September 2021

ARTS & CULTURE | COMMUNITY | PHILANTHROPY

SEPT 2021 FOCUS ON

Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial MUST•SEE

fall performing arts

NEW COLUMN

by Polly Campbell

JMR

makes a case for the ‘good stuff’

Pops conductor John Morris Russell

INCREDIBLE ESTATE HOMES JULIE K. BACK IS THE LUXURY HOME LEADER CUNNINGHAM – INDIAN HILL

WILLOW HILLS – INDIAN HILL

23-acre Kroger estate. Exquisite luxury inside and out. Stately, updated, expansive rooms.

Patio. Gardens. Pool/Pool house. 12-stall horse barn/arenas. Access to Indian Hill Riding Trails.

Vista views of the Little Miami Valley. Luxury details inside and out. Modern, elegant kitchen and stately rooms. Incredible bar room and study/loft. Glorious pool. Private. Stunning!

$5,900,000

$4,500,000

JULIE K. BACK, THE PROVEN LEADER

513-607-3850

www.sibcycline.com/jback #1 AGENT in OHIO (4 YEARS IN A ROW)

#1 AGENT in CINCINNATI (6 YEARS IN A ROW)

#1 AGENT at SIBCY CLINE (10 YEARS IN A ROW)

10 YEARS

SIBCY CLINE'S # 1 A G E N T

MLS Greater Cincinnati compilation of broker members 01/01/15–12/31/20.

CARB Circle of Excellence 2015-20. Ohio Realtors® President's Sales Club 2017–2020.

Informed. Inspired. Involved.

Movers&Makers September 2021

MoversMakers.org

Publishers’ Letter 4 Arts/Culture 6 Photos of a ‘reimagined’ America at Kennedy Heights 6 Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame honors local greats 8 FotoFocus takes long view with ‘Telephotography’ 8 MUST-SEE fall arts picks | By Thomas Consolo 10 The A/C List: Music, theater, visual art and more 14 Cover story: Pops conductor makes case for the ‘good stuff’ | By David Lyman 20

The Datebook 22 Action Auction adds tribute to Dr. O’dell Owens 22 Tee off at Topgolf for two organizations 23 Run-walk-bike event to aid Parkinson’s research 24 Gala honors Rev. Damon, Barbara Lynch 25 Bust a Crust! opens with ‘Pie-K’ walk/run 26 1N5 Warrior Run supports kids’ mental health 29 Business Hall of Fame inductees to be honored 30

Names in the News 31 FOCUS ON:

Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial 32 Leaders’ perspectives on community’s past, future 32 Milestones of the Jewish community: A timeline 38

Gifts/Grants 42 Snapshots 44 Golf outing scores for SVDP’s Charitable Pharmacy 44 West Side’s Braille Ale brew helps support CABVI 45 It’s a party in Price Hill as ARCO venue is unveiled 47 Bourbon & Blessings raises funds for food-rescue 48

Fine art photography

Furniture Bank hits the fairways in drive for funds 49 Irish group celebrates St. Patrick’s Day – in July! 49

Guest column 50 Reflections on the ‘good-deed doers’ of Cincinnati | By Polly Campbell

On the cover: John Morris Russell, by Tina Gutierrez for Movers & Makers.

Thank you to the Summit Hotel for hosting the photo shoot.

Tina Gutierrez Arts Photography tinagutierrezartsphotography.com tinagutierrezarts.photoshelter.com/portfolio tinagutierrez8@gmail.com | 513.446.1903

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

3

PUBLISHERS’ LETTER

Renewal and resilience is all around us

W

hile it is the official theme of the Jewish Bicentennial being celebrated in 2021, “Renewal and Resilience” could apply to almost every aspect of our September magazine.

Take the performing arts. They were almost completely shut down by the pandemic. Indeed, few professions suffered more negative impact on their livelihoods. Yet we can see on the horizon plans for a return to semi-normalcy. And we sincerely hope those plans come to fruition, for everyone’s sake and sanity. Our longtime friend and colleague Thomas Consolo, PR maven by day and violinist by night, returns with an autumn version of our weekly Culture FIX column, giving us a glimpse of some of the best performances coming in September, October and November, in dance, music and

Elizabeth & Thom Mariner, co-publishers

theater. See page 10.

The Cincinnati Symphony and Pops are certainly among those displaying resilience and renewal this fall. The CSO is launching its new season with two weekends of new music, something almost unheard of in orchestral circles. And the rest of their season is both ambitious and compelling. JMR and the Pops are smack in the middle of that creativity. John Morris Russell, as he is formally known, is celebrating a couple of local milestones this season. He and David Lyman met for a conversation about the role of the orchestra in 21st century Cincinnati, and the changing landscape of orchestral music. See page 20. And we need to give a shoutout to the Summit Hotel in Madisonville for graciously hosting our photo shoot with JMR, led by the intrepid and creative Tina Gutierrez. According to Tina, John was an enthusiastic subject and had only one request – no red jacket!

In 1821, the first death of a Jewish person in Cincinnati gave

Publishing schedule Issue

Deadline Available

www.MoversMakers.org

OCTOBER

Sept. 3

Sept. 29

Social media:

NOVEMBER

Oct. 1

Oct. 27

DEC ’21/JAN ’22

Oct. 29

Nov. 23

Digital edition & daily posts

@moversmakerscincinnati @moversmakerscin Movers & Makers Magazine

www.moversmakers.org/publishing-schedule

@moversmakers Advertising & distribution Thom Mariner, 513-543-0890 or tmariner@moversmakers.org Creative & accounting Elizabeth Mariner, 513-771-5088 or emariner@moversmakers.org Editorial/calendar submissions: editor@moversmakers.org Free direct mail subscriptions and email newsletter sign up www.moversmakers.org/subscribe

4

SEPTEMBER 2021

© Copyright 2021 Movers & Makers Publishing We make every effort to verify information submitted for publication (print and online), but are not responsible for incorrect information or misidentified photos provided to us.

Readers are advised to confirm event dates and other important details and check for last-minute changes with the organizations or advertisers involved.

Publication of this magazine and its website (www.MoversMakers.org) does not necessarily constitute an endorsement of any information contained within, including advertisements and links.

Movers & Makers Publishing is a nonprofit with fiscal sponsorship provided by Inspiring Service.

Movers & Makers

birth to an impressive 200-year timeline of contributions and achievement across our region. As Jews celebrate this auspicious anniversary, let us honor their legacy to the Queen City.

In 1986 (at age 32), I was hired to sing as part of an octet for the High Holy Days services at Rockdale Temple in Amberley Village. Having been raised in the Presbyterian church in a small rural town, this was my first experience in Jewish worship or with its music. A few years later, I was asked to become music director, and a lucky 13 years into my association with the temple, Elizabeth and I were married in the Rockdale chapel, under the harvest sukka, by Rabbi Mark Goldman – only the second all-Gentile ceremony he had officiated up to that time. This month marks my 35th year singing for Rockdale services, so it is with great pride that we at M&M pay tribute to what the Jewish people have brought to and created in Cincinnati. Thanks to the Jewish Federation, the Mayerson JCC, Hebrew Union College, Jewish Cemeteries, the ish Festival and others for their generous cooperation in helping us create this special appreciation, which begins on page 32. In addition to an extensive timeline – pulled together by Elizabeth Mariner, with assistance from the American Jewish Archives at HUC – we are featuring nine individuals spearheading the celebration this year. Thanks to Katie Fiorelli for coordinating those interviews.

Polly Campbell. Does your mouth start watering just reading her name? Keep in mind that the key to that reaction is the words Polly employed, while Cincinnati Enquirer food critic, in making the experience of eating so

salivating. She thinks we have some pretty tasty topics to tackle, too, so she begins this month sharing her perspective on the world of nonprofits, philanthropy and dogooders. In June, my Cincinnati Cares colleague, Katie Fiorelli, and I met with Polly to explore this idea. Polly seemed interested, but asked to mull it over during a cross-country drive out West. How she came to her final decision is the subject of her first column, on page 50. (Spoiler: She said “Yes.”) Please welcome Polly, as we welcome this autumn season. And thank you for your contributions to the renewal and resilience of the hundreds of nonprofit organizations M&M promotes each year.

Without them, Cincinnati would be a much less vibrant and interesting city.

Thanks for bringing M&M into your households. L’shana tova!

(Happy New Year!)

Thom & Elizabeth Mariner, co-publishers, Movers & Makers

For their work on this issue, our gratitude to: • Ray Cooklis, managing editor • Phil Fisher, copy editor • The volunteers who helped write, edit and proofread: Shasta Taber, Madeline Anderson, Madeline Leesman, William Dinnen, Grace Hill, Nyla Boney, Carmen Lawrence-Bille, Arjun Verma, Tamara Behrens and Nita Douglas • Our interns: Kathryn Puskas, Emma Segrest and Katie Wenzel • Our Cincinnati Cares colleagues: Doug Bolton, Katie Fiorelli and Carol Rountree • Inspiring Service, our fiscal sponsor

5

Hosted by Christ Church Cathedral

CONCERT FOR THE

Human Family SUNDAY, SEPT. 26 AT 5:30 PM

Pianist, Composer, & Musical Director, KORY CAUDILL

&

Hip-hop Artist, WORDSMITH

Join us for an inspiring collaborative between award-winning musicians and church leaders who believe in the power of music and storytelling to foster Beloved Community.

Experience genre-bending original music that bridges jazz, hip-hop and bluegrass, woven with sacred stories to launch conversation around justice in our communities.

Please visit our website for COVID guidelines on gathering for this and other cathedral events.

For tickets and more information visit https://cincinnaticathedral.com or call 513-621-1817.

Sponsored by

Supported by

Arts/Culture ‘America Reimagined’ opening at Kennedy Heights Art Center Sept. 4-Oct. 30, Kennedy Heights Art Center, 6546 Montgomery Road The group photography exhibition “America Reimagined” will be displayed at the Kennedy Heights Art Center.

The show documents changes in American daily life over 2020 and beyond, responding to COVID-19 and ongoing social justice battles.

With this exhibition, nonprofit arts and journalism program Boyd’s Station and its partner

American Reportage intend to support emerging photojournalists.

Under the curation of Boyd’s Station adviser Michael E. Keating, America Reimagined features 76 photographs and four photographic essays from across the United States.

“It is exciting to give voice to student photojournalists nationwide who responded to our call to action in creating this document,” Keating said.  www.kennedyarts.org

Jared Adams, 19, sits on the steps across the Capitol during the protest demanding justice for the death of unarmed black people in Washington, D.C, on May 29, 2020. Photograph by Akash Pamarthy (Washington, D.C.)

Neighbors gather and listen to Cellist Jodi Beder while she holds her daily 30-minute concert during COVID-19. Photograph by Rod Lamkey Jr. (Alexandria, VA) / American Reportage

Manifest Gallery announces art prizes, readies new season Fiber artist Teresa Nieberding

“Rhino” by Teresa Nieberding

Fiber artist captures beauty in nature with exhibit at The Barn Sept. 23-Oct. 6, The Barn, 6980 Cambridge Ave., Mariemont The Woman’s Art Club of Cincinnati showcases local artist Teresa Nieberding’s “Walk on the Wild Side” in a two-week exhibition at The Barn.

The show features 80 works of whimsical mixed-media fiber art, capturing the distinct personalities of the animals. Nieberding’s works 6

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

depicting endangered and extinct species will feature prominently.

In partnership with CREW and the Cincinnati Zoo, the venue will host a gallery talk discussing conservation efforts Sunday, Sept. 26.

The artist’s reception is 1-4 p.m.

Sept. 24, and Nieberding will give a gallery talk 6:30 p.m. Sept. 28.

Admission is free, though donations are accepted.  www.artatthebarn.org

Manifest Gallery has awarded its fourth annual Grand Jury Prize for its recently completed Season 16 to Jessica Teckemeyer of Stillwater, Okla.

The season’s exhibitions in Manifest’s East Walnut Hills spaces presented 471 works by 336 artists between September 2019 and August 2020. The finalists were determined by their ranking in their respective exhibition juries. The prize pool included 53 finalist works by 50 artists.

Teckemeyer won the $2,500 prize for her sculpture

“Fox or Foe” in the group exhibition “Monsters.”

Manifest also announced the recipients of this year’s artist residency awards, Ed Erdmann of Winona, Minn., and Shelby Shadwell of Laramie, Wyo., with the appointment of Hanna Sosin of Franklin, Mich., to the Scholar in Residence Program. Their work is on exhibit at Manifest.

Season 17 concludes Sept. 10.

Season 18 begins at the gallery Sept. 24, with exhibitions to be announced.  www.manifestgallery.org

“Fox or Foe”

by Jessica Teckemeyer

ARTS/CULTURE

Dr. Barry Bittman

Jillian Rogers

Music & Medicine Conference makes virtual return for 2021 Wednesday, Sept. 29, 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m., virtual The Cincinnati Music & Wellness Coalition presents its 10th annual Music & Medicine Conference with a virtual lineup of guest speakers and panel discussions.

Dr. Barry Bittman, neurologist and CEO of the Yamaha Music & Wellness Institute, will speak on “Evolving communities through creative musical expression.” Jillian Rogers, assistant

professor at Indiana University, will address trauma and the use of music.

A panel will discuss results from a research study done with older Bhutanese refugees, followed by interactive, evidencebased music-making sessions.

The final presenter, a physician and researcher from the Ohio State University College of Medicine, will talk about new programs and innovations.

Registration: $90  www.musicandwellness.net

Jo-Ann Caudill at her Boldweaver Basket booth

Music, art and fun to fill Pyramid Hill Saturday, Sept. 25, 11 a.m-8 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 26, 11 a.m-4 p.m., 1763 Hamilton Cleves Road The 19th Annual Pyramid Hill Art & Music Festival features live music, children’s activities, and free admission to the Ancient Sculpture Museum. Attendees may also enjoy the sale of crafts and artwork by local vendors.

Several food and music favorites will also be present throughout the

weekend, including performances featuring the Butler Philharmonic Orchestra, sponsored by the Wilks Family Foundation. Other performances will be programmed by 3rd Street Music.

This event will include a cash bar, silent auction and the opportunity to tour the Pyramid House.

General admission is $8 for adults and $3 for children.  www.pyramidhill.org

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

7

ARTS/CULTURE

Jazz Hall of Fame to honor local greats Sunday, Oct. 3, 3-5 p.m., Mount St. Joseph University Theatre Nick Clooney will emcee the 2021 Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame Annual Induction Ceremony and concert.

Music will be performed by the Blue Wisp Big Band and students in the “Jazz at Dusk” series, the CJHOF’s high school jazz program.

2021’s inductees include Bill Cunliffe, Larry Dickson, Pat Kelley, George Russell and Lou Lausche, as well as the jazz duo of Don Steins and Paul Hawthorne.

The ceremony will also acknowledge the 2020 and 2021 scholarship recipients: Jennifer Armor, Edgar

Byars, Jack Early, Sean Butkovich, Park Dendy, Jackson Hacias, Chaya Jones, Victor Madelaine and Alex Merk.

The CJHOF is a nonprofit founded to honor Cincinnati’s jazz scene, recognizing talents and Nick Clooney distributing scholarships to high school students.

Tickets can be purchased online for $25 plus service fee. The doors open at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $30 at the door.  1-800-838-3006 or www.brownpapertickets.com, Search event name

David van der Leer

Kevin Schmidt

Dieu-Nalio Chery

Moyra Davey

Jason Hill

Photo: Lipa Ri Ri Photo

Photo: Marco Ugarte, AP Photo

Photo: Holly Ward

Photo: Gene Pittman, Walker Art Center

Corey Keller

Photo: Lisa Cherkerzian

Photo: Valerie Baeriswyl

Photo: Marcus Morris

Photo: Don Ross, Courtesy of SFMOMA

Clockwise from top left: Lou Lausche, bassist and violinist; Pat Kelly, pianist and bandleader; Bill Cunliffe, pianist; Don Steins and Paul Hawthorne, jazz duo; Larry Dickson, saxophonist. Center: George Russell, pianist

Rebecca Blackwell

Kasey Shao

Diana Vargas

FotoFocus presents fall symposium Saturday-Sunday, Oct 9-10, virtual FotoFocus’ fall symposium is free to the public. The symposium features lectures and panel discussions from international artists, curators, photojournalists and educators on the topic of telephotography. Sessions explore both the electronic circulation of photographs and the technique of photographing distant objects.

