation in the democratic process, and democratic values.

Mills plans to attend St. Olaf College in the fall, where she will major in philosophy or sociology, with the long-term goal of becoming a college professor. St. Olaf College is located in Northfield, Minnesota.

“I’m incredibly thankful to receive the scholarship from the DKA as both a tool to help me advance my activism into my college life at St. Olaf College, and to also have it be a reminder to continue to address and resolve the injustices I come across,” said Mills in a written statement.

Scholarship Committee member Linda DeFelice explained that Mills’ essay and civic leadership stood out because “she helped organize community discussions on the book, “Stamped,” in her role as secretary of Kennebunk High School’s Civil Rights Team. She also helped organize and spoke at Black Lives Matter protests in Kennebunk, and she attended Many Towns, One Voice meetings as a student leader.”

Mills grew up in Biddeford, where she says she was exposed to economic disparities among her classmates and saw the effects of poverty on them. After transferring to Kennebunk High School, she wrote that she “was finally able to act on the impending desire to further engage, and inevitably lead, in community-wide civic engagement.”

“We must always question and dismantle the injustice we come across in our lives,” said Mills. “Unfortunately, injustice is the only constant we may ever have. However, where there is injustice, there is the power to change it. I believe that where there is action there is always change.”

Mills concluded her essay by affirming that, “wherever the future takes me, I know I will center it around political and civic engagement.”

Library plans Community Yard Sale

Kennebunk Free Library is hosting a Community Yard Sale Aug. 28 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Shoppers will find an array of items from local artists and neighbors’ attics.

Spaces are available to rent for $25. Folding tables are also available to rent for an additional $10. Vendors will receive prime visibility on Main Street, free advertising, all for a small donation to benefit KFL.

Applications and fees are due by Monday, Aug. 23. Spots are limited. Applications and additional information can be picked up at the library or found on the website.

Kennebunk Free Library is located at 112 Main St. in Kennebunk. For more information, call 207-985-2173 or visit  www.kennebunklibrary.org.

Audition dates announced for fall musical at Kennebunk High School

Audition dates have been set for the Kennebunk High School production of “Newsies.” Students going into seventh grade through 12th grade in RSU 21 – both middle and high school students – as well as teachers and staff are welcome to join the large ensemble production. The auditions will take place Tuesday, Aug. 31, through Friday, Sept. 3, from 2:30 to 6 p.m. each day at the high school.

“Newsies” is a musical based on the 1992 Disney film that was inspired by the real-life newsboys strike of 1899 in New York City.
Any student who wishes to be in the show can do so. Some of the older secondary roles’ characters may be cast using teachers and staff members.

The performances dates at KHS are Nov. 4-7, all at 7 p.m., with more shows to be added if they sell out.

Performers should be willing to help with set changes and dance in the show, even principal actors. While this is a musical that has a lot of movement, Director Dennis St. Pierre, theater teacher at KHS, says that even those who cannot dance will be able to handle most of the choreography. He said that no students should stop themselves from auditioning because they feel scared to dance.

Students who audition should prepare one song in the style of the show, old-fashioned musical theater. Good songs to select include any by George M. Cohan, Irving Berlin, any Disney show, “She Loves Me,” “Mack and Mabel,” “Godspell,” “Meet Me in St. Louis,” “Chicago,” “Wicked” or “Side Show.”

A schedule for the first three weeks will be given to everyone the first day of rehearsal. It is a large ensemble piece, and everyone needs to be at every rehearsal they are scheduled to attend.

Francis wins state triathlon title

Jet Francis, a junior at Kennebunk High School, recently competed in the Maine State Triathlon Championships at St Joseph’s College on June 20. Francis won the overall women’s title and the high school state championship.

The triathlon consisted of a one-third-mile swim in Sebago Lake, 13.1-mile bike and 5K run (3.1 miles). Her time was 1 hour, 12 minutes, 7 seconds. Only two men in the competition bettered her time.

Francis also qualified for and will compete in the Junior Elite national championships on July 31 in Westchester, Ohio. She plans to compete in women’s triathlon at the Division I level of the NCAA.

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