Roofing Contractor inSavannah, GA.

(SAVANNAH, GA – April 3, 2023) – The Savannah Philharmonic proudly announces the upcoming "On the Road" concert series, featuring violin virtuoso Rubén Rengel from April 14-16. This engaging spring series will present performances across Bulloch, Bryan, and Chatham Counties, providing residents with an unforgettable musical experience.

Under the baton of Artistic and Music Director Keitaro Harada, the orchestra is thrilled to welcome renowned violin virtuoso Rubén Rengel as a guest artist to present Mozart's "Turkish" Violin Concerto No. 5 and Beethoven's Symphony No. 2. As recipient of the revered Robert F. Smith Prize at the 2018 Sphinx Competition, Rengel's exceptional talent and captivating performances have earned him critical acclaim and a dedicated following.

The series begins at Georgia Southern in Statesboro on Friday, April 14, at 7 PM. Prior to the evening performance, the Savannah Philharmonic will host a master class with students enrolled in the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music, and members of the Georgia Southern Symphony will later join the orchestra for a unique side-by-side performance at the Performing Arts Center.

On Saturday, April 15, at 7:30 PM, the Philharmonic and Mr. Rengel will perform at St. Anne's Catholic Church in Richmond Hill, and the series will culminate with a concert at Skidaway Island United Methodist Church on Sunday, April 16, at 3 PM.

Executive Director Amy Williams recognizes the importance of sharing music throughout the region: "As a community-focused arts organization, understanding and embracing the rapid growth of our neighboring counties further inspires the SavPhil to continue offering something for everyone, and we look forward to greeting both new and familiar audiences to this wonderful series." For more information or to purchase tickets, please call 912-232-6002 or visit savannahphilharmonic.org.

ABOUT THE SAVANNAH PHILHARMONICThe Savannah Philharmonic, a nonprofit 501©(3), is a community-focused arts organization which strives to present concert performances and music education of the highest caliber throughout the southeast. Comprised of a professional orchestra and community chorus, and led by the masterful baton of Keitaro Harada, the SavPhil performs a vast range of works from composers of the past and present, and in all genres from classical to contemporary. Theorganization focuses on fostering community and inspiring a true appreciation of music through equitable access to performances and education programs.To learn more, please visit: savphil.org.MEDIA CONTACT:Jamie Coffey | Director of External Relationships | Savannah Philharmonicjamie@savannahphilharmonic.org / (941) 350-5120

For Do Savannah

When critically acclaimed poet, Allison Adelle Hedge Coke, speaks about her life, it’s as if she’s lived the challenges and successes of at least three lifetimes.

The prolific writer and National Book Award Finalist grew up the daughter of a North Carolina sharecropper then became one herself. In her late twenties, after nearly two decades of intense physical labor, she enrolled in field worker retraining in California. That training, plus a series of sidetracks and seemingly disparate experiences, ultimately created a path for her to earn an MFA from Vermont College. Currently, Hedge Coke teaches as Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing at University at University of California, Irvine.

On Friday evening, Allison Adelle Hedge Coke reads from her latest book of poetry, “Look at This Blue,” a collection of writing the author describes as a “love letter to California and call of accountability.” The work pays homage to the state’s natural beauty and diverse ecosystems while also calling attention to its sustained ecological devastation and generations of cultural genocide against indigenous peoples.

“Look at This Blue” was recognized as National Book Award Finalist in 2022.

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Born in 1958, Hedge Coke grew up in North Carolina. Her mother struggled with mental illness, and when she was finally placed into Dorothea Dix Hospital, Hedge Coke soon sought work in local fields and factories to help support the family. She was just 12-years-old.

“My father was working, and almost all that money went to support my mom in mental care,” recalled Hedge Coke. “I had to work. I did tobacco, sweet potatoes, beans, and for a while packing crackers in a packaging facility. And when I was 14, I ran away for a bit to Macon, Georgia. I liked music and wrote songs and poetry when I could and wanted to be around music. I got a job at Grant’s Lounge and worked there for nine months, underage of course. I missed all but the last two weeks of ninth grade.”

Shortly after returning to North Carolina, Hedge Cook, left school opting instead to get her GED, which opened the door for her to enroll in community education art classes at the local university. When she was 16, she got her own sharecropping allotment. An allotment meant she had some agency in the kinds of crops planted and in hiring who planted them even though “all the money is really going to the landowner, like modern day feudalism.”

When she was 16, Hedge Coke also got married, a turbulent nearly ten year relationship that imperiled the lives of her children and her, and one she tried to leave twice before successfully escaping with her children to Tennessee. Thanks in part to a little help from country singer, Tanya Tucker.