The symposium includes a new daytime film program on Oct. 10 8

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

with film screenings and conversations with filmmakers at Memorial Hall.

Speakers include Corey Keller, David van der Leer, Dieu-Nalio Chery, Jason Hill, Kevin Schmidt, Moyra Davey and Rebecca Blackwell. Curator is Diana Vargas.

FotoFocus is a Cincinnatibased nonprofit that champions photography and lens-based art through exhibitions and public programming.  www.fotofocus.org

Local student pianist honored by MacDowell Society Walnut Hills alumna Kasey Shao is this year’s biennial Artist Grant recipient from Cincinnati’s local chapter of the MacDowell Society.

Founded in Connecticut in 1913, the MacDowell Society honors the acclaimed American composer Edward MacDowell.

The local chapter selects a promising young artist every other year from a variety of artistic disciplines. The $5,000 grant

is intended to support Shao’s growth as an artist.

Shao made her concerto debut at age 12 with the Philadelphia Orchestra. She has 13 first-place finishes to her name in junior competition. A cum laude graduate of Walnut Hills, she plans to attend Princeton University in the fall, where she intends to major in composition and continue piano studies.  www.macdowellsociety.com

Make Memories with Matinée Musicale

2021–2022 Our Featured Artists

All recitals, except where indicated, are at Memorial Hall OTR. Safety protocols will be observed.

WindSync

Albert Cano Smit

WIND QUINTET

Nicole Cabell

Oct. 3, 2021 3 PM “Savvy, Smarts & Sass” — Arts and Culture

UPDATE!

Nov. 21, 2021 3 PM

“…brilliance, precision, and interpretative maturity…”

— Revista Musical Catalan

SOPRANO

Photo: Devon Cass

PIANO

Jan. 30, 2022 3 PM

“Rich voice, full of colour” — Forum Opéra

Zlatomir Fung

Ryan Speedo Green BASS-BARITONE

VIOLIN

Mar. 6, 2022 3 PM

Mar. 27, 2022 3 PM

Apr. 3, 2022 3 PM

CELLO

“He created his own musical mosaic” — Benicia Herald

Rachel Barton Pine

First Unitarian Church 536 Linton Street

“Fully ready for a big career” — Anne Midgette, Washington Post

“…in the top echelon” — Washington Post

4 or 6 Recital Subscriptions Available Now Single Tickets Available August 17 Memorial Hall Box Office: 513-977-8838

www.matineemusicalecincinnati.org Visit us on Facebook.

MUST•SEE ARTS/CULTURE

fall performing arts

Reader version for devices

F

ew professions were so directly affected by the coronavirus pandemic as the performing arts. Measures to slow the spread of the virus struck at the heart of these groups’ collective mission – to bring people together, literally, to share experiences that could feed our spirit. It was a cruel irony that these

MUSIC by Thomas Consolo

groups had to pause their work just when our spirits so needed an extra helping of food.

We’re not yet back to “normal,” of course, but this fall is looking more familiar as many groups return to full-capacity, in-person performances.

Many seasons are starting later and are weighted more toward the end of the year. Nevertheless,

there’s no scrimping on the product, and there’s plenty that qualifies for don’t-miss classification.

Just in case, double-check nearer the date to confirm that these events with these artists are still on the bill.

Don’t miss  Matinee Musicale: WindSync Bigger isn’t always better in music, as Cincinnati’s vibrant chamber music presenters have shown us for years. The first program of Matinée Musicale’s season welcomes this innovative, award-winning wind quintet whose hallmark is playing from memory to help break the “fourth wall” between performer and audience.  Oct. 3, 3 p.m., Memorial Hall; www.matineemusicalecincinnati.org WindSync

Don’t miss Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Many organizations starting back up post-pandemic are playing it safe with programming, offering up friendly warhorses to lure audiences back. Not the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, which instead shows it intends to continue to be a dynamic and relevant part of contemporary culture.

There’s plenty of Beethoven, Brahms, Mahler and Mendelssohn to come this season, but take a look at these bold season-opening statements:

 MusicNow at the CSO It’s been 15 years since Bryce Dessner – composer and guitarist in the band, The National – founded a contemporary music festival in Cincinnati, his hometown.

Since 2014, the CSO has been an integral artistic partner, and that interconnection is on full display with four performances in one weekend.

Collaborating with the CSO are indie-folk group Bonny Light Horseman, pianist Daniil Trifonov, the Erika Dohi Trio and Sō Percussion. They’ll Daniil Trifonov perform in various combinations, large and small, over the course of Friday and Saturday evenings. The programs include everything from music by Baroque master Jean-Baptiste Lully to two Beethoven piano concertos (Trifonov), Dohi’s genre-blending quasi-improvised work, new orchestrations by Dessner and his 2015 composition, “Quilting.” The 7:30 p.m. concerts with the CSO are in Springer Auditorium; the more clublike, post-concert shows each evening are in the second-floor Wilks Studio.  Sept 24 & 25, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., Music Hall; www.musicnowfestival.org 10

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

 CSO and JCC: Matthias Pintscher Composer and conductor Matthias Pintscher begins his threeyear stint as the CSO’s creative partner with an emphasis on contemporary music. He’s served since 2013 as music director of the Ensemble Intercontemporain, the legendary Paris-based new music group founded by Pierre Boulez, which is to say he knows his stuff. This year, Pintscher leads two programs over a weekend, both featuring the Ensemble and the music of Austrian composer Olga Neuwirth.

Friday’s more traditional concert includes Neuwirth’s flute concerto, music by Pintscher himself, “NUR,” and Scriabin’s then-avantgarde (“then” being about 1908) Symphony No. 4, the “Poem of Ecstasy.”  Oct. 1, 7:30 p.m., Music Hall; www.cincinnatisymphony.org

Matthias Pintscher

The next day, in Amberley Village, Pintscher leads a live performance of Neuwirth’s new score to accompany Hans Karl Breslauer’s 1924 prescient, silent film, “Die Stadt Ohne Juden” (The City Without Jews). Meant as a cutting satire of antisemitism in Austria and Germany after World War I, the National Socialists took the film more as a how-to guide. From the perspective of about 80 years since the Holocaust, Neuwirth’s score is understandably more pained than Breslauer could have imagined. This live presentation, in the JCC auditorium, is part of the Jewish Bicentennial.  Oct 2, 7:30 p.m., Mayerson JCC; www.cincinnatisymphony.org

ARTS/CULTURE

Don’t miss  Kentucky Symphony Orchestra: ‘Psalms Sung Blue’

CCJO at the Redmoor

Don’t miss  Cincinnati Contemporary Jazz Orchestra: ‘Reunited Celebration’ A running theme with several events this season is a deep appreciation that they’re happening at all. That’s the case with the Cincinnati Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, which marks its return to the Redmoor, site of the group’s big band shows, with vocalist Mandy Gaines. The band, under artistic director Eric Lechliter, also premieres a newly commissioned musical suite for the occasion.  Oct. 21, 7 p.m., The Redmoor; www.cincinnatijazz.org

The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra is embarking on its 30th season, which should solidify its status as a lasting, serious member of the region’s artistic community. The November concert, dubbed “Psalms Sung Blue” – a trademark KSO pop culture callout – is a collaboration with St. Peter in Chains Cathedral Basilica and features the cathedral’s own choir, which can stake a reasonable claim to being the finest in the region. James Cassidy conducts.

Keystone is Handel’s “Dixit KSO at St. Peter in Chains Dominus,” among the most challenging choral pieces in the repertoire. For contrast, the program also includes the ultra-Romantic (and underperformed) setting of Psalm 23 by Zemlinsky and Bruckner’s Psalm 150.  Nov. 13, 7:30 p.m., St. Peter in Chains Cathedral Basilica; www.kyso.org

Runners up  KSO: ‘The New Bs’ The KSO gave its first performance in 1992, the year Greaves Hall opened at Northern Kentucky University. Music Director James Cassidy, who led that first show, is still at the helm for his 30th season-opener with the group. In previous years, the orchestra tackled the “Three Bs” (Bach, Beethoven and Brahms), then the “Killer Bs” (Barber, Bartok and Berg).

Now it’s the “New Bs.” On tap are a Tristate premiere, Peter Boyer’s “New Beginnings”; a Midwest premiere, Mason Bates’s “The Art of War” for orchestra and electronica; and a 20th-century orchestral showpiece, Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra.  Oct. 6, 7:30 p.m., Greaves Hall; kyso.org

 Cincinnati Contemporary Jazz Orchestra: ‘Time Out’ The other half of October’s seasonopening week is the first in the CCJO’s Sunday afternoon Jazz@First series.

Rick VanMatre joins the Phil DeGreg Trio for a look at the career of Dave Brubeck. As you probably guessed from the title, Brubeck’s landmark, metermixing album “Time Out” will be well represented. Oct. 24, 2 p.m., First Unitarian Church; www.cincinnatijazz.org

 Cincinnati Pops: ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ Like the song says, this is Halloween. In 1993, two years before Pixar revolutionized computerized animation with “Toy Story,” Tim Burton pushed the envelope of stop-action animation with a dark-comic (what else?) cautionary tale of what can happen when holidays become jumbled.

Besides being a visual tour de force – just the opening sequence is worth the price of admission – it’s a through-composed musical, with a pictureperfect orchestral score and touching lyrics by Danny Elfman. Elfman also provided the voice of Jack Skellington, Halloween Town’s pumpkin king, whose crisis of purpose sets the action in motion. Experiencing this film with the score performed live is a great treat – I’ve played it, and it was a hit with orchestra and audience alike – so round up the family and head to Over-the-Rhine as Christopher Dragon leads the Cincinnati Pops live to accompany the film.

 Oct. 23, 7:30 p.m., and Oct. 24, 2 p.m.; Music Hall; www.cincinnatisymphony.org

Rick VanMatre

Just in As presenting organizations feel their way toward fall, we continue to receive new season announcements, including Chamber Music Cincinnati, the Xavier Music Series and Young Professionals Choral Collective, which arrived just as we went to press.

Check out their websites for details.  www.cincychamber.org  www.xavier.edu/musicseries  www.ypccsing.org

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

11

MUST•SEE ARTS/CULTURE

fall performing arts

STAGE by Thomas Consolo

Reader version for devices

Don’t miss  Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati: ‘Pipeline’

Runners up  Know Theatre: ‘The Guys’

Dominique

Morisseau Plenty of organizations are symbolically picking up where they left off when the pandemic broke. Ensemble Theatre is taking that concept more literally. Dominique Morisseau’s “Pipeline” had just opened in March 2020 when the world closed down. With the investment in the production already made and its still-timely message, why not give the work its due? Why not, indeed.

“Pipeline” tells the story of Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher who is committed to her students. She’s also desperate to give her son, Omari, opportunities she knows her students won’t have. When a controversial incident at his upstate private school threatens to get him expelled, she must confront his rage and her own choices as a parent. It’s a compelling portrait of parenthood, education and the experience of young Black men in America.  Sept. 22-Oct. 16, Ensemble Theatre; www.ensemblecincinnati.org

Don’t miss  Playhouse in the Park: ‘The West End’

Keith

Josef Undoubtedly this season’s biggest deal in the local theater scene Adkins is Playhouse’s season opener. It’s another world premiere by Keith Josef Adkins – a bona fide Queen City scion. He’s a 1983 Princeton grad and now a New York-based veteran playwright and television screenwriter. In 2014, the Playhouse premiered his “Safe House,” which addresses the challenges facing free Blacks in Kentucky before the Civil War, inspired by Adkins’ research into his family’s history.

If PiP’s decision to mount “Safe House” in its larger Marx Theatre was somewhat of a risk, the run’s (big) success made a follow-up collaboration on a new work a no-brainer. A few years and a pandemic later, the result is “The West End,” a story set in the namesake Cincinnati neighborhood in 1941. The play follows Grace, who houses African Americans migrating from the Deep South and German residents facing growing hostility on the brink of World War II. When a stranger arrives in the middle of the night in her backyard, Grace must confront the secrets of her past and the irrevocable ripples they have made on her present.  Oct. 9-Nov. 7, Playhouse in the Park; www.cincyplay.com

Don’t miss  Cincinnati Ballet: ‘New Works’

Heather Britt

It’s not unusual for us to tout Cincinnati Ballet’s annual “New Works” program as a best bet. It’s often been sold out because of being staged at the Aronoff Center’s smaller Jarson-Kaplan Theater. If you’ve been thwarted before, this is your year. The ballet is giving its new works a breath of fresh air – in this case at Eden Park’s Seasongood Pavilion. In a big leap of faith, all six performances Thursday-Sunday will be outdoors, and – best of all – free.

These pieces are so new, almost all are still TBA according to the ballet’s website. What we can tell you is that the program will feature world premieres from Heather Britt and three of the home team’s dancers: Melissa Gelfin De-Poli, Daniel Baldwin and Taylor Carrasco. “Sit,” by the company’s resident choreographer, Jennifer Archibald, is back for a second look.

This season is Victoria Morgan’s 25th and final year as artistic director, and the company moves into its new home, conveniently just across Gilbert Avenue and down a long flight of stairs from Seasongood Pavilion. To celebrate, as the song says, “Everybody dance now.”  Sept. 23-26, multiple times, Seasongood Pavilion; www.cballet.org 12

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Hard to believe it’s been 20 years since that bright, blue morning when two hijacked commercial airliners were flown into the twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center. If you were around, you remember where you were. (I was in the Cincinnati Post newsroom.) As with many tragedies, the greater challenge for many isn’t the immediate loss but survivors trying to cope. That lies at the heart of Anne Nelson’s “The Guys,” in which an editor helps a New York City Fire Department captain write eulogies for the teammates he lost in the towers.  Sept. 10-26, Know Theatre; www.knowtheatre.com

 Cincinnati Ballet: ‘King Arthur’s Camelot’ As part of Victoria Morgan’s victorylap valedictory year, Cincinnati Ballet is reviving “King Arthur’s Camelot,” a 2014 commission for the company’s 50th anniversary with music by Canadian John Estacio and choreography by … you guessed it, Victoria Morgan. It’s a chance to see Morgan’s impact on the region’s premier professional dance company in microcosm, and a great farewell present both from and to her. Better yet, you’ve got five chances over three days to catch it.  Nov. 5-7, various times, Music Hall; www.cballet.org

 Broadway Cincinnati: ‘Wicked’ The Great White Way in New York is slowly turning lights on again, so no surprise that touring Broadway productions are coming back to life, too. The Broadway Cincinnati series heats up November with a return run of “Wicked,” the blockbuster 2003 gravity-defying adaptation of Gregory Maguire’s revisionist take on Frank Baum’s stories of Oz. Time to find out if, after the pandemic, we really have been changed … for good. Nov. 17-Dec. 5, Aronoff Center; www.cincinnati.broadway.com

2021–2022 SEASON

“Music is a meeting place at which all people can converse.”

Jesse Montgomery violinist and composer

HARLEM QUARTET

THALEA STRING QUARTET

Sunday, October 17, 2021 • 4:00 PM Corinthian Baptist Church Tuesday, October 19, 2021 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall

Sunday, November 21, 2021 • 4:00 PM Corinthian Baptist Church Tuesday, November 23, 2021 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall

with Aldo Gavilan

with Michelle Cann

MLK Holiday Weekend!

