Posted on May 20, 2010

It’s a new program that could very likely turn into a perennial.

U-Rebloom gathers flowers used at a variety of campus events and delivers them to local nursing homes, senior residences and hospice facilities.

Student volunteers travel with Kenney Center Director Angela Tatum, Dining Services Director of Operations Callie Stacey and Judith Gardner Ainlay, director of Special Institutional Relations, who conceived the idea.

“Students not only deliver flowers, but they also get to spend quality time with the residents,” said Tatum, who recounted “another fabulous day” at the Annie Schaffer Day Facility recently.

“Everyone was excited to see us,” she said. “We had the chance to learn about their families, former jobs, careers and spouses, and to see lots of family pictures. We witnessed one gentleman surprise his wife with the flowers when she came to pick him up.”

The Rebloom project may lead to another arrangement. On the bus ride back to campus from the nursing home, “We decided we want to do a new activity with the residents,” Tatum said, “since we heard that they’re bored with Bingo.” 

Posted on May 20, 2010

A boy and his mother painted a figurine at the Green House table. Three boys watched Lauren Randall '10 perform card tricks. Other children finger painted at the Alpha Delta Lambda booth or had their faces decorated by Jodi Schwartz '11 at the Sigma Delta Tau booth.

The Kenney Community Center hosted its 14th annual U-Care Day Carnival at Memorial Field House Sunday, with a variety of free crafts, games and other activities. Students representing Minerva and theme houses, clubs, organizations, fraternities and sororities organized more than 30 booths.

“We had bracelet making, a jump-rope competition, fishing for candy, a wishing well, chemistry demonstration, paper airplane making, cookie decorating, demonstrations of healthy eating and much more,” said Cybil Tribié ’11, who organized the event with Zoraly Molina '13. Co-sponsors were the President's Office and Fidelis, with donations from Stewarts Ice Cream, Price Chopper and the Union College Bookstore. 

Bridget Little ’11 showed children how to make a small car using straws, life savers and thin paper. The Union chapter of the Society of Women Engineers participates every year. “We love teaching the kids how to build things to pique their interest,” Little said.

The Union Community Action Reaching Everyone (U-Care) program helps connect undergraduates with community organizations and volunteer services. U-Care Day allows student groups and local families to celebrate their accomplishments.

“The carnival is a great way to get college students involved in the community, while offering a day of fun for residents,” Tribié said.

Posted on May 19, 2010

By Elizabeth Lehmann ’12

The Department of Theatre and Dance will present Brian Friel’s “Dancing at Lughnasa” Wednesday, May 26 through Saturday, May 29 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, May 30 at 2 p.m.

This dramatic memory play, loosely based on Friel’s family, is told from the point of view of Michael Evans. He looks back on his childhood in Donegal, Ireland in August 1936, when he was seven and being raised by his mother and four aunts, the Mundy sisters.  

The story takes place during the Festival of Lughnasa, an ecstatic Dionysian ritual with dancing and drunken revelry that celebrates the feast day of the pagan god, Lugh, a time of welcoming the harvest.

“This drama is about unfolding the past,” said Rachel Feingold ’12, who plays one of the sisters, Agnes. “The audience immediately finds out about the character’s fate.”

“This story is beautiful and profound in many ways,” said guest director Tim Dugan, a professional actor and theater teacher at the John Sayles School of Fine Arts at Schenectady High School.

“The challenge for us as storytellers is to bring as much authenticity to the play as we can,” he added. “That means the actors need to work on a consistent, truthful Irish dialect.” To achieve this, the actors have been receiving voice coaching from Artist-in-Residence Patricia Culbert.

The set, by Resident Scenic Designer Charles Steckler, is a traditional Irish cottage of the 1930s.

“Live Irish music is being played as you enter the theater, so we hope one feels transported back to a different time and to a special place,” Dugan said.

Choreography is by guest artist Rosemary Campbell and Kristin O'Connor ’13. Other students in the play include Bart Tomaszewski ’10, Shannon Vandawalker ’11, Sophie Hewitt ’11, Ryan Semerad ’13, Chris Paine ’12, Annora Vrennan ’11 and Maisy Bragg ’12.

Tickets are available at the Box Office in Yulman Theater. Call 388-6545 for more information or to reserve tickets.

Posted on May 18, 2010

Howie Franklin, the only flight steward to serve five U.S. presidents aboard Air Force One, will speak Wednesday, May 26 at 7 p.m. in Olin Auditorium.

The talk is free and open to the public.

Franklin will talk about his background and his experiences working for presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush and Clinton. He spent 24 years at Andrews Air Force Base, the last 18 of which he spent aboard Air Force One serving as flight steward.

“He survived a lot of administrations because he gave good service with a smile, he was dedicated and trustworthy, he did his job without criticism and without complaint,” said Marlin Fitzwater, former press secretary to Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

Franklin is vice president of the North Carolina Aviation Association and the director of Brunswick County Airport in southeastern North Carolina.

The talk is sponsored by Zeta Upsilon chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha and Beuth House.

Posted on May 17, 2010

Two students have received Union College funding for community service internships awards at non-profits this summer.

Meghan Hartnett ’11, a political science major, will work at School on Wheels in Los Angeles, where she will tutor homeless middle and high school children. She will also reach out to disconnected young people through homeless shelters, motels and food banks.

“With the odds piled high against them, I want to remind them of the importance of their education, helping them to see that the possibilities are endless,” said Hartnett. "I want them to learn to define themselves, rather than let their circumstances define them. Education is an invaluable asset to one’s hope and chance for a successful and stable life.”

This endowed internship is supported by the Class of 1973 in honor of its 35th Class Reunion.

Shalini Singaravelu’12, a biology and anthropology major in the Leadership in Medicine Program, will be a resident care intern at the Joan Nicole Prince Home in Scotia, N.Y.

Working with volunteers and hospice nurses, she will provide direct patient care for the home’s two terminally ill patients and also offer ongoing emotional support to patients and families.

“I hope that with my positive outlook on life and fun-loving personality, I can aid in alleviating some of their stress and anxiety,” Singaravelu said. She also hopes to strengthen the connection between the Joan Nicole Prince Home and other Union students interested in providing community service in the Capital Region.

Her award comes courtesy of the Roger H. Hull Summer Community Service Internship, an endowed fund supported by the Board of Trustees.