Monday, March 10, 2014

It's March! Can you help Camphill Kimberton?




Who ends their fiscal year in March?

Most people don’t, but we do!

We tend to do a lot of things differently.

But it must be working.

We are healthy.
We are thriving.
We are happy.

But unfortunately, this year, we are a little bit short.

We still need to meet our Village Support Fund goal. The Village Support Fund is Kimberton Hills' annual operating money. It pays for all the things we need throughout the year: groceries, toilet paper, roof repairs, labels for our herb garden, paper for the office printers – all the things we need to keep our village going. It makes up about 25% of our operating budget.

To close the gap in our Village Support Fund, we need to raise $25,000 in 25 days.

That’s by March 31.

Why are we short, you might ask?  There are a few reasons why including:
  • less funds were raised via special events than we were expecting
  • some grant decisions have not been made yet, and some grant applications were not accepted 
  • some donors supported designated special funds, in lieu of giving undesignated operating support
Approximately ½ of Camphill Kimberton’s operating income is generated by fees (villager family support), ¼ comes from the sale of goods, services and rentals (craft shop sales, Rose Hall rentals, etc.), and we rely on approximately ¼ of our income to come from charitable contributions.

Kimberton Hills has always been a careful steward of donated funds.  This year has been a difficult one and so we are asking - will you help us close the gap?  
To make your tax-deductible contribution to Camphill Kimberton, please click here, or send your gift to CVKH Development Office, P.O. Box 1045, Kimberton, PA 19442. 

Thank you!






Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Talkfest 6... coming closer!




Talkfest 6…Coming Closer!

Camphill Village Kimberton Hills 6th Annual Talkfest!

Sunday April 27 at 5:04


Only six more weeks until Talkfest 6 arrives. Hard to believe that April is right around the corner as I look out on all the snow and notice my nose starts to freeze as soon as I step outside. Seems Puxatawney Phil was right…winter will endure for longer than we hoped.

Which is why it is so exciting that Talkfest 6 is just about here. I have it from a higher authority that it will get warmer, the snow will melt, and it is going to be a spectacular day to be wandering around the
Birchrunville Store Café, on the evening of April 27, 2014. Camphill Village Kimberton Hills’ great friend, the World Famous Master Chef Francis Trzeciak, tells me the food is going to even better than in previous years! I know this is hard to believe but he does have another year of practice and has developed some amazing new recipes.   

I’ve already found a few spectacular biodynamic and organic wines which I’m trying not to drink myself before you get your chance to fill a glass. There will be another bottle of that wonderful organic cactus juice which a number of you decided was great after we removed the sharp spears. Some of you asked what new treat I was going to find for this year’s event so imagine what just might be made from organic sugar cane in…France!

As you know it’s all in support of CamphillVillage Kimberton Hills…the most amazing intentional community including people with developmental disabilities. One small donation and you get an incredible time while supporting such a worthy cause. How can you stay home?

Just like the first 5 Talkfests, no program, no presentations, no videos, nothing at all but exceptional oardoors and wines…and a few of those other liquids I already mentioned…and you. You talking to the unbelievably interesting collection of people who assemble to wander around sharing ideas about this and that.

And all of them talking to you.

Let me repeat this: you will be at the Birchrunville Store Café on April 27 between 5:04 and 7:49.

New this year. We have a Universe Famous Artist creating a masterpiece that some lucky attendee will take home…if they win the raffle. That’s right, we are having a raffle at some point during Talkfest 6. The Artist has generously donated the piece he is right now creating just for this event in support of our most worthy cause: Camphill Village Kimberton Hills. Figuring you all will want a chance to own the work before some museum swoops in to steal it, I have cleverly included the price of a raffle ticket in the donation for the event.

We already have around a third of the slots filled. We are going to sell out. To ensure you’re not disappointed, block out the day in all your calendars and them immediately email your reservation to our most excellent Bernadette Kovaleski, bernadette@camphillkimberton.org, or call her, 610-935-8660. Or register online here.

