A special thanks to the Methow Valley Community Center staff, Dawn at the Library, and other regular occupants of the center who welcomed and managed the crowds of wild children infiltrating the building with the many summer camps and programs running over the past summer weeks.
Wrapping up a week of musical immersion, the Pipestone Music Camp led by Pam Hunt held an impressive and moving performance of orchestral pieces Friday afternoon. Fourth-grader Wiley Smith’s high-pitched cry of terror added dramatic effect to a dark and spooky ensemble entitled “Resin Eating Zombies.” Leaving spectators spooked for days, her shrieks of terror stunned listeners and rumor has it her cries are still echoing the halls of the center. Other more traditional chamber pieces were performed by soloists and orchestral students who regularly participate in the Pipestone children’s orchestra.
Right outside the Community Center, a freakishly friendly creature appeared in the sandbox of the Twisp Commons last week. The large jackalope-like figure, carpeted in a collage of multi-colored paper, was one of the many creations made by this year’s Confluence Art campers. Confluence Gallery’s “Art in the Wild” day camp ran for four weeks, allowing hundreds of little fingers to get creative this summer.
For parents with tweens 11 – 14, this age group is particularly difficult to accommodate with summer programs and activities because they aren’t quite old enough for summer jobs and many of the camps attract younger kids. Thankfully, the Art in the Wild camp offered volunteer programs for kids aged 13 – 18 to help with the camps — what a brilliant idea.
The Community Center will settle back into some normalcy now that the Art in the Wild camps are over, but some changes are afoot.
The basement of the Community Center is the new home to the Methow Salmon Recovery Foundation (MSRF), which has moved from its current location in the River Bank building on Glover Street. The River Bank housed the MSRF for nearly a decade in a cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation. The bureau vacated the Glover Street premise with the retirement of Jennifer Molesworth earlier this year, leaving the MSRF in limbo. The basement of Community Center has been vacant for the past year with the dissolution of the Community School. With some minor renovations, it will hopefully be a suitable space for the fish-loving folk.
Street work to improve the paving along Canyon Street continues in the heart of town, so get those rollerblades, skateboards and scooters out before the winter gravel gets laid down. The resurfacing will give the new the Methow Housing Trust’s residents a smooth ride to Hank’s Harvest Foods as soon as the paving is done.
Phase II of the Housing Trust Canyon Street project is underway, building four homes this season and another four homes next year, to bring the total to 14. The first six homes were finished this spring and five out of six new homes are occupied. That’s 14 new affordable homes in the center of town.
The lost and found at the Wagner Memorial Pool is piling up. Water bottles, towels, T-shirts, goggles and flip flops are among the lot. Stop in if you are a pool visitor, cool off, and check the bin for your lost belongings!
