Mar 28, 2023
“Any time we can convert an overwhelming, depressing issue into something we can be creative in thinking about, there is hope for change,” Cindy Fowler says.
She could be talking about any number of issues as facilitator of the Sacramento advocacy team for the Friends Committee on National Legislation, a Quaker lobbying organization on Capitol Hill.
But today she’s referring to the Loving Earth Project, a traveling community textile project that encourages people to think creatively about climate change.
Mar 28, 2023
As a kid growing up in Sacramento, David Gull often visited his Uncle George’s house. George, bar manager at the old Buffalo Club tavern, had a collection of memorabilia from the Buffalo Brewing Company in his basement. Buffalo Brewing operated at 21st and Q streets from 1890 until 1945. At one time it was the largest brewery west of the Mississippi.
Years later, Gull remembered his uncle’s collection and conducted research about the brewery. “And I thought, wouldn’t it be cool if someone brought back this historic brand, this historic beer? That was my lightbulb moment,” he says.
That moment led him to found New Helvetia Brewing Company, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in December. Named for John Sutter’s original settlement, the brewery and taproom are located at Broadway and 18th Street in Land Park. The taproom is decorated with Buffalo Brewing memorabilia, along with maps and lithographs of Sacramento.
Mar 28, 2023
If you jog along the American River Parkway and spot a tree with gnarled roots dangling over the riverbank, stop and say hello to “Mickey’s Tree.”
It’s a bit of Sacramento immortalized in the 40-minute movie of the same name by local filmmaker and composer Belton Mouras Jr.
“I’ve had so many adventures out there,” Mouras says of the trail he pounded thousands of times as a triathlete.
Recalling his late rescue dog, he adds, “Mickey and I would be out there almost every day and he led me to that tree. It’s exhilarating to be out there. A lot of people don’t get to experience the parkway to that degree, so I wanted to showcase all the nature that’s available to us right here in the film.”
Feb 28, 2023
Piggie’s pink tongue dangles permanently out the left side of his mouth. His ears, mangled from a home crop job, are frequently infected. Arthritic joints struggle to maintain his 50-pound rotund body. His breathing is labored.
When Andrea Haverland and her partner Marc Morgan chose Piggie as their foster, the bulldog’s nails were curling into his paw pads. “But the biggest, most shocking thing was his nose,” Haverland says. A compromised immune system left his nose raw and scabby, in regular need of topical medication.
Haverland and Morgan, who live in Midtown, had already successfully fostered three dogs for the city’s Front Street Animal Shelter. When the pandemic hit and shelters moved out as many animals as possible, “We thought it was great time to grab another foster,” she says. “It was a no-brainer when I saw his photo.”
Feb 28, 2023
A woman dangles from the ceiling, her skirt a giant parachute. Waves of fabric undulate through the room.
Two figures in snorkeling masks dance in tandem, suspended as though swimming in mid-air.
This is not an oceanic fever dream. It’s the work of Tony Nguyen and his company TwoPoint4 Dance Theater. The company is an innovative arts group that specializes in “vertical dance,” a medium that combines modern dance with rock climbing gear to create a unique experience.
The visuals described here are from “Fragmented Memories,” an immersive performance piece Nguyen and his company members created and performed in November 2019. They updated the work and performed it again in May 2022.
Feb 28, 2023
It might seem hard to imagine working until you’re age 87, but when you meet Mary Ellen Fort, who celebrated her 100th birthday in December, it’s easier to picture.
Though Fort loved her job at American River College, what she enjoyed most was that the work allowed her to help people. After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology and counseling at Sacramento State, Fort taught psychology at ARC.
Then she went into counseling and eventually helped develop the Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement and Minority Engineering Program, which became a national standard for helping minority students get into science, math and tech studies.