AWADAGIN PRATT and ZUILL BAILEY Sunday, December 5, 2021 • 4:00 PM Word of Deliverance Ministries Tuesday, December 7, 2021 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall

ANTONY MCGILL with Gloria Chien

Sunday, January 16, 2022 • 4:00 PM New Prospect Baptist Church Monday, January 17, 2022 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall

DANISH STRING QUARTET Monday, January 24, 2022 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall ONE NIGHT ONLY

Early Bird Subscription Price:

$105 for 7 concerts Through October 1, 2021 Single Tickets: $40 Available September 15

•••

For tickets and more information, visit

DIAZ TRIO

JUILLIARD STRING QUARTET

Sunday, March 27, 2022 • 4:00 PM New Jerusalem Baptist Church Tuesday, March 29, 2022 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall

Sunday, April 24, 2022 • 4:00 PM Corinthian Baptist Church Tuesday, April 26, 2022 • 7:30 PM Memorial Hall

CincyChamber.org

or call the Memorial Hall box office:

(513) 977-8838

The A/C List ARTS/CULTURE | The List

Cultural Exhibits/Tours American Legacy Tours | 859-9518560. www.americanlegacytours.com Historic tours: Cincinnati and NKy American Sign Museum | Camp Washington. 513-541-6366. www.americansignmuseum.org Permanent collection Archaeological Research Institute | Lawrenceburg. 812-290-2966. https://exploreari.org Hands-on educational experiences ArtWorks Mural Tours | www.artworkscincinnati.org Pendleton, Over-the-Rhine and Downtown Behringer-Crawford Museum | Covington. 859-491-4003. www.bcmuseum.org Permanent exhibit. “Mrs. White’s Kindergarten” Betts House | West End. 513-651-0734. https://thebettshouse.org Permanent exhibit. “History at Home: The Story of the Betts Family, the West End and Cincinnati” Cincinnati Fire Museum | Downtown. 513-621-5553. www.cincyfiremuseum.com Permanent collection Cincinnati Food Tours | Findlay Market. 513-602-5602. www.cincinnatifoodtours.com Guided and self-guided tours of local food and beverage scene Cincinnati Museum Center | Union Terminal, Queensgate. 513-287-7000. www.cincymuseum.org Current exhibits:. “A Year on the Edge” • “An Unfinished Revolution: Women and the Vote” • “Inspired by Nature: The Art and Activism of Charley Harper” Friends of Music Hall | Washington Park, Over-the-Rhine. 513-621-2787. https://friendsofmusichall.org Indoor and outdoor tours German Heritage Museum | Green Township. 513-598-5732. https://gacl.org 14

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Also online at moversmakers.org

Artifacts and records of contributions of German-Americans to Cincinnati Greater Cincinnati Police Museum | Pendleton. 513-300-3664. https://police-museum.org Permanent collection Harriet Beecher Stowe House | Walnut Hills. 513-751-0651. www.stowehousecincy.org Current exhibits: “Our Neighborhood Story: A Tour of this Walnut Hills Block” • “The Cause Dearer to Me Than Any Other in the World”: Isabella Beecher Hooker and Suffrage • “Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence” Sept. 18, 10 a.m. Walking Tour African Americans and Abolitionists in Walnut Hills: A Diverse and Changing Neighborhood Sept. 18, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day Haunted Brewery Tours | 513-604-9812. www.hauntedbrewerytour.com Historic tours of Cincinnati brewing heritage Heritage Village Museum | Sharonville. 513-563-9484. https://heritagevillagecincinnati.org Experience 19th-century Ohio.

Holocaust & Humanity Center | Cincinnati Musuem Center. 513-4873055. www.holocaustandhumanity.org Current exhibit. “Dimensions in Testimony” Sept. 12, 9 a.m.-noon. Upstander Service Day, volunteer service project Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati | West Chester. https://icgc.us Sept. 4, 11 a.m. “Know Your Neighbors” Krohn Conservatory | Eden Park. 513-421-4086. www.cincinnatiparks.com/krohn Thru Sept. 6. “Butterflies of Bali” Lloyd Library and Museum | Downtown. 513-721-3707. https://lloydlibrary.org Permanent exhibit. George Rieveschl Jr.: History of Pharmaceutical Chemistry

Milford Historical Society | Milford.

513-248-0324. www.milfordhistory.net Permanent exhibit. Historical displays of art, artifacts and more.

Mt. Adams Civic Association | Mt. Adams. 513-235-3957. https://mtadamscincy.org Sundays, 1 p.m. Historic walking tours

COVID ALERT: PLEASE VERIFY ALL DATES AND LOCATIONS WITH EVENT ORGANIZERS. THINGS CHANGE.

Hyde Park Farmers’ Market | Hyde Park Square. www.hydeparkfarmersmarket.com Sundays, 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Regional food and beverage market Ish Festival | Washington Park. www.ishfestival.org Sept. 25-26. Jewish arts and culture festival

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center | The Banks, Downtown. 513-333-7500. https://freedomcenter.org Permanent collection.

Madeira Farmers Market | Madeira Silverwood Presbyterian Church. https://madeirafarmersmarket.com Thursdays, 4-7 p.m.

National VOA Museum of Broadcasting | West Chester.

513-777-0027. www.voamuseum.org Permanent collection.

Northside Farmers Market | North Church, Northside. www.northsidefm.org Wednesdays, 4-7 p.m. Regional food and beverage market

Over-the-Rhine Museum | Over-the-Rhine. 513-813-7309. www.otrmuseum.org Thru Sept. 30. Walking tour: Tenement Life South of Liberty

Oktoberfest Newport | Newport’s Festival Park. www.cincinnatifestivalsandevents.com Sept. 24-26

Raptor Inc. | Milford. www.raptorinc.org Sept. 26, 1-4 p.m. Birds of prey exhibits, education station of biofacts and owl pellet dissection. Weather permitting: 2 p.m. live bird of prey presentation.

Skirball Museum | Hebrew Union College, Clifton. 513-221-1875. www.huc.edu Ongoing. “Opening the Ark: Bringing a Lost Jewish Synagogue to Life”

Dance Cincinnati Ballet | Seasongood Pavilion, Eden Park. 513-621-5219. https://cballet.org Sept. 23-26. Kaplan New Works

Fairs/Festivals/Markets Arts Alliance | Cottell Park, Mason. 513-309-8585. https://the-arts-alliance.org Sept. 19, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Deerfield Handmade Market City Flea | Washington Park, Over-the-Rhine. www.thecityflea.com Sept. 11, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Eclectic arts and crafts fair

Oktoberfest Zinzinnati | The Banks, Downtown. www.oktoberfestzinzinnati.com Sept. 16-19 Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park | Hamilton. www.pyramidhill.org Sept. 25-26, Art & Music Festival Second Sunday on Main | Main Street, Over-the-Rhine. www.facebook.com/OTRSSOM Sept 12, noon-5 p.m. Eclectic street festival Westwood Second Saturdays | Westwood Town Hall District. www.westwoodworks.org/events Sept. 11, 4 p.m.

Film Cincinnati Museum Center | OMNIMAX/Union Terminal. 513-2877000. www.cincymuseum.org/omnimax Now showing: “Great Bear Rainforest” and “Asteroid Hunters” Cincinnati World Cinema | Garfield Theatre, Downtown. 859-957-3456. https://cincyworldcinema.org Sept. 7, 7 p.m. “Searching for Mr. Rugoff” Sept. 14-15, 7 p.m. “A Ghost Waits” Sept. 19 & 26, 4 p.m. LUNAFEST Film Festival for Women in Film Cincinnati

15

CincinnatiCares.org

Part of Inspiring Service, the nation’s leading provider of community and state based guides for connecting people with active nonprofits to help meet their needs.

ARTS/CULTURE | The List Cindependent Film Fest | 214-8436781. www.cindependentfilmfest.org Sept. 11, 7 & 8 p.m. Reels of Wheels: Bramble Park, Madisonville Sept. 18, 7 & 8 p.m. Reels of Wheels: Price Hill Will Esquire Theatre | Clifton.

513-281-8750. www.esquiretheatre.com Sept. 19, 1 p.m. “Light on IOWA,” film

by Ann Segal, conversation with renowned photographer Nancy Rexroth Washington Park Cinema | Over-the-Rhine. https://washingtonpark.org Sept. 8, 7-11 p.m. “Soul” Sept. 15, 7-11 p.m. “Selena” Sept. 29, 7-11 p.m. “Coco”

Christ Church Cathedral | Downtown. 513-621-1817. https://cincinnaticathedral.com Sept. 7, 12:10 p.m. Music Live@ Lunch:. Lu Li, violin with piano Sept. 14, 12:10 p.m. Music Live@ Lunch: Rabbit Hash String Band Sept. 19, 3 p.m. The Baroque Spirit Sept. 21, 12:10 p.m. Music Live@ Lunch: Queen City Sisters Sept. 28, 12:10 p.m. Music Live@ Lunch: Lieto String Quartet Cincinnati Arts Association | Aronoff Center. 513-621-2787. www.cincinnatiarts.org Sept. 26, 7 p.m. Jeremy Camp with Jonathan Traylor

Mercantile Library | Downtown. 513-621-0717. https://mercantilelibrary.com Sept. 9, 6 p.m. Science and Nature Lecture: Professor Sarah Richardson Sept. 23, 6 p.m. Albert Pyle Urban Lecture: An Evening with Alex Kotlowitz

Cincinnati Symphony & Pops | Music Hall, Over-the-Rhine. 513-381-3300. www.cincinnatisymphony.org Sept. 4, 7:30 p.m. (Pops) Labor Day Concert in the Park (at Central Park, Forest Park) Sept. 9, 7:30 p.m. (Pops) “A Musical Feast” w/ May Festival, Cincinnati Ballet, and Cincinnati Opera (at Green Acres, Indian Hill) Sept. 17-18. (Pops) Film with Live Orchestra: “Coco” Sept. 24, 7:30 p.m. (CSO) Bonny Light Horseman & Daniil Trifonov, piano Sept. 24, 9:30 p.m. (MusicNOW) Sō Percussion (at Wilks Studio, Music Hall) Sept. 25, 7:30 p.m. (CSO) Daniil Trifonov, piano, & Sō Percussion Sept. 25, 9:30 p.m. (MusicNOW) Erika Dohi Trio (at Wilks Studio, Music Hall) Sept. 28, 7:30 p.m. (Pops) Disabled American Veterans Centennial Celebration

Thomas More University | 859-341-5800. www.thomasmore.edu Mondays, 12:15 p.m. Fall Writer’s Table with Dick Hague. (Request virtual link: CreativeWritingVision@thomasmore.edu)

Classical Revolution | The Listing Loon, Northside. 216-407-4194. www.classicalrevolutioncincinnati.com Sept. 12, 7 p.m. James Bunte, John Keene, Suzanne Bona & Richard Goering, and the Lieto String Quartet

Literary/Lectures Holocaust & Humanity Center | Virtual. 513-487-3055. www.holocaustandhumanity.org Wednesdays, 11 a.m. Holocaust Speaker Series (No talk Sept. 8) Joseph-Beth Booksellers | Norwood. 513-396-8960. www.josephbeth.com Sept. 14, 7 p.m. Discussion: Ali Hazelwood: “The Love Hypothesis” (virtual)

Music Blue Ash/Montgomery Symphony | Blue Ash Town Square. 513-549-2197. www.bamso.org Sept. 5, 7 p.m. Labor Day Concert (Rain date: Sept. 6) Butler Philharmonic | Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park.

513-844-5151. www.butlerphil.org Sept. 26, 2 p.m. “Broadway Showstoppers”

16

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Concerts on the Commons | Greenhills. www.greenhillsohio.us Sept. 8, 7-9 p.m. Pandora Effect Great Parks of Hamilton County | Cardinal Crest Meadow, Sharon Woods.

513-521-7275. www.greatparks.org Sept. 11, 7 p.m. Jamwave Icon Music Center | The Banks, Downtown. https://iconmusiccenter.com Frequent rock, pop and hip-hop concerts – national acts

Kentucky Symphony Orchestra | 859-431-6216. https://kyso.org Sept. 4, 7:30 p.m. “The Boy Band Diaries” (A century of chordiality) (at Devou Park) Sept. 5, 7:30 p.m. Encore at Tower Park Learning Through Art | Music Hall Ballroom. www.learningthroughart.com Sept. 12, 2 p.m. “A Black Anthology of Music: The Resilience of Jazz,” Cincinnati Boychoir, Revolution Dance Theatre, Elementz, and Cincinnati Public School Jazz Ensemble Madison Theater | Covington. 859-491-2444. https://madisontheater.com Sept. 11, 8 p.m. Moon Taxi Sept. 17, 7:30 p.m. Paramount’s Laser Spectacular, music of Pink Floyd Sept. 18, 8 p.m. Divino Nino Sept. 25, 8 p.m. Heartless Bastards Sept. 28, 8 p.m. John Craigie, Honey Suckle Memorial Hall | Over-the-Rhine. 513977-8838. www.memorialhallotr.com Sept. 2, 8 p.m. Jefferson Starship Sept. 3, 7 p.m. Longworth-Anderson Series: Neko Case Sept. 4, 8 p.m. Longworth-Anderson Series: Meshell Ndegeocello Sept. 8, 8 p.m. Bill Frisell: HARMONY feat. Petra Haden, Hank Roberts, Luke Bergman Sept. 9, 8 p.m. The Hit Men: Legendary Rock Super Group Sept. 10, 8 p.m. Asleep at the Wheel Sept. 12, 8 p.m. Longworth-Anderson Series: Taj Mahal Trio Sept. 15, 8 p.m. Robert Earl Keen: Feelin’ Good Again Tour Sept. 16, 8 p.m. Longworth-Anderson Series: Watkins Family Hour w/ Courtney Hartman Sept. 17, 8 p.m. The Official Blues Brothers Revue Sept. 21, 8 p.m. Five For Fighting With String Quartet Sept. 22, 8 p.m. Al Di Meola Sept. 23, 8 p.m. James McMurtry Sept. 28, 8 p.m. Cincinnati Bell RiseUp Women’s Series: Wild Child Sept. 29, 8 p.m. Parker Millsap w/ Molly Parden Northern Kentucky University | Greaves Concert Hall. 859-572-5464. www.nku.edu/sota Sept. 2, 7 p.m. Faculty Recital: Joy Burdette, voice

Sept. 23, 7 p.m. Faculty Brahms Recital Sept. 30, 7 p.m. Symphonic Winds & Concert Band Over-the-Rhine Museum - Findlay Park Summer Series | Findlay Park.

513-813-7309. www.otrmuseum.org Sept. 30, 5 p.m. The Ludlow Trio PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation | Newport. https://promowestlive.com Frequent rock, pop and hip-hop concerts – national acts Queen City Cabaret | Caffe Vivace. www.queencitycabaretcincy.com Sept. 9, 7 p.m. Celebrating Rosemary Clooney: Sarah Folsom, vocals; Matthew Umphreys, piano Queen City Opera | Finneytown Performing Arts Center. 513-503-8323. https://queencityopera.org Sept. 5, 4 p.m. Tchaikovsky’s “Symphony of Life” (Cincinnati premiere) The Redmoor | Mt. Lookout Square. https://theredmoor.com Sept. 10, 6 p.m. Scarlet Fire Sept. 24, 6 p.m. Soul Pocket Riverbend Music Center | Coney Island. 513-232-6220. www.riverbend.org Frequent rock, pop and hip-hop concerts – national acts RiversEdge | Marcum Park, Hamilton. www.riversedgelive.com Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m. JJ Grey & Mofro Sept. 11, 7:30 p.m. TBA Sept. 18, 7:30 p.m. Signs of Life Taft Theatre | Downtown. https://tafttheatre.org Sept. 18, 8 p.m. Toad The Wet Sprocket Sept. 22, 8 p.m. Tower of Power Sept. 24, 8 p.m. The Mavericks Sept. 26, 7:30 p.m. Dawes w/ Erin Rae: “Good Luck with Whatever Tour” Sept. 29, 8 p.m. Béla Fleck Washington Park | Over-the-Rhine. https://washingtonpark.org Sept. 17, 7 p.m. 10,000 Maniacs with Mary Ramsey Woodward Theater | Over-the-Rhine. 513-345-7981. www.woodwardtheater.com Sept. 24, 8 p.m. In The Pines

The full 2021-2022 music season has just been announced!

Come

UPLIFT YOUR SPIRIT

at Christ Church Cathedral View all events by visiting https://cincinnaticathedral.com

ARTS/CULTURE | The List

Theater Alibi Players | Florence. 513-3711600. www.alibiplayers.com Sept. 10-19. “The Memory of Water” ArtsWave | Fernbank Park. www.artswave.org Sept. 25, 1-5 p.m. Enjoy the Arts @ Parks Series: Madcap Puppets, Cultural Center of India, Revolution Dance Theatre, Children’s Theatre The Carnegie | Covington Plaza Amphitheater. 859-491-2030. www.thecarnegie.com Sept. 10-19. “End of the Rainbow” Cincinnati Landmark Productions | Covedale Theater. 513-241-6550. www.cincinnatilandmarkproductions.com Sept. 16-Oct. 10. “The Odd Couple” Cincinnati Music Theatre | Fifth Third Bank Theater, Aronoff Center. 513-621-2787. https://cincinnatimusictheatre.org Sept. 3-11. “Shout! The Mod Musical” Cincinnati Playwrights Initiative | Fifth Third Bank Theater, Aronoff Center.