The ridiculously low donation? $167.23 per ticket. Wow! To support such a great place as Camphill Village Kimberton Hills. And at no extra charge you get a raffle ticket for a specially created artwork by The Artist.

Of course, for those who really want to win, I encourage you to purchase additional raffle tickets for $22.87 each. Remember…the more tickets you have, the better your chances. Only those of you clever enough to make a reservation for Talkfest 6 will be part of the raffle.

Steve Smolinsky
President, Board of Directors



6th Annual Talkfest, April 27, 5:04-7:49, Birchrunville Store Café, $167.23 per person
Extra raffle tickets…$22.87. Buy several…they’re small.
Be there! You’ll have a great time while supporting an exceptional place.

Ask About Becoming A Sponsor

Sunday, March 2, 2014

CVKH to be a part of Great Valley Arts and Culture Fair, April 10


Great Valley Arts and Culture Fair
Thursday, April 10, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
The Conference Center, Penn State Great Valley 





Penn State Great Valley unites a select group of the area's art, history and cultural treasures for a special evening. Local organizations (see list below) will display information about their mission, events and share opportunities to get involved. The evening will also include a cultural "sampling" when leaders from four of the organizations— Historic Yellow Springs, Wharton Esherick Museum, Colonial Theater and People's Light & Theater Company—will share what makes their organization unique.

The evening features opportunities to participate in hands-on activities and learn more about local arts and cultural organizations, volunteering, membership, events and more.

Participating Organizations
Willistown Okehocking Nature Center
People's Light & Theatre Company
Historic Yellow Springs
Colonial Pennsylvania Plantation
Wharton Esherick Museum
Friends of the Chester Valley Trail Schuylkill River Heritage Area
The Mill at Anselma
Paoli Battlefield Preservation Fund
The Colonial Theater
Friends of Valley Forge Park
Wayne Art Center
Camphill Village Kimberton Hills


FREE admission (Preregistration is required. Register at https://gvartsandculturefair.eventbrite.com)
6:30 - 7:30 p.m. Opportunities to participate in hands-on activities and learn more about local arts and cultural organizations, volunteering, membership, events and more.
7:30 - 8:30 p.m.: Special presentations celebrating four of the area's unique culture riches.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Camphill Kimberton presents Astral Artists, March 12 at 7:30 pm in Rose Hall



Camphill Village Kimberton Hills will present a free classical music concert on Wednesday, March 12, 2013 at 7:30 p.m.

Performers Adam Fry, bass-baritone, and Dizhou Zhao, piano, from Astral Artists, an organization that guides and promotes the nation’s most extraordinary emerging classical musicians, will offer an evening of music in Camphill Kimberton’s Rose Hall.

Astral Artists is a non-profit organization whose mission is to discover the most promising classical musicians residing in the United States, assist their early professional career development and present their world-class artistry to the community through concerts and outreach programs.  Camphill Kimberton is pleased to once again host these gifted musicians.

There is no charge for the concert, which is underwritten by the generosity of the Phoenixville Community Health Foundation.  Donations will be accepted at the door.

Camphill Village Kimberton Hills is located at 1601 Pughtown Road, Kimberton, Pa. Please use Google Maps, and not your GPS system to locate our community.

For more information and/or directions, please visit www.camphillkimberton.org.


