Glenmeadow to Host First-Ever Arts Festival

 In Client Press Releases

Event is a fundraiser for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts

LONGMEADOW—Glenmeadow will host its first-ever Arts Festival on Saturday, Dec. 3 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Cotz Hall with vendors offering up their wares as well as demonstrations of their craft to a backdrop of live piano music.

“I wanted this event to not just be an arts and crafts show. I wanted it to be elevated to a different level, more cultural,” said Laura Lavoie, director of resident programs at the life plan community known for its holistic programs and community outreach.

She said presentations of artists’ work will range from painting in acrylics to beading to knitting, and pianist Adam Bergeron will play from 10 a.m. to noon.

The event is a fundraiser for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, the nonprofit Glenmeadow has chosen to support this year, raising over $5,000 thus far through various events.

Lavoie said artists at the festival will include staff members, a resident and a community member; all community members are welcome to take part. Tables are $25 for non-residents; vendors must agree to offer 10 percent of their proceeds, and a raffle prize, to benefit the Food Bank.

To sign up for a table, contact Lavoie by Nov. 23 at 413-355-5905.

Lavoie will be one of the staff members to host a table. She is a mixed media artist and will demonstrate the craft of inking, which she also has developed.

Debbie Padden, Glenmeadow’s fitness instructor who is also an artist will sell her work and offer a painting display, and employee George Depina will showcase the crafts he makes using parachute rope.

Illustrator Stuart Warshaw of Longmeadow will also take part. Other vendors include a beader and jeweler, a photographer and a resident knitter. Jams and jellies from the Glenmeadow store will also be on sale, along with canned items from a home garden.

To learn more about Glenmeadow and the history and offerings of its various programs, visit www.glenmeadow.org.

About Glenmeadow

In the 1800s, elderly individuals without family or means were sent to live at what was called “the poor farm.”  In 1884, a group of civic leaders raised funds among themselves and other area families and purchased a house on Main Street in Springfield’s south end. Quickly outgrowing that house, land was purchased on the corner of Chestnut and Carew streets, where a new home was constructed and opened in 1900.  In 1960, the name was changed to Chestnut Knoll, and in 1992, it began to admit men.

In 1993, the organization purchased a 23-acre parcel in Longmeadow to build a new community that would provide both independent living and assisted living in one building with various common areas. This was a new concept known as a continuing care retirement community.  Existing residents from the old Chestnut Knoll property were moved to the new campus in 1997.  Shortly after the move, the board voted to change its legal name to Glenmeadow to coincide with the name being used by the developer of the property.

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