513-621-ARTS. www.cincyplaywrights.org Sept. 14. “Unfinished Business,”

by Susan and Doug Decatur Cincinnati Shakespeare Company | Over-the-Rhine. 513-381-2273. https://cincyshakes.com Thru Sept. 12. Shakespeare in the Park (at local parks) College-Conservatory of Music | University of Cincinnati. 513-556-4183. https://ccm.uc.edu Sept. 29-Oct. 3. “Our Town” Ensemble Theatre | Over-the-Rhine. 513-421-3555. https://ensemblecincinnati.org Sept. 22-Oct. 16. “Pipeline” Fairfield Footlighters | Fairfield. 513-867-5348. www.fairfieldfootlighters.org Sept. 24-26. “Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery” Falcon Theatre | Monmouth Theatre.

513-479-6783. https://falcontheater.netSept. 24-Oct. 9. “Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner”

18

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Footlighters | Stained Glass Theatre, Newport. 859-291-7464. www.footlighters.org Sept. 30-Oct. 16. “The Odd Couple, Female Version” Greater Hamilton Civic Theatre | Parrish Auditorium, Hamilton.

513-737-PLAY. www.ghctplay.com Sept. 30-Oct. 3. “The Curious Savage” Icon Music Center | The Banks, Downtown. https://iconmusiccenter.com Sept. 18, 7 & 9:30 p.m. Theo Von, comedian Know Theatre | At Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park. 513-300-5669. www.knowtheatre.com Thru Sept. 14. “Mongrel” Lebanon Theatre Company | Lebanon. 513-932-8300. www.ltcplays.com Sept. 3-12. “Moonlight and Magnolias” Mariemont Players | Walton Creek Theater. 513-684-1236. www.mariemontplayers.com Sept. 10-26. “The Outsider” Northern Kentucky University | Stauss Theatre. 859-572-5464 www.nku.edu/sota Sept. 29-Oct. 9. “Torch Song” The Story Collective | Liberty Farm Market, Liberty Township. www.thestorycollective.org Sept. 12, 6-8 p.m. “Sips for the Stage” Sunset Players | Arts Center at Dunham. 513-588-4988. www.sunsetplayers.org Sept. 9-12. “Through Blind Eyes, the Stage Play,” by Bobbie Michelle Bean & Ariel Underwood Taft Theatre | Downtown. https://tafttheatre.org Sept. 11, 7 & 9:30 p.m. Sebastian Maniscalco Live Sept. 30, 7 p.m. Chelsea Handler

Thru Nov. 19. Katherine Brenner “Love Languages” 21c Museum Hotel | Downtown. 513-578-6600. www.21cmuseumhotels.com Thru October. Bisa Butler: “Dress Up, Speak Up: Resistance and Regalia” Thru Oct. 11. “What is Past is Prologue: An Elevate Exhibition” Art Academy of Cincinnati | Over-the-Rhine. 513-562-6262. www.artacademy.edu Thru Sept. 19. Constance McClure: “Never a Day Without Drawing” Art Beyond Boundaries | Over-the-Rhine. 513-421-8726. www.artbeyondboundaries.com Thru Sept. 17. “Summer Return to Freedom” Art Design Consultants East | O’Bryonville. 513-723-1222. https://adcfineart.com Sept. 17-Oct. 22. “ViewPoint 53” Reception: Sept. 17, 6-9 p.m.

Art Design Consultants West | West End. https://adcfineart.com Thru Sept. 10. Kitty Uetz ArtsWave | Freedom Center, The Banks. www.artswave.org Thru Oct. 31. “Truth and Reconciliation” Visual Arts Exhibition.

Commissioned works by five Black & Brown artists: Brent Billingsley, Gee Horton with Phyllis Jeffers-Coly and LaDe Richardson, Rebecca Nava Soto, Tyra Patterson and Michael Coppage.

ArtWorks | Walnut Hills. 513-333-0388. www.artworkscincinnati.org Thru Oct. 16. “The Way We See Ourselves: Telling Stories Through Self Portraits” Baker Hunt Art & Cultural Center | Covington. 859-431-0020. www.bakerhunt.org Sept. 22. Ken Landon Buck: “Life and Connection Through Art”

The Barn | Mariemont. 513-272-3700. www.artatthebarn.org Sept. 2-5. “IKEBANA The Art of Japanese Flower Arranging” Sept. 23-Oct. 6. Teresa Nieberding: “Walk on the Wild Side” Carl Solway Gallery | West End. 513-621-0069. https://solwaygallery.com Thru Sept. 24. Works of Jay Bolotin Caza Sikes | Oakley. 513-290-3127. https://cazasikes.com Sept. 4-Oct. 2. “Humans Unwrapped: Interactive Exhibit Celebrating Art of the Nude Figure” Cincinnati Art Club | ADC East, O’Bryonville. 513‑241‑4591 www.cincinnatiartclub.com Sept. 17-Oct. 22. “ViewPoint 53” Reception: Sept. 17, 6-9 p.m.

Cincinnati Art Galleries | Downtown. 513-381-2128. www.cincyart.com Thru Sept. 23. “New Acquisitions” over 60 newly acquired paintings by notable American and European artists Cincinnati Art Museum | Eden Park. 513-721-2787. www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org Thru Sept. 5. “American Painting: The Eighties Revisited” Thru Oct. 3. “Paintings, Politics and the Monuments Men: The Berlin Masterpieces in America” Cincinnati Museum Center | Queensgate. 513-287-7000. www.cincymuseum.org Thru Feb. 21. “Borrowed Gems from the Taft Museum of Art” Clifton Cultural Arts Center | Corryville. 513-497-2860. https://cliftonculturalarts.org Thru Sept. 24. Dai Williams: “Soft Ghost”

Xavier University | Gallagher Theater.

513-745-3939 www.xavier.edu Sept. 17-19. “American Idiot”

Visual Art 1628 Ltd. | Garfield Park, Downtown.

513-320-2596. https://1628ltd.com

Get listed Arts/Culture listings are free.* Send event details and photos to: editor@moversmakers.org * See page 4 for print deadlines.

Visit www.moversmakers.org for more listings.

ARTS/CULTURE | The List Contemporary Arts Center | Downtown. 513-345-8400. www.contemporaryartscenter.org Thru Sept. 19. Hellen Ascoli: “Cien Tierras” • “Wild Frictions: The Politics and Poetry of Interruption” Thru Dec. 19. Sandra Cinto: Contemplation Room & Library of Love Sept. 17-Feb. 6. Sreshta Rit Premnath • Marwa Arsanios: “Who Is Afraid of Ideology?”

Eva G. Farris Gallery | Thomas More University, Crestview Hills. 859-3443300. www.thomasmore.edu Thru Sept. 9. Ashley Brossary: “Metamorphosis” Reception: Sept. 2, 4-7 p.m.

Sept. 9-30. Mary Louise Holt: “The Great Eastern American WIlderness, Wildlife and Native People” Reception: Sept. 9, 5-7 p.m Fairfield Community Arts Center | 513-867-5348. www.fairfield-city.org Thru Sept. 18. Colerain Artists: “Kaleidoscope” Sept. 25-Nov. 13. Annual Community Artist Showcase. Reception: Sept. 24, 6-8 p.m.

Thru May 1. “In a New Light | Treasures from the Taft”

Off Ludlow Gallery | Clifton.

513-201-7153. www.facebook.com Thru Sept. 24. JeeEun Lee: “Whispering Reveries”

Miller Gallery | Hyde Park Square.

513-871-4420. www.millergallery.com Sept. 2-25. Kim Krause, Mark Chatterley, Eduardo Monteagudo: “Chasing Beauty”. Reception: Sept. 2, 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Sept. 30-Oct. 30. Rene Romero Schuler: “Ladies”

University of Cincinnati Clermont College | Park National Bank Art Gallery. www.ucclermont.edu Thru Sept. 29. Justin Johnson: “Lament for Aleppo”

Pendleton Art Center | Pendleton. 513-421-4339. www.pendletonartcenter.com Sept. 24, 6-10 p.m., open studios

Muhlhauser Barn | West Chester. www.westchesteroh.org/government/ muhlhauser-barn Sept. 29. “A Tribute to Historic Barns of Ohio: 88 Counties, 88 Paintings, 88 Essays”

Visionaries & Voices | Northside. 513-861-4333. https://visionariesandvoices.com Thru Oct. 8. “Pivot”

Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park & Museum | Hamilton. 513-868-1234. www.pyramidhill.org Sept. 13-Oct. 23. MSA Select

Warren County Historical Museum | Lebanon. www.wchsmuseum.org Thru Sept. 24. Willis “Bing” Davis: “On the Shoulders of Our Ancestors”

Sharonville Cultural Arts Center | 513-554-1014. www.sharonvilleculturalarts.org Sept. 3-25. Lynn Elzey: “Celebrate Community”

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center | The Banks, Downtown. 513-333-7500. https://freedomcenter.org Thru Sept. 24. “We Are the Story: A Visual Response to Racism” Thru Oct. 31. “Truth and Reconciliation”

Wave Pool Gallery and The Welcome Project | Camp Washington. www.wavepoolgallery.org Thru Oct. 30. Lorena Molina: “Reconciliation Garden”

Studio Kroner | Downtown. www.studiokroner.com Sept. 9-Oct. 9. Tom Owen “Juxtaposing Dimensions”

Northern Kentucky University | Highland Heights. 859-572-5148. www.nku.edu/gallery Thru Oct. 29. “Unveiled: 2021-22 Visual Arts Scholarship Recipients”

Xavier University Art Gallery | A.B. Cohen Center. www.xavier.edu Thru Sept. 17. Art at The X 

Taft Museum of Art | Lytle Park, Downtown. 513-241-0343. www.taftmuseum.org

Gallery 708 | Hyde Park Square.

513-551-8171. www.gallery-708.com Thru Sept. 26. Alan Brown & Jason Erler: “Otherworldly Journeys” Iris BookCafe and Gallery | Over-the-Rhine. 513-260-8343. www.irisbookcafeotr.com Thru November. Casey LeClair: “Seven Cities” Kennedy Heights Arts Center | 513-631-4278. https://kennedyarts.org Thru Oct. 9. Kuumba Fiber Works.

(Lindner Gallery) Sept. 4-Oct. 30. “America Reimagined” (Kennedy Gallery & Outdoor Gallery) Sept. 5-Nov. 7. “Illustrative Becoming” (Kennedy Gallery) Lloyd Library and Museum | Downtown. 513-721-3707. https://lloydlibrary.org Sept. 10-Nov. 30. Melissa Haviland: “Flourish” Manifest Gallery | E. Walnut Hills.

513-861-3638. www.manifestgallery.com Thru Sept. 10. “Nude 13” • “Cut” • “Bloom” • Scott Ramming & Colby A. Sanford paintings

PRESENTS

THE 2021 INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM CONDUCTOR ® AWARDS GALA SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2021 AT THE DUKE ENERGY CONVENTION CENTER

INDUCTING FOUR MODERN-DAY FREEDOM CONDUCTORS AMAL CLOONEY HUMAN RIGHTS ATTORNEY

GEORGE CLOONEY PHILANTHROPIST

THE HONORABLE JOHN LEWIS

BRYAN STEVENSON

CIVIL RIGHTS ICON & U.S. CONGRESSMAN

FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, EQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE

TICKETS ON SALE AT

FREEDOMCENTER.ORG/IFCA21 FREEDOMCENTER.ORG/IFCA2 1

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

19

Reader version for devices

A case for the ‘good stuff’

Story by David Lyman Photos by Tina Gutierrez

JMR wants to woo you into the world of orchestral music

M

ost stories about John Morris Russell spend lots of time discussing his showmanship, his brash, cheerleader-ish onstage persona as conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra – the guy one of his former colleagues described as “a wind-up toy” that never runs down.

But this is a story about a more contemplative JMR, as he has become known over his 20 years in the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra organization. Still enthusiastic, of course, but a JMR who reflects on the complex relationship between orchestras and their audiences. And even more importantly, perhaps, the relationship with those people who are not orchestras’ audiences. How to bring them into the fold?

“Oh, that is the $20,000 question, isn’t it?” he says. “Everyone is trying to figure that out.” To be honest, “everyone” has been trying to figure that out for decades.

And JMR is the first to admit that he doesn’t have all the answers. He’s unwilling to predict the future of American orchestral life. But the more he talks, the more you hear a theme that connects almost everything he says – “music is for everyone.”

“Music is for everyone.”

Who could possibly disagree with that?

Almost everyone has some kind of favorite music. But the point he’s making is that music is, for the most part, quite segmented. And mostly, we like it like that. It’s less pronounced than it was 50 years ago, perhaps. But still, we treat the idea of mixing musical genres as something out of the ordinary, almost newsworthy.

Not JMR. He relishes the diversity of music. He talks with equal enthusiasm about playing trumpet in the pit band at Shaker Heights High School and 20

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

I don’t think you do anyone any favors by dumbing it down.

Whether you’re playing in someone’s church or a shopping mall or a major concert hall, you play the good stuff – always.

– John Morris Russel conducting Beethoven in Music Hall. You get the sense that it makes little difference to him whether he’s conducting Brahms in a concert hall, recording with Rosanne Cash or performing “Peter and the Wolf” for a theater packed with wiggly kids. They all have a place in JMR’s heart.

Conducting those ‘other’ concerts He talks fondly of the 11 years he spent as an associate conductor for both the CSO and the Pops orchestras. It is a far less glamorous position than it sounds. Basically, associate conductors – especially the younger ones – are called on to lead all those performances the music director has little time for – family concerts, education concerts, outreach concerts.

“The thing is that to young conductors … ” He pauses for a moment, trying to find a delicate way to describe how most up-and-coming conductors regard those “other” concerts.

“Many of them will just turn their nose up and go through the paces. They think these are the

dues they have to pay so that they can conduct Mahler later on. You know – to show the world how Mahler is supposed to be done.”

But for JMR, who cut his early conducting chops leading youth orchestras around Cleveland, every performance is an opportunity to woo someone into the world of orchestral music.

“We would play for anyone anywhere,” says JMR. “I called it ‘the cafetorium circuit.’ You’ve got all these kids and all of this energy. You’ve got to figure out how you’re going to make this concert speak to them. And I’ll tell you what – I loved those kids. They had absolutely no expectations. It was all up to us.”

So sure, he would play some music that they recognized. Some John Williams movie music or an arrangement of a recent pop song. But he didn’t shy away from the classics, either.

“It’s like my mantra for doing family concerts,” says JMR. “You have to make sure to play the good stuff. I don’t think you do anyone any favors by dumbing it down. Whether you’re playing in someone’s church or a shopping mall or a major concert hall, you play the good stuff – always.”

It helps to work with musicians who are committed to such an eclectic approach to music.

That’s why JMR felt particularly fortunate when he landed the CSO associate conductor gig back in 1995.

“Our orchestra is so very, very progressive in the variety of music that we perform,” says JMR. We have incredibly flexible musicians who can play anything from the Baroque style to early Romantic to Mahlerian and at the same time are real aces for contemporary music. They can swing any one of 17 ways, from ragtime and big band to Texas Shuffle.”

All John Morris Russell photos by Tina G utierrez for Movers & Makers Magazine

All about the audience So is that the key to a healthy musical future? Musicians who are capable of playing a multiplicity of styles?

“No,” he says bluntly. “That’s important.

But this is all about the audience. Otherwise we could just sit in a recording studio all the time and not worry about who shows up to our concerts. I remember the first time we played for a live audience again late last year (during the pandemic). I think there were only a couple of hundred people there. Man, it was something else. All of us were looking at them and thinking, ‘Yes, this is why we’re in this.’ This is definitely why I do it.”

But growing and diversifying an audience takes a deep and long-term commitment on the part of an arts organization. It doesn’t happen overnight. JMR was reminded of that recently when the orchestra’s Classical Roots concerts celebrated their 20th anniversary. He had been instrumental in founding the series and is still its greatest advocate.

“For many orchestras, the solution to attracting a larger African American audience is to put together a program sometime in the middle of the shortest month of the year (which happens to be Black History Month) and then pat themselves on the back and say, ‘Yes, we’re doing the right thing.’ As if presenting one cookie-cutter program that presumes to tell the whole story is the solution to diversifying the audience.

“The whole African American story is too impossibly huge and vast and varied. That’s why we are still doing these concerts year after year – there is so much to explore.”

And that, of course, is only one small part of growing 21st-century orchestral audiences.