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“From my mid-teens up through when I was 28, I also worked as a musician, writing songs, singing, playing percussion in session work,” said Hedge Coke. “Grant’s Lounge introduced me to a lot of people, and I just ran with musicians when I could. I was writing songs for Johnny Paycheck’s drummer and his wife. They wanted to do a breakout album. Tanya Tucker found out about me and my situation, and allowed the kids and I to move into one of the homes on her ranch in exchange for me taking care of one of her care-taker’s children.

"We were away from violence. We were safe. And we had time to just be. And it was the first time I’d ever seen a dishwasher. I never turned it on because I was afraid I’d break it!”

Safe and nurtured within a new network of creatives, Hedge Coke found time to get involved with Nashville’s oldest and most highly regarded community theatre, Circle Players. She sat in on performance classes and started writing monologues for actors in the company. Occasionally, the instructor would ask her to read roles. He insisted that if she ever made it to California, he would recommend her to audition for Estelle Harmon’s Actor’s Workshop.

In 1985, her sister, already in California, helped Hedge Coke enroll in a field worker retraining program. The training prepared her to be a second-chance high school instructor in Venture, Ca., where Hedge Coke would help teens get on track to succeed in school and beyond. In her training she learned a great deal of California history.

“I was scared I wouldn’t do so well after training,” said Hedge Coke, “I was a high school drop out, now supposedly prepared to help students stay in school, it was a little intimidating.”

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But Hedge Coke was a natural and worked for several years within the program. In time, she got that opportunity to audition for Estelle Harmon’s Actor’s Workshop where she went on to study all aspects of film production, including scriptwriting. Scriptwriting became the gateway for a multitude of new opportunities, including a stint studying at the Old Institute for American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, and two summer writing intensives at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics in Boulder, Co.

“My friends started encouraging me to go back to school,” recalled Hedge Coke, “Because I’d always been a good writer and very creative, but I wasn’t sure about where because all I had was a GED, no undergraduate degree.”

She decided to apply to MFA programs. In 1995, she graduated from Vermont College with an MFA in Creative Writing. Currently, Hedge Coke is Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing at University of California, Irvine.

“Look at This Blue” was written in the first weekend she arrived in Montenegro for her 2019 Fulbright award. According to Hedge Coke, it was the culmination of 42 years living in the Golden State, learning its history, understanding the environment and knowing indigenous people’s struggles.

“I followed this jazz instrumentation I heard in my head and let the writing flow,” emphasized Hedge Coke.

“I did copy editing on the book in 2020 to address the pandemic and include a few pertinent headlines like a wolf returning to Ventura County. 'Look at This Blue,' is my love letter for (California) and call of accountability, but it’s applicable for the broader United States, a call to undo massive industrialization, to restore harmony, balance and beauty in the world. And a call to address the occupation of land, to think more about restoration.

"Lastly, I have a lot of gratitude in coming back. When I was first in Georgia, I was a run away kid working illegally in a bar. Though that shaped me and many of my life’s choices, I’ve experienced so much and gained more wisdom since that time. I’m grateful to be able to return and share a perspective that is informed from time, people and places.”

Savannah State University will be hosting poet Allison Adelle Hodge Coke April 7 for two unique events: A 12 p.m. Craft Talk at the ASA H. Gordon Library Art Gallery on SSU campus; And a 6:30 p.m. reading at The Book Lady Bookstore, 6 E. Liberty St in Historic Savannah. The events are free and open to the public and brought to the community by Estuary Creative Arts Club and the Book Lady Bookstore through the Georgia Poetry Circuit.

Founded at Mercer University in 1985, the Georgia Poetry Circuit is a consortium of ten Georgia colleges and universities working together to bring three poets of national and international reputation annually to all members’ campuses, providing an important access to the literary arts for Georgia residents across the state. Savannah State was the first and only HBCU to join the consortium in 2013.

IF YOU GO

What: Allison Adelle Hedge Coke

When: Friday at 6:30 p.m.

Where: The Book Lady, 6 E. Liberty St.

Cost: Free

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - A local group that advocates for immigrant and non-English speaking families wants more from Savannah Chatham public schools.

Their report Monday calls for more Spanish speakers in schools and the board office.

Migrant Equity Southeast says the Savannah-Chatham school district should do more to break down the language barrier between the schools and immigrant students and their parents.

Parents like Manirita Gomez say everything they get from the school district, from bus routes to report cards, comes in English.

“It’s very frustrating for me because I would like to participate and contribute to my son’s school,” said parent Manirita Gomez

Migrant Equity Southeast presented their report that calls for the school district to put measures in place to communicate better with parents. They want the district to hire more bilingual teachers and staff.

That ranges from counselors to bus drivers and other positions that could interact with parents. Group leaders say these parents should not be voiceless.

“They have a voice, but their voice is in Spanish and the system’s ear is in English. And they don’t hire translators. They don’t prioritize that as a need,” said Daniela Rodriguez with the Migrant Equity Southeast.