ADAM FRY, bass-baritone


Bass-baritone Adam Fry recently completed his tenure in Pittsburgh Opera’s Resident Artist Program. While at Pittsburgh Opera, he performed such roles as Basilio in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, the Mandarin in Barbe and Doucet’s production of Puccini’s Turandot, the 1st Officer in Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites, and the Marchese in Verdi’s La traviata. A winner of Astral Artists’ 2013 National Auditions, Mr. Fry was also a prizewinner in the Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition, District Winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, and a Finalist in the Lotte Leyna Competition. Recently, he made his Erie Philharmonic debut as soloist in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and performed the roles of Nourabad in Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers, Angelotti in Puccini’s Tosca, and Pasha Selim in Mozart’s Abduction from the Seraglio. He returned to the Erie Philharmonic for Rossini’s Stabat Mater and, in the 2012-2013 season, returned to Pittsburgh Opera as a guest artist in the roles of Count Ceprano in Verdi’s Rigoletto and the Imperial Commissioner in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Since making his Dayton Opera debut as the Imperial Commissioner, Mr. Fry has returned to Dayton for Mandarin in Turandot and the Doctor/Servant in Verdi’s Macbeth. He has also appeared as Don Magnifico in Rossini’s La cenerentola with Union Avenue Opera. In the summer of 2009, Mr. Fry was a member of Glimmerglass Opera’s esteemed Young American Artist Program where, as a cover, he went on to perform Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola and the Marchese d’Obigny and Dottore Grenvil in Jonathan Miller’s La traviata. He returned to Glimmerglass in 2010 to perform Bartolo in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro. He has also been a member of the Chautauqua Young Artist Program and the Lake George Opera Studio Program. While pursuing an Artist Diploma and a Master of Music degree at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Mr. Fry performed such roles as Colline in Puccini’s La bohème, Don Basilio, Man with a Cornet Case in Dominick Argento’s Postcard from Morocco, and Dulcamara in Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore.



DIZHOU ZHAO, piano

Fanfare Magazine says pianist Dizhou Zhao “offers the blend of passion and intelligence that characterizes the mature artist” and that he “lives fully in the music.” Born and raised in China, Dizhou Zhao began studying the piano at the age of four in his hometown of Shanghai, and by age seven he had performed his first public concert and won First Prize in a competition in Shanghai. Just one year later, he was invited to record five of Mozart’s piano sonatas. At age 17, with only ten-days’ notice, he performed Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. The winner of numerous competition prizes, Mr. Zhao captured the top prize at Australia’s Southern Highlands International Piano Competition, the International Keyboard Institute & Festival’s Dorothy MacKenzie Artist Recognition Scholarship Awards, and the Louisiana International Piano Competition. He is a winner of Astral Artists’ 2012 National Auditions. Mr. Zhao performed Mozart’s Double Piano Concerto with famed Italian pianist Stefano Miceli in Boston’s Tsai Performance Center in 2010, with the Leipzig Philharmonic Orchestra. He was also the featured soloist in Stravinsky’s Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra. Recent engagements include a series of all-Chopin recitals in Texas and appearances at the Bergamot Music Festival and the New York Piano Festival. In 2008, Mr. Zhao recorded his debut solo CD in Moscow, for the Classical Records label. Dizhou Zhao came to the U.S. in 1999, to study at the New England Conservatory, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree with a distinguished performance award and studied with Russell Sherman and Patricia Zander. He also holds a Master’s degree from NEC, under Alexander Korsantia. He is currently the Executive Artistic Director of the Happy Day Music Performing Arts Center in Troy, Michigan.

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Camphill Kimberton ED Felicity Jeans among graduates of the Community Health Leadership Academy


New Community Leaders Celebrate 

article and photo courtesy of Phoenixville Community Health Foundation

It all started on September 4, 2013 when nine individuals began their leadership journey through the Community Health Leadership Academy. These committed community volunteers met one evening a week for 11 weeks, learning from experts, both locally and nationally based, on aspects of leadership. They have had to apply their new-found knowledge by developing a community service project that will benefit the greater Phoenixville community.