Don’t ignore the importance of MEMI to the CSO’s bottom line. MEMI is Music & Event Management Inc., the wholly owned CSO subsidiary that manages a half-dozen highly profitable venues: the new ICON Music Center, Riverbend Music Center, PNC Pavilion, the Rose Center at the Heights, the Taft Theatre

We’re planting seeds – musical seeds – in people’s minds. We’ve helped to make orchestral music a part of their lives. It may take five or 10 or 15 years, but those seeds will bear fruit.

– John Morris Russel

and the Taft Ballroom.

“MEMI is essential to our future,” says JMR. The present-day reality is that performances of acts like ZZ Top and Alanis Morissette are essential to the economic stability of the May Festival and Louis Langrée. And JMR. “I love the idea that we have one organization that presents music – all sorts of music,” says JMR. “There are no walls. ‘We present music.’ That says it all. We can’t allow ourselves to make rigid musical distinctions anymore.”

Always exploring the ‘now’ That’s why he adores his work with the Pops so much.

“With the Pops, we’re always exploring the ‘now.’ That means we’re always going to take chances. We’re going to get new and different artists, and they’re going to bring new and different things to the stage – stuff that we’ve never heard before.”

The solutions seem obvious. But they are expensive. It’s like investing in your retirement when you’re 25. Or opening an account for your child’s college education while they’re still in diapers.

“You always have to look ahead,” says JMR. “Five years after I left as associate conductor, I returned to lead the Pops. All of those parents

who had taken their kids to the family concerts and were singing along, those kids were off in college and the parents, unbeknownst to me, became the new generation of Pops fans. And now, those kids – literally, kids – who came to Music Hall for their first experience, are now there on date night.

“Sometimes, I don’t think we are aware of how profound those early experiences are to people. We’re planting seeds – musical seeds – in people’s minds. We’ve helped to make orchestral music a part of their lives. It may take five or 10 or 15 years, but those seeds will bear fruit.”

To JMR, it doesn’t really matter whether those musical seeds lead people to a Brahms Requiem or Classical Roots or a Pops holiday concert. The key is for orchestras to be ready to offer audiences a full range of orchestral experiences.

“We just have to be sure we are there with the right music when they are ready to take the next steps on their musical journeys.” 

John Morris Russell, aka “JMR,” is celebrating 10 years as conductor of the Cincinnati Pops and his 20th year overall with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

He is also music director and principal conductor of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, and principal pops conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic and he holds the title of Conductor Laureate with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra in Ontario.

He lives in Hyde Park with his wife, Thea Tjepkema, who serves on the board of the Friends of Music Hall as the building’s historian and archivist. Their children are both Walnut Hills High School grads: son Jack, a recording engineer in Chicago, and daughter Alma, a freshman at Harvard University.

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

21

22 22 22 The Datebook DATEBOOK

COVID ALERT: PLEASE VERIFY ALL DATES AND LOCATIONS WITH EVENT ORGANIZERS. THINGS CHANGE. SEPT. 5, SUNDAY Aubrey Rose Foundation, Fireworks Spectacular | 4-10 p.m.

B&B Riverboat, Belle of Cincinnati, 101 Riverboat Row, Newport. DETAILS: Cruise before docking in front of firework barges. Cost: $250 or $220 for children or non-alcohol package. ¼www.aubreyrose.org

Children’s Home, Marge and Charles J. Schott Foundation Rockin’ at Riverfest | Anderson Pavilion, Smale Park. DETAILS: Annual fireworks show returns to in-person.

Reds center fielder Nick Senzel and fiancé, Emily Davis, honorary co-chairs.

Event co-chairs: Mark and Sara Mercurio, Nick and Joelle Ragland. ¼www.tchcincy.org

With a Spotlight on the Movers and Makers behind Greater Cincinnati’s Fundraisers, Friend-Raisers and Community Events

Findlay Market, Flavor of Findlay | 6:30-9:30 p.m. Findlay Market. DETAILS: Top local chefs paired with market merchants to create one-of-a-kind dishes.

Each tasting station has a wine pairing.

Silent auction. Tickets: General admission, $90; VIP, $150. ¼www.betterunite.com/2021flavor

Little Sisters of the Poor, Never Forget | 7 p.m. Bellarmine Chapel, Xavier University. DETAILS: Glen Prasser shares personal story about being cared for in Newfoundland following 9/11 attacks, inspiration for “Come From Away,” award-winning play. Free event; donations gratefully accepted. ¼www.littlesistersofthepoorcincinnati.org

ProKids, 40th Birthday Celebration | 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Armleder Park.

DETAILS: Food truck, birthday cake, take-home ProKids yard signs.

Search event. ¼www.eventbrite.com,

SEPT. 10, FRIDAY

Freestore Foodbank, Rubber Duck Regatta | DETAILS: Buy a duck and feed a child. First-prize winner: new Honda and possibly $1 million with “Million Dollar Duck.” Cash prizes to six other winners. All duck purchases of $50 or more eligible for T-shirt (while supplies last). ¼https://rubberduckregatta.org

SEPT. 8-11, WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY CET, Action Auction | On air CET and ThinkTV16.  STORY, this page.

SEPT. 8, WEDNESDAY Impact 100, Annual Awards Celebration | 5:30-9:15 p.m.

Music Hall, 1241 Elm St. ¼https://impact100.org

SEPT. 9, THURSDAY Anthony Muñoz Foundation, Topgolf Tailgate | 4-9 p.m. Top Golf, West Chester.  STORY, page 23.

Cincinnati International Wine Festival, Dinner Series | At participating Cincinnati restaurants.  STORY, this page.

22

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Boys Hope Girls Hope, Hearts for Hope | 7 p.m. Cooper Creek Event Center, Blue Ash. DETAILS: Doors open at 6 p.m.

Honoring late Joan and Jim Gardner. ¼www.bhghcincinnati.org

Cancer Support Community, Top Golf Tournament | 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Top Golf, West Chester.  STORY, page 23.

Cincinnati Compass, Welcoming Week Kick-Off | 6-10 p.m. Waypoint Aviation hangar, Lunken Airport. DETAILS: Music, art, food, drink. ¼https://welcomingamerica.org

SEPT. 11, SATURDAY Baker Hunt Art & Cultural Center, Twilight in the Gardens | 6:30-9:30 p.m. 620 Greenup Street, Covington.  STORY, page 25.

The Cure Starts Now, Once in a Lifetime Gala | 6-11 p.m.

Duke Energy Convention Center.  STORY, page 24.

Action Auction, Owens tribute bring focus on public broadcasting CET/ThinkTV Action Auction, Bidding starts Monday, Sept. 6, noon CET is Me: VIP Party, Thursday, Sept. 23, Neighborhood Block Party, Friday, Sept.

24 and Saturday, Sept. 25, 7-11 p.m.

CET and ThinkTV have united to host an Action Auction to benefit the broadcasters’ efforts on air, online and in the community. Funds raised will support award-winning national and local programming, as well as training for educators and resources for families.

Items will be showcased on-air, while bidding will occur online.

Bidding will start Monday, Sept.

6, and the live broadcast will span Wednesday, Sept. 8 through Saturday, Sept. 11.

Also, the auction’s event chair and a long-time CET volunteer, Dr. O’dell Owens, will be honored in a three-day event, hosted by the local PBS station.

In partnership with Brave Berlin, CET is Me will feature an

image-mapped projection on the Singing Mural, located on the south side of the CET building.

Participants can opt for a VIP viewing party on Thursday, Sept. Dr. O’dell Owens 23, or they can catch the show when CET is Me morphs into The Neighborhood Block Party on Friday, Sept. 24 and Saturday, Sept. 25.

Tickets for the VIP party are $100 and include heavy hors d’oeuvres, drinks and a program honoring Dr. Owens.

Tickets to enter The Neighborhood Block Party are $10 each, and the event will feature food trucks, photo ops and sightings of fan-favorite PBS characters.  www.cetconnect.org

Wine Festival offers dinner series Thursday, Sept. 9, participating Cincinnati restaurants Fine dining establishments across the city will host a onenight-only winery dinner series.

The event is hosted by the Cincinnati International Wine Festival. Proceeds will benefit its 30-plus charity partners.

Diners can expect exclusive meals with curated wine pairings and a crafted cocktail from Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

Each experience will be hosted by a winery representative, offering customized food and wine education in a variety of intimate

settings. Participants can also opt for a virtual dining experience in their own home.

Participating restaurants include Cedar, Eddie Merlot’s, Ivory House, Jag’s Steak & Seafood, The Mercer OTR, Orchid’s Palm Court and more.  www.winefestival.com

DATEBOOK

Anthony Muñoz, Pete Ventura of presenting sponsor Integrity Express Logistics and event broadcaster Mo Egger of iHeart Radio

Topgolf Tailgate celebrates 20 years for Muñoz Foundation Thursday, Sept. 9, 4-9 p.m., Topgolf, West Chester The Anthony Muñoz Foundation is hosting its fourth annual Topgolf Tailgate, presented

by Integrity Express Logistics to “Tee Off for the NFL Kickoff.”

The foundation will host over 200 partners, donors and community members for an evening of dinner, drinks, golf and giveaways during the 2021 NFL season opener. The event begins with a Cincinnati Bengals Legends Meet and Greet featuring Muñoz from 4 to 6 p.m. From 6 to 9 p.m.,

attendees can play two Topgolf games and enjoy unlimited food and beverages.

“Integrity Express Logistics is not only helping us bring this event back after the pandemic but allowing us to expand the reach of our Impact Programs,” says Muñoz.

The foundation is celebrating 20 years of helping area youth mentally, physically and spiritually.

Ticket purchases are open to the public as well as those interested in a corporate sponsorship.  www.munozfoundation.org

THE SHARING TABLE

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30th 6:00 – 9:00 P.M. ARCO 3301 PRICE AVE CINCINNATI, OH 45205

JOIN US FOR A FUN-FILLED NIGHT WITH DINNER, DRINKS, RAFFLES, SPLIT-THE-POT, AND MORE! ALL PROCEEDS GO TOWARD ALLEVIATING POVERTY IN PRICE HILL, CINCINNATI

Cancer Support Community tees up new fundraiser Friday, Sept. 10, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Topgolf West Chester The Cancer Support Community of Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky (CSC) hosts its first Topgolf Tournament for Cancer Support.

“This fundraising event comes at a pivotal time for our organization. The demand for CSC free programs and services is at an all time high,” said Gretchen Ramstetter, CSC’s vice president of development. Michele Wiener, event chair The socially distanced event is for competitive and casual golfers alike. Participants will receive three hours of gameplay and equipment, brunch and bar access, games, prizes, a swag bag and more. Attendance is $125 for individuals, $600 for a bay at the venue, or $1,000 for sponsors.  www.mycancersupportcommunity.org

FOR MORE INFORMATION & TICKETS: WWW.SHARING-TABLE.ORG THANK YOU TO OUR MEDIA SPONSOR

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

23

DATEBOOK Stepping Stones, Bloom: Boots & Bourbon | 7 p.m. Valley View Foundation, Milford. DETAILS: Bourbon tastings, silent auction, dinner, live music

by Catalina Wine Mixer. Tickets: $150. ¼www.cincybloom.org

SEPT. 12, SUNDAY Sunflower Rev It Up for Parkinson’s | 6:15-10 a.m., Sawyer Point.  STORY, page 24.

SEPT. 13, MONDAY Cincinnati Cancer Advisors, Come Out Swinging | Noon. Maketewah Country Club. DETAILS: Fans of UC Bearcats and Xavier Musketeers come together to fight cancer. School with lowest average aggregate score wins. Noon: casual lunch. 12:30 p.m. shotgun start.

5:30 p.m. dinner and awards. 8 p.m. live auction. $275, includes swag bag, lunch, golf, dinner and open bar. Proceeds benefit clinical trial cancer research at UC Cancer Center and nursing program at Xavier. ¼www.bearcatsvsmusketeers.org

SEPT. 15, WEDNESDAY Comboni Missionaries, Love Thy Neighbor: Immigration Talk with Su Casa | 6 p.m. Cincinnati Mission Center, Anderson Twp. DETAILS: Lite bites and drinks. Experts from Su Casa discuss important issues surrounding immigration, both locally and nationally. ¼www.combonimissionaries.org

SEPT 16, THURSDAY Horizon Community Funds, Give Where You Live NKY | 6-7 p.m.

Wooden Cask Brewery. DETAILS: Fun, casual way to give back to nonprofits that serve Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties. Participating members nominate a nonprofit, and three names are randomly selected and briefly discussed.

Members vote on favorite, and each member contributes $100 for the grant to winning organization. ¼www.horizonfunds.org

LADD Inc., Taking Flight Awards Dinner | 6:30-8:30 p.m. Washington Park. DETAILS: Honoring LADD’s Direct Service Staff and their critical work throughout the pandemic. Tickets: $25. ¼https://laddinc.org

24

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

St. Vincent de Paul, A Celebration of Service | 6-9 p.m. Africa Patio, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.  STORY, page 25.

SEPT. 17, FRIDAY Beechwood Home, Annual Sporting Clay Shoot | 8 a.m.-noon. Sycamore Gun Club. DETAILS: Shells and lunch included. Proceeds support programs and services for Beechwood Home’s 80 residents, ages 20s to 80s, with neurological conditions. ¼melder@beechwoodhome.com

New Jerusalem Baptist Church, Anniversary Gala | 6-9 p.m.

Duke Energy Convention Center.  STORY, page 25.

SEPT. 18, SATURDAY Alzheimer’s Association, Walk to End Alzheimer | 8:30 a.m.

The Square @ Union Centre West Chester. DETAILS: Pre-walk activities, ceremony, walk. Sign up as team captain, join a team or as individual. ¼www.alz.org/walk

Baker Hunt Art & Cultural Center, Twilight in the Gardens | 6:30-9:30 p.m.  STORY, page 25.

Behringer-Crawford Museum, freshART | 6-9:30 p.m. Museum’s amphitheater. DETAILS: 29th annual auction and party raises money for youth education programs. Guests may acquire plein air art (created outdoors that day).

Previously created art available via silent auction. Cocktails and light dinner follow.

Proceeds shared by artist and museum. ¼www.bcmuseum.org

May We Help, Let’s Get Moving | 2-5 p.m., Big Ash Brewing, 5230 Beechmont Ave. DETAILS: Auto show and mobility expo showcasing cars and cutting-edge mobility devices for people with disabilities. Prize money awarded in variety of categories. Big Ash brews available, along with food. ¼www.maywehelp.org

SEPT. 19, SUNDAY GIVEHOPE, Pancreatic Cancer Research & Awareness Alliance | 2 p.m. Day Air Ballpark, Dayton, Ohio.

DETAILS: Come watch future talent of Cincinnati Reds. Tickets: $12. ¼https://givehopepc.com

The Duke Energy Convention Center Grand Ballroom for a past Once in a Lifetime Gala

Cure Starts Now gala returns to support cancer research Saturday, Sept. 11, 6-11 p.m., Duke Energy Convention Center The Cure Starts Now hosts its 13th annual Once in a Lifetime Gala, sponsored by Graeter’s, to support pediatric cancer research and honor cancer warriors through one of the city’s largest silent auctions.

An estimated 850 guests from across the country will bid on over 400 silent auction items

and enjoy the performance of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra’s Newport Ragtime Band, sponsored by The Party Source.

Tickets must be purchased on the nonprofit’s website in advance.

The Cure Starts Now has raised over $16.5 million in support of pediatric cancer research, resulting in over 133 cutting-edge research grants in 15 countries since 2007.  www.thecurestartsnow.org

Sunflower to host annual Rev It Up for Parkinson’s event Sunday, Sept. 12, 6:15-10 a.m., Sawyer Point This year’s Sunflower Rev It Up for Parkinson’s will again feature “Team Doc,” a group participating in the event to honor the late Dr. Anthony Salem.

Salem dedicated his life to helping his community, friends and family. When he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, his family began to honor him and his legacy by becoming active in the annual run-walk-bike event.

“Our team is always ‘Team Doc,’ after his nickname,” said Cackie Schwanekamp, Salem’s granddaughter. “The event is important to my family because it gives us a chance to connect with what my grandfather had to deal with.”

Participants will raise funds for research and education at the University of Cincinnati Gardner

Neuroscience Institute’s James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Center for Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders.

The event includes a 1K and 5K walk/run and a 45K bike ride through downtown Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.  www.sunflowerrev.org

Cackie Schwanekamp and her mom, Michelle Schwanekamp, delivering “Tony’s Totes” to the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute.