They say Hispanic students make up 12% of the district population. They say other Georgia districts have enacted similar measures and they want Savannah Chatham to do follow that lead.

“They need to interact more with our people so they can be more aware of our needs,” said parent Oranezel Moreno.

WTOC contacted the school district about the group’s report.

SCCPSS released a statement saying,

“SCCPSS is aware of the report shared today by Migrant Equity Southeast. District officials had the opportunity to meet with this organization and reviewed their recommendations in December 2022. There were follow up questions posed to MESE and we asked then if MESE knew of any translators we could hire. We did not receive a response; however, we remain open to continued dialogue and input.

In addition, SCCPSS has approved a Memorandum of Understanding with Migrant Equity Southeast to provide virtual, free tutoring to ELL students in coordination with GSU and Savannah Arts Academy (Mu Alpha Theta-Math Honors Society) which will begin in August 2023. To date, MESE has not approved or rejected the MOU.

The recommendations for improving language equity by MESE are sound and align with those of the district. Each of recommendations 1-3 are impacted by the challenge every school district is facing in staffing. Our compensation, as well as our benefits package, is competitive and we hope to be able to fill as many of the counseling, translator, and social worker positions as possible with bilingual educators.

The District is committed to ensure we are reaching all families we serve effectively. Our work to close communication gaps is evident from the points in the attached document. While we will continue to improve our resources and special initiatives, we also recognize there is tremendous value in human capital and the face to face work that builds relationships; however, as market conditions continue to put pressure on demands of the workforce, we continue to feel its influence on our hiring efforts to meet identified needs. SCCPSS appreciates the work of the Migrant Equity Southeast and looks forward to leveraging their feedback to meet our aligned goals.”

The group says the need extends beyond the school district alone. They want to see the City of Savannah and Chatham County prioritize these residents as well.

Copyright 2023 WTOC. All rights reserved.

?Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) public art initiative “Paint Our Parks" has returned to SCCPSS, with a brilliant large-scale mural enlivening the playground at Sarah Mills Hodge Elementary School on Clinch Street in Savannah.

Paint Our Parks is a unique university initiative envisioned by SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace focused on serving the citizens of Savannah and Atlanta through the creativity, expertise and altruism of SCAD's talented network of students and alumni. Since the initiative launched in fall 2021, five playgrounds, basketball courts, and other recreational spaces have been painted in Atlanta. This is the second playground mural in the Savannah area. The first was painted at Coastal Middle School in Fall 2022.

This public arts beautification project was developed in partnership with the Savannah Chatham County Public School System. SCAD contributed significant funds for the restoration of the elementary schools' playground's court surface, and towards the creation of a larger-than-life mural.

SCAD alumnus Joe Dreher (B.A., architecture, 1993) designed the mural at Hodge Elementary. The Atlanta-based artist, architect, photographer, and poet is known for recently designing and painting two massive murals in Midtown Atlanta. “As a muralist, I often paint walls, but as murals become a more accepted and desired part of our surroundings the opportunities for new and varied locations have increased. I was excited for the opportunity to paint a court," Dreher said. “ I get inspired by the young people of the next generation, our future problem-solvers. I want my work to be less about me and more about the people and places where they remain after I have come and gone."

Dreher's design was inspired by Hodge students. Using a process he calls “portrait partners," Dreher had the kids draw each other and he drew with them. “I used the results to generate a composition full of color and shape the reads like an abstraction from a distance, and up-close reveals the faces of the students. The faces are meant to be a likeness and represent more than one individual. In fact, many of them look and say 'That's me!' That is exactly the point."

“My hope is that the process illustrates to the students, staff, parents, and the community that with some intention and a little hard work and organization you can make a change that will bring more joy and excitement to their lives. The mural is something that helped create and will take pride in long after I am gone," Dreher added.

More than 100 SCAD SERVE students, faculty, and staff volunteered. They started painting on April 17 and contributed more than 360 hours to this project, using more than 150 gallons of special acrylic paint.

“It's amazing to have this artwork by a SCAD artist displayed in front of our school because it depicts who we are as a school community," said Hodge principal Yvette Wells. “The concept of the mural represents the faces of our student population and creates a sense of belonging."

Paint Our Parks is acommunity-focused initiative through which SCAD students, alumni and faculty realize shared visions of positivity, wellness and joy to uplift local neighborhoods. SCAD SERVE will continue working with local schools, civic and community leaders bringing these thrilling murals to deserving communities and neighborhoods.

See more pictures from the installation here.

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – Savannah Christian will host Oconee County on Monday, May 8, at 5 p.m. in a deciding game three.

On Saturday, May 6, Savannah Christian and Oconee County split the series 1-1. Oconee County won game one with a final score of 5-3, and Savannah Christian won game two 8-1.

The winner of Monday’s game will advance to the Final Four of the GHSA Class 3A playoffs.

Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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