Tag Archives: Wende Carr

Northern Forest Canoe Trail in Old Forge: Pair kicks off paddle season with season’s first 740-mile trek

Emma & Emily. Mike Farmer photo.

Emma & Emily. Mike Farmer photo.

Town of Webb Public Relations Director Mike Farmer shares a toast with Emma and Emily on the eve of their launch

Town of Webb Public Relations Director Mike Farmer shares a toast with Emma and Emily on the eve of their launch

Emma and Emily shove off near the Old Forge covered Bridge. Wende Carr Photos

Emma and Emily shove off near the Old Forge covered Bridge. Wende Carr Photos

Though ice has been coming and going on nearby lakes the past several days, a pair of women paddlers departed Old Forge at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, to start a 740-mile canoe journey to Fort Kent, Maine.

They are the first paddlers this season to tackle the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, which goes through four states. They plan to complete their trip in 40 days.

Old Forge Publicity Director Mike Farmer was on hand for the launch by St. Lawrence alum Emily Rooney and Emma Carlson.

“All the rivers in Vermont are raging and really swollen right now, so hopefully by the time we start paddling upstream, it’ll be down a bit,” Carlson said.

They intend to cut a spruce sappling and attach a metal cleat to the tip, to create a pole for upstream movement. They’re carrying wheels for use on extended carries.

“I’m not a big backpacker, so the fact that you can paddle from the Adirondacks where we met, up through Vermont [where paddling partner Rooney is from], into Maine where I grew up is pretty magical,” Carlson said.

Rooney explained that both of them have sea kayaking experience but have an affinity for river travel. “We’re river people.”

Both Rooney and Carlson participated in St. Lawrence University’s (SLU’s) Adirondack semester as seniors. During that program, they lived in a yurt at Massawepie Boy Scout Camp, home of the SLU ADK semester, near Tupper Lake. Continue reading

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Webb, Inlet schools joining for spring music concerts, activities

The Town of Webb school’s instrumental music instructor Greg Clark and his students are going full tilt through the end of this school year with several concerts, events and performances planned.

On Saturday, April 27, over thirty students will travel to Watertown High School for a New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) Solo Festival. Students have prepared individually challenging pieces of music, and will be performing them for adjudicators.

“This is always one of the best ways to challenge our strongest players,” Clark said. “Unlike previous years, we will be taking some Inlet Common School students with us, with their teacher, Miss Caitlyn Goodwin.”

Adjudicators at NYSSMA festivals grade students on a scale of 0-28, with 28 being a perfect score. They also give students constructive criticism, according to Goodwin.  “It’s a very positive experience which promotes musical independence and lends to improved musicianship,” she said.

Goodwin teaches individual instrumental lessons to Inlet students on Thursday afternoons and conducts ensemble days monthly.  Continue reading

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Town of Webb school hosting series of parent training sessions

Mary Starring

Mary Starring

The Town of Webb Union Free School District is hosting a series of parent training sessions by Charlie Merrick of the Northern Regional Center for Independent Living (NRCIL) in Watertown, which focus on four topics.

On Tuesday, April 30, the topic will be Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

IDEA is the law which requires and governs special education in New York State. This session will cover how the law came about and contents of IDEA, including the rights of students with special needs and their parents, including the right to a free and appropriate public education.

On Tuesday, May 14, the presentation will be Understanding Your Child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP).

This session will address the contents of each section of an IEP and the reasons for each. It will cover the information with which parents may want to be prepared, prior to an IEP meeting, so they are able to actively participate and contribute in the meetings.

Earlier presentations have focused on effective communication to benefit students, parents, teachers and the community with local experiences being discussed.

Continue reading

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Own Your Own Caboose

Hanson Schmid, Jason Landl, Thomas Lindsay and Kody Earl on the train

Hanson Schmid, Jason Landl, Thomas Lindsay and Kody Earl on the train

The Town of Webb UFSD’s Drama Department is looking for a new home for the train caboose that was created by Jeff Evans for its recent “Bye, Bye Birdie” productions.

The caboose is offered in exchange for a donation to the drama department. Too nice to destroy, the train car promises a great playground feature or prop for another appropriate location.

Proceeds from its sale will go toward the next musical production. To make an offer on the caboose, call vocal music teacher Valerie Gaudin at 369-2723.

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Inlet Common School musicians to perform at state solo festival

Inlet Musicians: Front row: Joseph Townsend, Britney Levi, Back Row: Alexander Sutherland and Natalie Brownsell with Principal Chris Holt. Photo by Wende Carr

Inlet Musicians: Front row: Joseph Townsend, Britney Levi, Back Row: Alexander Sutherland and Natalie Brownsell with Principal Chris Holt. Photo by Wende Carr

For the first time ever, Inlet Common School instrumental students will perform at a New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) Solo Festival, which will be held at the Watertown High School on Saturday, April 27.

Music Teacher Caitlyn Goodwin, Principal Chris Holt and the school board collaborated to get the Inlet school registered as a NYSSMA member this year.

Four Inlet students will participate in this festival on Saturday—Joseph Townsend on snare drums, Britney Levi on flute, Alexander Sutherland on alto saxophone and Natalie Brownsell on French horn.

The students will each play three scales for the judges, as well as a challenging piece which he/she has been working on for the festival. Continue reading

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View promises artistic surprises when pastel exhibition opens May 4

W-93_Waterfront Cutter_MarianiThe 9th Annual Northeast National Pastel Exhibition, which is set to open Saturday, May 4 at View in Old Forge, continues to grow with an array of surprising works, according to View Curator, Linda Weal.

An opening reception with live music is scheduled for Friday, May 3 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Weal likens the growth of the pastel show to that of View’s annual watercolor show.

“Watercolor was really underrepresented, and we found a niche for it here. It worked for us, and for the artists. It was beneficial for everyone,” she said.

Now in its 32 years, the Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolors is nationally renowned. Continue reading

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CAP-21 hosts ecotourism development meeting in Old Forge

CAP-21 is collaborating with Adirondack environmental scientists, design firms and the Central Adirondack Arts and Science Advocacy group (CAASA), to develop ecotourism in conjunction with research and education in the Town of Webb.

Over thirty people attended an April 10 public meeting hosted by CAP-21 at the Old Forge Library, where they had an opportunity to hear and offer ideas on the project.

The meeting featured presentations by both Phinney Design and ELAN Planning & Design of Saratoga Springs.

Also present at the meeting were representatives of CAASA, authors of the proposed Central Adirondacks Laboratory for Environmental Studies (CALES) project.

The CALES project first received funding from the State Department of New York in 2009, according to CAP-21 Director Nick Rose.

The initial plan proposed development of a residential research center, to be based in the old Arts Center building. When that plan proved unfeasible, research and discussion began on how to proceed.

The establishment an environmental trail was discussed. This would potentially connect the Town of Webb with other Adirondack locations, such as The Wild Center in Tupper Lake and the Environmental School of Forestry in Newcomb. And it would require collaboration with other organizations.

Both design companies spoke of a cultural trail called The Crooked Road, which was established in Virginia. Continue reading

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