DATEBOOK

Gala to honor Damon Lynch Jr. and Barbara J. Lynch Sept. 17, 6-9 p.m., Grand Ballroom, Duke Energy Convention Center

Bart Kohler

Becky Catino

SVDP celebrates Kohler and Catino Thursday, Sept. 16, 6-9 p.m., Africa Patio, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden St. Vincent de Paul will celebrate Becky Catino and Bart Kohler for their contributions as co-chairs on the Upward Spiral Comprehensive Campaign. Catino and Kohler helped raise $12 million.

The campaign increased support through a Conference Assistance Fund, helping struggling neighbors in SVDP’s parish-based conferences. The conferences are now able to assist more neighbors with rent and

utility assistance, food, clothing, beds and necessities.

Catino is a past chair of St. Vincent de Paul’s board of directors, partner at 625 Investments and the co-founder/co-CEO of GigSmart.

Kohler is also a past chair of St. Vincent de Paul’s board of directors and is president of Takkt America Holdings.

Tickets are $75 and include dinner and drinks. Tables of 8 include priority seating at $850.  www.svdpcincinnati.org/cos

Rev. Damon Lynch Jr. and Barbara J. Lynch of New Jerusalem Baptist Church will be celebrated for their 50 years of community service and leadership at the Anniversary Gala and Silent Auction.

Rev. Lynch has been president of the Cincinnati Baptist Ministers Conference, trustee of UC Health, co-creator of the Martin Luther King Jr. March, founding board member of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and recipient of the 2010 Great Living Cincinnatian Award.

Lynch says his proudest achievement has been leading the New Jerusalem Baptist Church congregation for over 50 years.

The public is invited to join the black-tie festivities to honor Rev.

and Mrs. Lynch’s ongoing work.

The theme of the evening celebration will be: “Life. Leadership.

Legacy.”  www.preachlynch50.org

Barbara J. Lynch and Rev. Damon Lynch Jr.

A scene from Baker Hunt’s Twilight in the Gardens

Baker Hunt garden party returns Sept. 11 and 18, 6:30-9:30 p.m., Baker Hunt Art and Cultural Center, Covington This year, Baker Hunt Art and Cultural Center holds two nights of its Twilight in the Gardens event.

Under thousands of lights, the event features a five-course meal,

silent auction and raffle, live music, art demonstrations and a show by artist-in-residence Ken Landon Buck.

Proceeds support Baker Hunt programming. Established in 1922, Baker Hunt is a nonprofit that conducts art education and outreach.  www.bakerhunt.org Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

25

DATEBOOK Meals on Wheels, Bust a Crust!

Pie-K 5K | 8:30 a.m. Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum.  STORY, page 26.

SEPT. 20, MONDAY Clermont Chamber of Commerce, Golf for Kids | 10 a.m. Oasis Golf Club.

DETAILS: Contest holes, raffles, bottle pull. Lunch, dinner, awards. ¼https://clermontchamber.com

SEPT. 21, TUESDAY Dress for Success, Fashion Show | noon-1:30 p.m. Hard Rock Casino.  STORY, this page.

SEPT. 23, THURSDAY Hearing Speech + Deaf Center, Annual Laura and Richard Kretschmer Service Award Gala | 6 p.m. Bell Event Centre, Pendleton.  STORY, page 27.

Ohio Valley Voices, Annual “LOVVE Amplified” Fashion Show | 5-9 p.m. Fowling Warehouse, 2940 Highland Ave. DETAILS: Hosted by WCPO’s Kristyn Hartman. Fashion by DAAP students and fashion-forward outfits from local stores.

Shop local vendors, dinner-by-the-bite, silent auction and grand raffle. ¼www.ohiovalleyvoices.org

SEPT. 24-26, FRIDAY-SUNDAY Dayton Art Institute, Oktoberfest | noon. Dayton, OH. DETAILS: Lederhosen Lunch and Preview Party on Friday, followed by Oktoberfest on Saturday, noon11:30 p.m. and Sunday, noon-7 p.m. ¼www.daytonartinstitute.org/

oktoberfest SEPT. 24, FRIDAY Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cincinnati, 3rd annual The BIG Breakfast | 7:30 a.m. Hyatt Regency, downtown. DETAILS: Keynote speakers for “Together We Are Defenders of Potential” are CEOs David Taylor of Procter & Gamble and Rodney McMullen of Kroger, sharing personal insight into importance of mentoring. Sponsors include Kraft Heinz, Sycamore Capital, EY, Kroger and P&G. ¼www.bigsforkids.org

Cincinnati Zoo, Zoofari: “Twenty Twenty One-derland” | 7 p.m.

DETAILS: Returning chairs Michelle and 26

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Peter Barrett. Alice in Wonderlandthemed event has outgrown its tent and will be spread around the entire zoo. Dinner-by-the-bite samples from local restaurants, creative cocktails and entertainment, while wandering through themed sections of the zoo. ¼http://cincinnatizoo.org/events/zoofari

SEPT. 25, SATURDAY Melanoma Know More, Moving Against Melanoma Walk | 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Lunken Airport Playfield - Spirit of ‘76 Shelter Area. DETAILS: Two-mile walk at Lunken Airport Playfield followed by picnic with music, sponsor booths, food and drink, kids’ activities, raffles and more. Participants receive T-shirt; bandanas for dogs. ¼https://melanomaknowmore.com

Sonder & Friends, Oktoberfest 5K | 10 a.m. Sonder Brewing, Mason.

DETAILS: Register to run, walk or “I’d Rather Drink than Run.” Kids’ Root Beer Run. Local German beers, food, kids’ activities and live music. Awards for best costumes. Oktoberfest-themed shirts.

Benefiting Greater Project, serving children in need by creating generational change. ¼https://bit.ly/Oktoberfest5K2021

Crystal Faulkner

 Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney

Dress for Success annual fashion show at Hard Rock Casino Saturday, Sept. 21, noon, Hard Rock Casino, downtown Dress for Success Cincinnati will hold its 20th Annual Fashion Show at the Hard Rock Casino.

The event includes the fashions of Daniel Wingate, the presentation of the Mary Ivers Award and a reception/raffle held at 10:30 a.m.

The 2021 honorees: • Crystal Faulkner, co-host of BusinessWise Radio and community champion for regional businesses and nonprofits.

• Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney, entrepreneur and Cincinnati City Council member.

Dress for Success Cincinnati empowers women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of support, professional attire and development tools.

Tickets are $100-$200 and include parking. Must be 21 to attend. Presenting sponsor is the Western and Southern Financial Group.  www.dfscincy.org

SEPT. 27, MONDAY DePaul Cristo Rey, Golf Classic | noon. Western Hills Country Club.

DETAILS: Four-person scramble format including skills contests. Lunch and cocktail reception with prizes. ¼www.depaulcristorey.org

SEPT. 28, TUESDAY UC Cancer Center, Annual Slice Night | 5-9 p.m. Yeatman’s Cove.  STORY, page 29.

SEPT. 29 WEDNESDAY Music & Wellness Coalition, Music & Medicine Conference | 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Virtual. DETAILS: Guest speakers and panel discussions. Registration: $90. ¼www.musicandwellness.net

SEPT. 30, THURSDAY Aviatra Accelerators, Networking Celebration | 5-7 p.m. Cooper Creek Event Center, Blue Ash. DETAILS: Reception, premiere networking event, and celebration. Tickets: $125-$250. ¼https://aviatraaccelerators.org

Bust a Crust with Meals on Wheels Sunday, Sept. 19, 8:30 a.m., Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum Meals on Wheels Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky has announced the Bust a Crust! Pie-K 5K Run/Walk. The timed race is open to all people and will help Meals on Wheels feed more than 10,000 local seniors.

“Participants will support our mission to help seniors live independently by bringing healthy meals to their doors, checking on their well-being, and providing care and human connection,” said Jennifer Steele, Meals on Wheels CEO. The event kicks off the Bust a Crust! annual fundraiser, scheduled for Oct. 15-Nov. 15. Meals on Wheels expects to sell nearly 10,000 pies to benefit seniors in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky region. All participants will receive a Bust a Crust! Pie-K 5K T-shirt and a unique commemorative medal. Following the race, participants will enjoy treats, drinks and music.  www.muchmorethanameal.org/piek Donated pies ready to be delivered at the 2020 Bust a Crust

Jennifer Steele

DATEBOOK

Friday, October 8th Donna Mayerson

Barbara Bailey

Hearing Speech + Deaf Center to honor Mayerson at fundraiser Thursday, Sept. 23, 6 p.m., Bell Event Centre, 444 Reading Road The Hearing and Speech + Deaf Center will honor Donna Mayerson at the Fifth Annual Laura and Richard Kretschmer Service Award Gala. The award recognizes Mayerson’s service to the organization as a volunteer and board member.

Established in 2017, the award recognizes individuals demonstrating excellence in volunteerism. The

event begins with a reception at 6 p.m followed by dinner at 7 p.m.

The center also will recognize Barbara Bailey with its Shining Star Award. She is a member of the organization’s Deaf Advisory Council, which aids the development of programs for the deaf community.

The event will also raise funds to help the center to continue offering its audiology, speech/occupational therapy and deaf advocacy services.  www.hearingspeechdeaf.org

DAAP students partner with OVV for sixth annual fashion show Thursday, Sept. 23, 5-9 p.m., Cincinnati Fowling Warehouse, 2940 Highland Ave Ohio Valley Voices has partnered with the University of Cincinnati’s prestigious DAAP Fashion Design program to present the sixth annual L(OVV)E Amplified Fashion Show.

This year’s event begins with shopping from local vendors, dinner by the bite, silent auction and raffles for a choice of getaways.

Attendees will then enjoy a show of outfits designed and made by DAAP fashion students, along with fashion-forward outfits from local stores, worn on the runway by professional models and OVV students, staff and community members.

Mikki Schaffner Photography The event is hosted by WCPO’s Kristyn Hartman, and every dollar raised goes toward helping the children of OVV learn how to listen and speak through the use of cochlear implants or hearing aids.  www.ohiovalleyvoices.org

The Great

GALA Cook-Off

Ohio Valley Voices alumna Sophia Blessing walks the runway in an outfit designed by a DAAP graduate in the 2020 fashion show.

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

27

DATEBOOK Center for Respite Care, Transformation Awards | 7 p.m.

Virtual. DETAILS: Hour-long program, hosted by Local 12’s Liz Bonis, will highlight this year’s honorees: Impact 100, Our Daily Bread, The Chertock Family, Mary Ellen-Tobe Roberts. ¼www.centerforrespitecare.org

Project Yoga, Illumination: A Celebration of Community Connection | 6-9 p.m. The Transept, 1205 Elm St.  STORY, page 29.

Santa Maria Community Services, The Sharing Table | 6-9 p.m. ARCO/ Price Hill Will, 3301 Price Ave. DETAILS: Dinner, raffles, music. MC: Bob Herzog (WKRC news anchor). Guest Speaker: Dr. O’dell Owens. ¼www.sharing-table.org

OCT. 1, FRIDAY Cincinnati Parks Foundation, Hats Off Luncheon | DETAILS: Take a small group of friends or family to your favorite neighborhood Cincinnati Park to partake in a community picnic. Donors receive a collapsible, insulated picnic basket which includes picnic essentials. ¼www.cincinnatiparksfoundation.org

Ovarian Cancer Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, Jeans & Jewels Gala | 6-10 p.m. Fairfield Receptions.

DETAILS: Hors d’oeuvres, open bar during cocktail hour, dinner, dessert, wine with dinner, silent and live auction, wine pull, bourbon pull, jewelry raffle. ¼www.cincyovariancancer.org/events

WAVE Foundation, Nauti Nite | 7:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. Newport Aquarium.

DETAILS: Dress in blue cocktail attire and explore Newport Aquarium at night.

Food and drink from more than 20 vendors, exotic animal encounters from alligators to penguins, live entertainment and silent auction. Tickets start at $85. ¼https://wavefoundation.org

OCT. 2, SATURDAY 1N5, Warrior Run | 5:15 p.m.

Belltower at Dogwood Park, Mariemont.  STORY, page 29.

Alzheimer’s Association, Walk to End Alzheimer’s | 8:30 a.m.

Sawyer Point. DETAILS: Pre-walk activities, ceremony, walk. Sign up as team captain, join a team or as individual. ¼www.alz.org/walk

28

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

OCT. 3, SUNDAY Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame, Annual Induction Ceremony | 3-5 p.m. Mount St. Joseph University Theatre.  STORY, page 8.

Holocaust & Humanity Center, 21st Anniversary Celebration | 5:30 p.m.

Cincinnati Museum Center. DETAILS: Festive gathering marking HHC’s birthday and highlighting work HHC does in the community. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, live music, photo booth, video toast booth. ¼www.holocaustandhumanity.org

OCT. 4, MONDAY Dragonfly, Golf Classic | 10 a.m.7 p.m. Heritage Club Golf Course, Mason.

DETAILS: Emcee: Scott Sloan of WLW. Golf, food, cocktail hour, entertainment, silent auction, awards ceremony. ¼https://dragonfly.org/events/golf

Ken Anderson Alliance, Legends Golf Event | Traditions Golf Club. DETAILS: Sponsorships and foursomes available. Sponsorships include entry into pre-party dinner, Oct. 3, at New Riff in Distillery in Newport. ¼info@kenandersonalliance.org

or kenandersonalliance.org/events St. Joseph Home, Golf Classic | Maketewah Country Club DETAILS: Golf in support of complex disability care.

Tickets and sponsorships available.

Registration includes lunch, golf, cart, open bar and light bites after. Gear and bourbon raffles throughout the day. ¼www.stjosephhomegolfclassic.org

OCT. 6, WEDNESDAY Leadership Council for Nonprofits, Annual Nonprofit Leadership Summit | 7:30-11:30 a.m. Cintas Center, Xavier University. DETAILS: Breakfast, networking. Keynote: Sheri Chaney Jones, founder and CEO of Measurement Resources Co. and SureImpact Inc. Virtual attendance by request. Cost: $55, LC & AFP members; $75, non-members; $25, students ¼www.afpcincinnati.org

OCT. 7, THURSDAY Junior Achievement of OKI Partners, 2021 Hall of Fame Laureates | Cintas Center, Xavier University. DETAILS:  STORY, page 30.

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Light The Night | 5:30 p.m.

Yeatman’s Cove. DETAILS: In-person and virtual options available. Register a team or as an individual. Survivor celebration, remembrance area, stage program, 1-2 mile walk. ¼www.lightthenight.org

OCT. 9, SATURDAY Chatfield College, Chatfield of Dreams Celebration | 1544 Central Pkwy. DETAILS: Food, music, drinks, silent and live auctions. ¼https://chatfield.edu

La Soupe, ALL La SOUPEd UP! | 6 p.m. 4320 Indeco Ct., Blue Ash, OH. DETAILS: Exclusive access to private collection of restored vehicles.

Catering, open bar, and chance to win a car from the collection. ¼daniel@lasoupe.org

or 513-271-0100 OCT. 12, TUESDAY Metropolitan Club, 2021 Metropolitan Award | DETAILS: Honoring Candace McGraw, CEO of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. ¼859-491-2400

or reception@metropolitanclub.net OCT. 13, WEDNESDAY Cris Collinsworth ProScan Fund, The Pink Ribbon, 20th Anniversary | 7:30 p.m. Icon Music Center. DETAILS: Concert with Kool & the Gang, fireworks. ¼https://ccpf.org

YWCA Greater Cincinnati, Annual Racial Justice Virtual Breakfast | 8-9:30 a.m. Online.  STORY, page 30.

OCT. 14, THURSDAY Cincinnati Zoo, Zoo Brew | 7-9:30 p.m. DETAILS: Country artists Elvie Shane and Niko Moon to perform. Opportunities to see animals, beer sampling stations. ¼www.cincinnatizoo.org

Haitian Timoun Foundation, Moving Mountains Gala | 6:30 p.m. Manor House, Mason.  STORY page 29.

Life Enriching Communities & Concord Reserve Foundations, A Musical Feast | 7 p.m. Virtual.

DETAILS: Performances featuring artists-in-residence from University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music.

Online silent auction. ¼https://lec.org/amf

OCT. 16, SATURDAY Cooperative for Education, Fall Fiesta | 7-8 p.m. Virtual. DETAILS: Livestream program, online silent auction, luxury raffle and more. Host watch party with cocktail kit by Karrikin Spirits.