The students and their projects are: Karen Bearden who is re-designing the GRIMES after-school program; Robert Fedick, Jr. who is designing a web-based sharing program called “ShareOurStuff.org;” Felicity Jeans, Executive Director at Camphill Kimberton, who has instituted a Community Craft Conference for the Camphill communities; Kim Howard who has started her journey to develop Growing Up Farms to provide healthy foods to those in need; Christine Keisling has begun a campaign to ensure the Philadelphia Freedom YMCA is accessible to people of all abilities; Gloria Kelly is collaborating with meals programs and food cupboards to ensure access to all in need; and Margie Watson is developing an initiative called “Reclaiming Yourself” to empower teen girls against bullying and abuse.

l/r: Bob Fedick, Felicity Jeans, Gloria Kelly, [Lynn Hartman, PCHF] Karen Bearden, Margie Watson, Christine Keisling, Kim Howard


“The Community Health Leadership Academy is designed for adults who want to become more involved in their community,” said Lynn Pike Hartman, Phoenixville Community Health Foundation Vice President for Programs and Academy Facilitator. During the graduation luncheon at the Freedoms Foundation on November 26, Hartman encouraged all of the graduates to continue their leadership journey and their desire to create positive change in their communities. Hartman said, “I hope you have come to understand that leadership is not a one-size-fits-all jacket you can take off the hanger and put on. Instead it is personal qualities that show you to be a person of strength and integrity. Show the world, and this community, the true leaders that I know you are.”

The Community Health Leadership Academy is sponsored by the Phoenixville Community Health Foundation and the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations. The mission of the Academy is to provide a vehicle to identify, train and empower greater Phoenixville area citizens for leadership roles that promote our community’s health and advance its quality of life.

Dr. Louis Beccaria, President and CEO of the Foundation, addressed the graduates. Beccaria said. “This Academy is designed to grow future Champions of the Community, and with now 105 graduates, the program is having a positive impact on the greater Phoenixville community.”

For more information on the Community Health Leadership Academy please contact Lynn Pike Hartman, Vice President-Programs, Phoenixville Community Health Foundation at 610-917-9890 or LPHartman@pchf1.org.

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Have you found a match?

Michael and Charlene - a great match!  
I just spent five minutes validating a matching gift request.  Only five minutes to receive an additional $500 for our Village Support Fund.

How can that be?

Matching gift programs are charitable giving programs set up by corporations in which the company matches donations made by employees to eligible nonprofit organizations. Through these programs, when you make a donation your company will also make a donation to the charity in the same amount or “match” your gift. Some companies will even double or even triple match a donor’s gifts.

Today's donor made a $500 contribution to us in December. He requested a matching gift from his employer. The company contacted us to make sure he made the donation, I just validated it, and in a week or so, the company will send us an additional $500 gift.  With just five minutes of time, our donor's contribution was doubled!

How can you find a match?

Speak with a representative at your company to see if they participate in a matching gift program and see if Camphill Kimberton is eligible to receive matching gift funds. If your gift is eligible, simply request a matching gift form or website link from your employer, and send it and your contribution to Camphill Kimberton's Development Office, or make your gift online here.

Some companies who have recently matched gifts are:
Glaxo Smith Kline
Intuit
Johnson & Johnson
Swiss Re
UBS

Feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions.  Thanks for your continued support!

Bernadette Kovaleski, Director of Development
bernadette@camphillkimberton.org

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

9,803 volunteer hours!


from guest blogger, Mimi Coleman

It’s February; I’m celebrating!

“Why February?” you may ask, “The holidays are over; why celebrate now?”




Because I finished tallying all the day-volunteer hours for 2013 and it came to 9803 hours total.  That is so many hours!

That includes all non-resident volunteers: individuals, summer volunteers, and groups.  All these interested people put in a lot of hours collectively and we are all very grateful for that.  I calculated that it would take one person almost five years to put in that many hours, working 40 hours per week!




So that is why I am celebrating!  The numbers of volunteers, all of their hours, the great help you all gave in 2013, the better system for tracking hours that I put together with the help of my faithful volunteer-friend Barbara, I celebrate all that, and ask you to celebrate, too!  Keep volunteering.  Bring a group out to work for the day.  Do the day-volunteer ‘victory dance’ when you finish a hard day of work.  It all goes to a great cause here at Camphill Village Kimberton Hills.


And, if you or your friends or family are interested in volunteering, please contact me.  I am often available for tours and to welcome new volunteers.  

Thanks again!

Mimi Coleman
Day Volunteer Coordinator