Registration: free, but required. ¼www.coeduc.org/fiesta

Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati, 30th Anniversary | DETAILS: TBA ¼https://ihncincinnati.org

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, 2021 International Freedom Conductor Awards Gala | Duke Energy Convention Center. DETAILS: Honoring Amal and George Clooney, the late John Lewis and Bryan Stevenson. ¼www.freedomcenter.org



There is more Datebook online . . .

Make sure your fundraiser, friend-raiser or community event is listed at www.moversmakers.org/datebook Listings are free.* NPOs may send event details and photos to: editor@moversmakers.org Stand out

Consider advertising. Contact Thom Mariner at tmariner@moversmakers.org for digital and print options. *See Page 4 for print deadlines. Events must meet our editorial standards.

Featured content is chosen at the discretion of editorial staff.

DATEBOOK

1N5’s Warrior Run supports kids’ mental health Saturday, Oct. 2, 5:15 p.m., The Belltower at Dogwood Park, Mariemont

Adults and child at the Bethany House partaking in a weekly Project Yoga class

Project Yoga celebrates mindfulness community Thursday, Sept. 30, 6-9 p.m., The Transept, 1205 Elm St. Project Yoga, a leader for yoga and mindfulness education to benefit at-risk communities, is hosting Illumination: A Celebration of Community Connection, its annual in-person fundraiser.

Illumination participants will celebrate the healing and therapeutic benefits of yoga and mindfulness while supporting Project

Yoga’s programs for Cincinnati Public Schools’ partners, homeless women at Bethany House and many others.

Meriden McGraw, local mindfulness expert and co-founder of Quidwell, will host a session on her work teaching individual and group techniques for optimal wellbeing. Tickets are $100; $75 for young professionals and yoga teachers.  www.projectyogacincinnati.org

1N5 hosts this year’s Warrior Run: The Race for Life live and in-person, with a virtual option for those who prefer it. This event includes a 5K race, an untimed 1-mile walk and a Kids’ Fun Run through the streets of Mariemont, all to benefit Cincinnati Children’s Hospital’s Adapt for Life program supporting the mental health and wellbeing of

students grades K-12.

The race is followed by a night of music, kids’ games, and food from local establishments.

1N5 is a non-profit organization with a mission to prevent suicide by erasing the stigma of mental illness and promoting optimal mental wellness. 1N5 works directly with 85 local schools and six universities to provide customized, evidence-based mental health education programs.  www.1N5.org Mariemont residents Mary Beth and Randy York participate in the Warrior Run in memory of Jim Miller and to support 1N5.

Eighth annual Slice Night serves up proceeds for UC Cancer Center Tuesday, Sept. 28, 5-9 p.m., Yeatman’s Cove Slice Night is a family-friendly pizza-tasting event representing more than 10 Cincinnati pizzerias, with local music and entertainment courtesy of Q102.

Proceeds benefit the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center.

“It will be a great night and we

are most thankful for all of you being a part of our team in fighting this disease,” said Syed Ahmad, Cancer Center co-director.

Tickets are available online in advance for $20, or $25 at the door. Tickets for children cost $5.

A $75 VIP ticket includes a parking pass and access to the VIP tent.  foundation.uc.edu/slicenight

Pinot (dog), Cass Fisher, Annie Hollon and Alex Heekin at Slice Night 2019

Photo by C atherine Vox

Rev. Dr. Rick Barger, founder of Haitian Timoun Foundation

Daphnee Charles, Haitian Education and Leadership Program development director

Fond-Rose Luckner, Haitian Timoun Foundation’s in-country director, right, presents a Haitian woman with food supplies.

Gala to help fight Haitian poverty Thursday, Oct. 14, 6:30 p.m., Manor House, 7440 Mason Montgomery Road, Mason The Haitian Timoun Foundation (HTF) is hosting the Moving Mountains Gala to invest in causes to fight Haitian poverty, along with emergency aid in wake of the recent earthquake in Haiti.

The fundraiser features food and beverages, plus live and silent auctions.

Among the guests will be HTF founder Dr. Rick Barger, In-country Director Fond-Rose Luckner and Daphnee Charles, director of development for the Haitian Education and Leadership Program (HELP).

HTF aims to “move mountains” by empowering Haitian people to break the cycle of poverty, an effort it has maintained for more than 20 years. The foundation is asking for donations to help with earthquake relief, providing necessities such as water, food and first aid.  www.htflive.org Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

29

DATEBOOK From left: John W. Hayden Ralph Lazarus Joseph Mayernik Edwin J. Rigaud Pauline Strayhorn Peg Wyant

Cincinnati Business Hall of Fame laureates to be honored Oct. 7 Thursday, Oct. 7, Cintas Center, Xavier University The Greater Cincinnati Business Hall of Fame, along with Junior Achievement of OKI Partners Inc. and the Cincinnati Museum Center will hold an induction ceremony for the 2021 Hall of Fame Laureates.

Laureates are selected for their business leadership and

entrepreneurial vision. They are typically selected after they retire from day-to-day operations of their businesses. A video of each laureate’s achievements is presented at the induction ceremony and archived at the Cincinnati Museum Center. The event benefits Junior Achievement of OKI Partners Inc. and its mission to empower young people to own their economic success.

The inductees: • John W. Hayden, retired president and CEO, Midland Company • Ralph Lazarus, chairman, Federated Department Stores (posthumous) • Joseph Mayernik, executive chairman, Prodigo Solutions, Inc.; founder and CEO, Senoma Holdings LLC • Edwin J. Rigaud, founder,

Legacy Acquisition Corp.; groundbreaking executive, Procter & Gamble • Pauline Strayhorn, executive vice president, Major Federal Savings and Loan (posthumous) • Peg Wyant, founder and CEO, Grandin Properties; groundbreaking executive, Procter & Gamble  http://.hof.japartners.org

YWCA breakfast to explore racism, honor justice advocates Wednesday, Oct. 13, 8-9:30 a.m., online Richard Rothstein will be the keynote speaker at YWCA Greater Cincinnati’s 21st annual Racial Justice Breakfast. Rothstein is a Distinguished Fellow of the Economic Policy Institute and author of “The Color of Law.” This year’s racial justice honorees are Ennis Tait and Renee Mahaffey Harris.

Bishop Tait, founder of the New Beginnings Church of the Living God of Avondale, is also president of the Faith Community Alliance and leader of the Positive Force movement.

Harris, president of The Health Gap, is a

30

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

prolific advocate for marginalized populations in Greater Cincinnati. While leading The Health Gap, Harris has launched the Do Right!

Campaign and the Black Women’s Health Movement.

Attendees of the breakfast will explore the

ramifications of systemic racism.

“This event is one of many YWCA initiatives uniting the Greater Cincinnati community and inspiring attendees to join us to create social change,” said YWCA CEO Barbara Perez.  www.ywcacincinnati.org/RJBreak

From left: Bishop Ennis Tait Renee Mahaffey Harris Richard Rothstein

NAMES IN THE NEWS

Anna Hehman

Michael Rose

Felicity Tao

Guillermo Villa

Brianna Matzke

J.R. Foster

Rogelle Hackworth

Craig Jackson

Laura Lewin

John Webster

Roseann Culley Hayes

Monica DeFosse

Julie Cohen Theobald

Leslie Mehta

Padma Chebrolu

Sid Taylor



The Cincinnati Observatory has promoted Operations Director Anna Hehman to executive director. Hehman, with the Observatory since January 2015, will be the first woman to serve as executive director. She has 15 years of experience working for nonprofits, notably the American Cancer Society and Notre Dame Academy.

She has served on the boards of Community Shares of Greater Cincinnati and Xavier University’s Private Interests in Public Good (PIPG) program.



Cincinnati Classical Academy has selected Michael Rose as its founding headmaster. The new tuition-free public school will open in fall 2022 with grades K-6, and will offer a classical, liberal arts education with instruction in moral character and civic virtue. The school plans to add a grade each year until it serves grades K-12. Rose, who has degrees from University of Cincinnati’s DAAP, Brown University and Xavier University, has taught at St. Edmund Campion Academy, Moeller High School and Summit Country Day School.



Felicity Tao has joined Greater Cincinnati Foundation as the new senior director, marketing, with responsibility for driving strategic marketing, integrated communications and brand strategies. Prior to joining GCF, she served as the senior marketing communications manager at Cincinnati Bell, before becoming senior brand strategist in 2019.



Guillermo Villa has been appointed board chair of Santa Maria Community Services.

Villa has been a part of the Santa Maria board since 2016, serving as secretary, governance committee chair and vice chair. He has been employed at Johnson & Johnson since 2003, where he is a director in the medical devices sector.



Brianna Matzke, assistant professor of music at Wilmington College, has been named executive director of Cortona Sessions for New Music, a destination for emerging composers and performers. Matzke earned her bachelor's in music from the University of Kansas and a Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She also runs “The Response Project” where composers write music based on a pre-existing artwork or idea.



Beech Acres Parenting Center has announced five new members joining its board of directors for 2021-22: J.R. Foster, president and managing partner for the Robert Louis Group, a real estate brokerage and capital market firm; Rogelle Hackworth, a director for personal health care for Procter & Gamble; Craig Jackson, director of cooperative purchasing for Cintas Corporation and vice chairman of the Forest Park Economic Development Commission; Laura Lewin, senior business director for the Heart Institute at Cincinnati Children’s



Hospital and a member of the American College of Cardiology; John Webster, a business director for Cincinnati Children’s Hospital who is active with Generation NOW Cincy and the Leadership Council for Nonprofits.



Roseann Culley Hayes has been appointed vice president of advancement of Learning Grove.

An alumna of Denison University and Ohio State University, Hayes has more than 25 years of experience with nonprofit organizations, serving in program and fundraising positions for 55 North and Christ Hospital Foundation, among others.



Monica DeFosse has been named the first development director for Cincinnati Right to Life, where she will direct all fundraising efforts and events. Fosse is a 2021 graduate of the University of Cincinnati, where she worked with organizations such as Hillel, the Society of Saint Paul, the Zionist Organization of America and Students for Life.



The Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas, in Napa, Calif., has appointed Julie Cohen Theobald as its executive director. Theobald, the first female executive director and CEO of the Cincinnati-based nonprofit Education Theatre Organization, will remain in Cincinnati and direct the wine-education organization remotely.

The International Rett Syndrome Foundation, based in Cincinnati, has appointed Leslie Mehta to its board of directors.

An attorney and chief of staff at the Richmond (Va.) Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Mehta has been an advocate for research, education and support for families affected by Rett Syndrome, a genetic neurological disorder that occurs primarily in girls.



Padma Chebrolu, a dancer, teaching artist and artistic director of the Cultural Centre of India in Cincinnati, has been awarded the 2021 Ohio Heritage Fellowship Award for Performing Arts from the Ohio Arts Council (OAC). Chebrolu, a native of India, began teaching dance as a teenager, and has taught at the Cultural Centre of India for more than 25 years. The OAC fellowships are $5,000 awards given in the categories of performing arts, material culture and community leadership.



Sid Taylor has been named director of DePaul Cristo Rey High School’s Corporate Work Study Program. DPCR is the only local high school to offer such a program. Taylor, a graduate of Ashford University and the Union Institute & University, has had leadership roles with Boys Hope Girls Hope, Lighthouse Youth Services and the Center for Employment Opportunities.

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

31

FOCUS ON: JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL

‘Renewal & Resilience’ Cincinnati Jews look forward by honoring the contributions of their ancestors Reader version for devices

T

his year marks the 200th anniversary of Jewish community life in Cincinnati, which formally began with the founding of Chestnut Street Cemetery. The Jewish community and the City of Cincinnati will commemorate this milestone through public celebrations, multi-generational programs and interactive experiences. Through connecting with the organizers of the bicentennial, who also are leaders in organizations throughout the city, we gained insight into Cincinnati’s past and visions for our future. We learned how personal connections to Judaism have influenced their faith, values and love of Cincinnati, as they shared perspectives on subjects from the universality of immigrant contributions to our culture, to anti-Semitism, and much more in between.

David Harris

A death signifies the birth of a Jewish community in Cincinnati

I

By Madeline Anderson

t all started in 1821 on Chestnut Street in the West End, when the earliest Jewish settlers to Cincinnati founded the first Jewish cemetery west of the Allegheny Mountains. The Chestnut Street Cemetery not only established a final resting place for Cincinnati’s Jewish people, but began 200 years of rich Jewish tradition in the region.

“It’s not just the cemetery that we’re commemorating, but really the birth of an organized Jewish community here,” said David Harris, executive director of Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati.

JCGC was founded in 2008 to oversee 25 Jewish cemeteries in the region. Harris manages the day-to-day operations as well as its strategic planning and nonprofit functions. He said he feels called by a sense of tradition and duty to maintain these sacred resting places for his community.

“We are really the keepers of the history and 32

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

‘Plum Street Temple, Cincinnati, 1866-present,’ by J. Miles Wolfe David Harris in the Chestnut Street Cemetery

David Harris

the heritage of the community as a whole,” Harris said. It was Harris who first recognized the significance of the Chestnut Street Cemetery’s anniversary.

“Despite certainly having their own religious culture and tradition, Jewish Americans have been active and engaged members of American society since they arrived here,” he said. “The community is more, I always say, than just the sum of its individuals. Some of the people who are buried here have played such an important role in the history of the city in its philanthropic life, in its political life, in the art community.

There must be some ethos to the city that allowed for the Jewish community to thrive in the way that it has here.”

Together, JCGC and the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati developed the yearlong Jewish Bicentennial celebration to engage the whole city and recognize the contributions immigrant and minority groups have made to both the city and the country as a whole.

The bicentennial’s kickoff celebration will begin with the rededication of the Chestnut Street Cemetery on Sept. 26. Visitors will be able to admire the cemetery’s improvements, as well as an education plaza about early settlers, complete with an official Ohio Historical Marker.

Throughout the year, JCGC programming will focus on: genealogy, complete with an event for families to interview their grandparents; photography, as an initiative for young photographers

to display their work; mourning and burial customs, for many faiths to share their end-oflife traditions; and tours of the cemeteries this spring. Harris particularly loves sharing the history of the cemeteries during tours.

Though not originally from Cincinnati, Harris loves experiencing the city’s current cultural renaissance. “It’s really great to be a part of a city that is experiencing so many of the things that I know are going to make it a great place in the future,” he said. “And we’re really looking forward to the opportunity to share this occasion with the city as a whole.” 

Danielle Minson

Holding true to the past while making changes for the future

A

By Madeline Leesman

s president and interim CEO of the Jewish Federation, Danielle Minson will be a presenting partner within the Jewish Bicentennial celebration this year. Minson, raised in the Jewish faith in Cincinnati, has been in her faith-driven career for 25 years. Her work with the Federation in Cincinnati spans 20 years, and she spent a few years in the early 2000s with the organization’s Philadelphia chapter. Minson’s deep-rooted family ties to the city and to her faith have inspired her to

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL continue her family’s legacy through her work with the Federation.

“I have been a proud member of the Jewish community my entire life. I have also worked professionally in the Jewish community throughout my entire career,” said Minson.

“I feel very proud that I’ve come of age in our Jewish community, (which) has shaped the adult and Jewish individual that I am.”

Minson’s familial ties to Cincinnati trace back to her grandfather, who came to the Queen City in the early 1900s from the former Soviet Union. “I have a very proud history and legacy of my family in Cincinnati, and my family’s been very actively involved in the Jewish community,” Minson said. At the Federation, Minson discovered in a donor honor roll from 1941 that her grandfather and two great uncles were listed; her grandfather gave $2. “What’s so meaningful to me about that was that it was $2 then, and today it would’ve been the equivalent of $36. And any dollar amount in 18 represents the two Hebrew letters equivalent to ‘chai,’ which means ‘to life, health, luck, fortune,’... and to me, it’s all that, double-chai.”

Minson’s interwoven faith and career life path was heavily influenced by an experience she had in Israel before she Brian Jaffee began her professional career.

In her early 20s, Minson springboarded her career in Israel where she participated in a yearlong volunteerism program that changed her outlook on what kind of work she wanted to spend her life doing.

“When I went on this experience, it further committed me to the Jewish people,” Minson said. “One of the things that I am very proud of with the Jewish Federation system is that we are a network, and through our global network, we are able to provide support Danielle Minson on a moment’s notice anywhere to any person around the world.

And being in Israel, living in Israel – with other North Americans, who were both learning more about our Jewish identity, learning more about Israel and the Jewish people – when I came back there was no question for me that I wanted to spend my life working in the Jewish community.”

These life-changing moments, as well as Minson’s day-to-day work at the Federation over the years, have inspired her unwavering dedication to the Jewish community. “We certainly

are standing on the shoulders of the people who came before us,” Minson said. “I feel this strong sense of responsibility to hold true to the past and also make change for our future.” 

Brian Jaffee

Values of Judaism offer a code for success

B

By Katie Fiorelli

rian Jaffee is well-poised to plan for what lies ahead while remaining guided by principles from the past. He serves as the CEO of the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati, relaunched during the 2009-10 economic crisis.

Most of his days are focused on the foundation’s mission: advancing the health, growth and future of Cincinnati’s Jewish community.

He is proud that his organization is helping to fund the Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial.

Jaffee complements his forward-thinking focus with an identity forged by the ancient teachings of Judaism.

“The sense of history means so much to Judaism,” Jaffee said. “Our rituals and religious practices are so tied in to that history, it encourages you as a participant to feel as if you’re experiencing part of the story, which is meaningful to me as a Jew.” Judaism is a way of life for Jaffee. “It’s certainly my religious faith, but more than that I feel like I’m part of something bigger than myself.

There’s a people, a peoplehood and national component to my Jewish identity. That sense of peoplehood and commonality with other Jews is really important to my life.”

Jaffee grew up in Oberlin, Ohio, and worked in New York City and Washington, D.C., prior to moving back to the Midwest. When he and his wife, Rabbi Shena Potter Jaffee, were ready to start their family, Cincinnati was a natural fit.

“My wife grew up in Cincinnati, so we visited a lot,” Jaffee said. “Her folks are here, and we loved the size and the intimacy of the community – both Jewish and civic. It’s an easy city to get around, yet big enough to have a lot of the attractions, like parks, arts, culture, sports and food, that make life interesting.” Today, Jaffee’s daughters are attending Walnut Hills High School, the third generation in their family to do so.

Cincinnati had long served as an anchor for his wife’s family. Her grandfather fled Poland in 1939 with his family, including Rabbi Jaffee’s young father, two weeks before the Nazis

invaded. “The sister of my wife’s grandfather was part of Cincinnati’s Jewish community, and sponsored her brother (Rabbi Jaffee’s grandfather) to immigrate to Cincinnati. When he moved here, Shena’s grandfather didn’t speak a word of English. Within three years he owned his own general store in the West End. The immigrant story never fails to amaze me.”

Despite a family history deeply tied to the pain of anti-Semitism, Jaffee adopts a pragmatic mindset on the state of the world. “There’s very little that concerns me about being a minority.

I am not sanguine about the resurgence of antiSemitism around the country, but it does not preoccupy me. I never take for granted that any religious or ethnic minority is completely safe because there is a lot of hate in the world, but I don’t spend a lot of time telling my children that this is a dangerous world in which to be Jewish,” Jafee said.

His perspective might be buoyed by his experience living here. “One of the special qualities of our local Jewish community is how tight-knit and collaborative the community is,” said Jafee.

“From what I’ve heard, in other cities there can be more infighting over turf or territory. I’m proud of how Jewish professionals in Cincinnati look out for each other, root for each other’s successes, and share information and ideas that lift up the entire community.”

This feeling originates from the peoplehood that Jaffee identifies with so deeply. “The values and principles that Judaism teaches offer a code that helps me succeed in the world,” Jaffee said, “and help make the world a better place.”

Marie Krulewitch-Browne

Bridging Jewish identity with arts and culture

E

By Madeline Anderson

nvisioning a yearlong anniversary celebration of religion, culture and community may come only once a generation. For Marie Krulewitch-Browne, a “Cincinnati transplant with Cincinnati roots,” the celebration revolves deeply around shared identity.

Growing up in an interfaith Catholic-Jewish family in Indianapolis (her father’s Jewish family is from Cincinnati), she had “this exposure to the breadth and depth of what Jewish identity can mean. Being thoughtful about our actions, our intentions and how we spend our time is core to Jewish wisdom, regardless of where you’re at culturally or religiously.”

Krulewitch-Browne serves as the project manager for the Jewish Bicentennial.

“I am helping to support this group of incredible professionals to envision a yearlong celebration where each of our organizations have Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

33

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL an opportunity to share more about our work and what we do day-to-day,” she said, “but then also collaborate and collectively kind of co-design partnered experiences that are unique and special for the celebration year.”

Krulewitch-Browne got involved in the bicentennial celebration as the founder of a biannual Jewish and Israeli arts and culture festival called “ish.” The festival was a resounding success after its start in 2017, and she serves as ish’s executive and artistic Marie director.

Krulewitch-Browne She created ish for three reasons: to celebrate Jewish artists and get their names out to connect them broadly to Jewish and non-Jewish communities; to welcome a wider Jewish audience who may feel more “-ish” than “Jew” and may not have many opportunities to celebrate non-religious Judaism; and to bring Jewish culture back to the urban core, where Jewish Cincinnatians first settled but have since migrated outward.

“Jewish arts and culture is Rabbi something that everybody can Gary Zola participate in and appreciate,” Krulewitch-Browne said. “I was looking for opportunities for people to be able to be proud of who they are and proud of their identity.”

This year, ish will present its largest festival to date: a two-day celebration in Washington Park on Sept. 25-26 to kick off the bicentennial, with renowned singer, rapper and beatboxer Matisyahu headlining on Saturday night.

Krulewitch-Browne is particularly proud of both the contributions that Jewish Cincinnatians were able to have and of the region for celebrating and welcoming immigrants and individuals of diverse backgrounds.

“I think that’s something our community should continue to rally around for the next 200 years.

“When we all take a moment to celebrate and look a little inward, even as far as who’s around our street corner, and take opportunities to celebrate and connect with neighbors over shared arts experiences, it’s so beautiful.

It’s so powerful. And it’s just straight-up so much fun.” 

34

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Rabbi Gary Zola

Connect with Judaism through head, heart and hands

By Shasta Taber

“A

merican Jewish history is nothing more than American history,” said Rabbi Gary

P. Zola.

A professor at Hebrew Union College, Zola is executive director of HUC’s American Jewish Archives – only the second director since it was established by his mentor, Jacob Rader Marcus, in 1947. The archives will celebrate its 75th anniversary next year.

Zola, on the steering committee for the Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial, believes that anniversaries are a great time to promote, inspire and to talk about important ideas. “Jews are a portion of the people,” even if a relatively small portion, Zola said. He believes the bicentennial is a way for the whole community to celebrate, because if Cincinnati had not welcomed the Jewish community, the city “would not look the way it does today.”

Zola, born and raised near Chicago, attended Hebrew Union College while pursuing his rabbinical studies. After spending the first year at the Jerusalem campus, a requirement to master the Hebrew language, he moved to the Cincinnati campus and has never left.

He’s quite proud of Cincinnati’s Jewish history – not only with the creation of the American Jewish Archives (the largest in the world), but also the many other important contributions that the Jewish people made to Cincinnati.

Among those contributions: the creation in the 1850s of Jewish Hospital, which serves the whole community.

Zola is also proud of how Cincinnati’s big history allows the city to have many assets, like J. Miles Wolf sports teams and cultural groups, that other similarly sized cities do not. Zola believes that if the city continues in the same direction, then the overall community – and the Jewish community with it – will continue to flourish and “maybe even see a renaissance.”

Zola believes that there are three ways to connect to Judaism: Through the head, focusing on the intellectual connection to the Jewish heritage (through the study of ancient writings, literature, and text). Through the heart, with religious

traditions (holidays and celebrations). Through the hands, leading to activities that contribute to society. Zola feels most connected by his head, and inspires his ‘hands’ to give back.

He works on community relations – both interfaith and with the African American community. He was also appointed to the U.S. Commission of Preservation of American History Abroad by President Obama, serving between 2011 and 2019, and was on the Academic Advisory Committee for the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation in 2009.

Zola is married; he and his wife, Stefi, have two daughters, two sons and five grandchildren. His sons and grandchildren all live in Cincinnati. 

J. Miles Wolf

Bringing an architectural link to Cincinnati’s Jewish History

By Shasta Taber

P

hotographer J. Miles Wolf is proud to be from Cincinnati. He believes the city has remarkable cultural and architectural assets to showcase, and is pleased that Cincinnati is “beyond our size for the attractions we have.”

Wolf is also proud of his 100% Jewish background. His ancestors from Russia, Austria and Germany moved to the West End with many other Jewish families in the 1890s.

Wolf, who operates his studio out of a home carriage house, focuses on special projects now.

One of those special projects was a 2018 FotoFocus exhibit on historical buildings connected to Cincinnati’s Jewish community. The exhibit showcased the locations of historical Jewish buildings, including synagogues. For buildings no longer standing, Wolf found old photographs to impose on the sites where they originally stood, creating collages that gave a sense of the location. People from that time, including some linked to the building or even Wolf’s own ancestors, were included.

Due to the attention drawn by the FotoFocus project, he was commissioned for an exhibit at this year’s ish Festival, where he’s “bringing the visual history of Jewish Cincinnati.”

Wolf hopes that the exhibit will allow all people to realize that while relatively small in size, Cincinnati’s Jewish population has always been an integral part of the city. Wolf cites the charitable work that the Jewish community has

35

opening celebration WITH MATISYAHU concert

Saturday, September 25 | 6 p.m. Washington Park

More than 30+ interactive programs and events from Sept 2021 - Oct 2022!

September 25

September 26

MATISYAHU CONCERT & NIGHT MARKET

kickoff ceremony

6 p.m. - 11 p.m.

Washington Park

10 a.m.

Chestnut Street Cemetery

September 26

ISH FESTIVAL

11 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Washington Park

September 30 - October 2

A CITY WITHOUT JEWS

Presented by Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Ensemble Intercontemporain

Movers & Makers

October 17

Upstander Tour

The Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center

SEPTEMBER 2021

35

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL done from the beginning, as well as how civically engaged they are, something that was not allowed in many of their European homelands.

Wolf spends only a small amount of time capturing photographs, devoting 80-90 percent of his time to research, mainly looking for old photographs. In fact, he spends much more time reading old newspapers from the 1890s and 1920s than reading modern publications. Wolf believes that the stories behind the collages he creates are just as interesting as the photographs themselves, allowing people to gain a connection to the history by learning the backstory of the people and the buildings.

Wolf lives in Avondale with his wife, Maura, and has been an active member of the community, serving in leadership roles with the North Avondale Business Association. Of Wolf’s three grown children (two sons and a daughter), his two sons reside in Cincinnati.

Wolf said he is excited about the direction Cincinnati is taking, watching neighborhoods improve and the park systems grow. He also said he believes that while prejudice (including anti-Semitism) runs very deep, the more it is recognized, the easier it is to fight it. 

Tamara Harkavy

A life in Cincinnati built on doing good and giving back

T

By Madeline Leesman

amara Harkavy is serving as co-chair of the bicentennial celebration and as chief development officer of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati. Harkavy’s ties to the city and to Judaism are rooted in her upbringing in the faith and as a lifelong resident of the Queen City. For the bicentennial, she brings a unique perspective from her experience with how Jewish values influenced her entrepreneurial journey and desire to give back to the community.

“The Federation is a machine that was built to do great things for the Tamara Harkavy Jewish community,” Harkavy said.

“We get a chance to celebrate and educate and bring people into the tent around Jewish contributions to the city.” Harkavy notes that the Jewish community has contributed to the city in business and commerce, arts and culture, humanity and education, and Jewish life in “really profound ways that have shaped Cincinnati.”

Prior to working at the Jewish Federation of 36

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Cincinnati, Harkavy was founder and CEO of ArtWorks, a Greater Cincinnati nonprofit that collaborates with businesses and other organizations to create standout works of art and boost the region’s arts reputation. ArtWorks has completed nearly 14,000 public and private art projects.

Harkavy oversaw this impact and expansion over 25 years. She recounts the time when ArtWorks came to fruition, and says she feels tremendous pride and gratitude toward Cincinnati’s Jewish community for their support of ArtWorks from the get-go.

“I know that I could not have done that in any other city but this city. And I couldn’t have done it without the support of the Jewish community,” Harkavy said. “And why the bicentennial is so important is it celebrates the contributions that Jews have made to this city, to the country, and to the world.”

Harkavy’s approach to her career and personal life stem from the Jewish values that have guided her throughout.

“My personal philosophy of Judaism is ‘my door is always open,’ and we embrace diversity and cultures, and that makes us better humans,” Harkavy said.

“It is so important in Jewish Kim Heiman values to really live a life that is steeped in doing good things and giving back to a community,” she said.

“And I think I’ve learned that from my parents, but I see it daily at the Federation. There is so much caring and commitment to the community. Commitment to making sure people are fed, that they have housing, that there’s care for people’s mental health, for people’s physical health. We just have to take care of each other.”

Harkavy anticipates the future of Cincinnati and the role that the Jewish community will continue to play. “I think Cincinnati loves nothing more than to celebrate itself,” Harkavy said.

“I’m passionate about Cincinnati, and I’m super proud of our collective Jewish heritage here.” 

Kim Heiman

Diversity is key in adding richness to the community

By Katie Fiorelli

I

t’s a classic story – an unsuspecting, eligible young person falls in love with a Cincinnatian, and the city’s indescribable pull leads the couple back.

That’s the case for Kim Heiman, managing director of Standard Textile, who grew up in

Nashville and met her husband, Gary, while working at a stock and commodities brokerage firm in Tel Aviv, Israel. Gary’s deep Cincinnati roots eventually led the couple to move here, where they raised a family, grew their business and became pillars of the local philanthropic community, leading the 2018 United Way campaign.

Today, she is co-chairing the Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial, drawing on years of experience organizing wide-ranging events, such as co-chairing the 50th and 60th anniversary celebrations of the state of Israel. She is driven to support the bicentennial due to her deep personal connection to religious pluralism and community collaboration. “I like doing things that are creative and inclusive,” Heiman said.

“I thought if maybe we were coming out of COVID it might be a great time to celebrate what’s so special about Cincinnati and the Jewish community.”

She has taken her skills in synergistic thinking, honed through managing the innovation group at Standard Textile, to this far-reaching celebration.

“Cincinnati’s Jewish community has been very successful in working with various groups in the city,” Heiman said, “reaching out and building relationships with other religions, faith-based groups, and civic groups. To me, that’s the importance of the activities we do as a community. We are able to work cooperatively with other people who share the same values, to make things happen and to improve life for others.”

While unknowns remain because of rising cases of the Delta variant, Heiman is staying hopeful that everyone throughout Greater Cincinnati will find a way to connect with the bicentennial. “I’m very excited about our opening event, a rededication of the Chestnut Street Cemetery downtown, followed by the ish Festival. We’re partnering with so many different organizations and hosting arts events, lectures, tours, concerts; there’s something for everyone,” Heiman said.

After the celebration, Heiman hopes to see a united, invigorated Cincinnati. “I’d like people to say that they learned something about both the history of Cincinnati and the history of the Jewish community in Cincinnati. I would like for them to be excited because we are involving so many different groups of people in this celebration. It’s not just about the Jewish community. I see a lot of beauty in celebrating … how diverse populations can add a richness to the community that uniformity can’t bring.” 

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL

Marc Fisher

The man behind Jewish community’s ‘front door’

M

By Thom Mariner

arc Fisher has found his niche. The Mayerson Jewish Community Center CEO came to this role later in life, but seems to have discovered the home he didn’t know he needed.

“Not until I was 50 did I finally find the thing that I do best,” he said.

A product of “at least” three generations of Cincinnatians, Fisher worked in the family business – Texo Corporation, a specialty and performance chemical manufacturer – which was sold in 1998. He spent the following years immersed in volunteer work with organizations within and outside the Jewish community: the Jewish Federation, Hillel, United Way, American Heart Association and Seven Hills School, among others. Nine years ago, while serving as board president of the Mayerson JCC, he was leading the search for a new CEO. Someone asked, “Why don’t you just do it?” “I discovered that I could do more for the organization if I was inside,” Fisher said.

“The JCC is really the front door to the Jewish community,” Fisher said. “There are no barriers; whether you are Jewish or not, you can be a part of what happens here.” Although the JCC is known primarily for its fitness center, it is much more. “People are blown away when they see all the things we do – from seniors to early childhood school to performing arts, classes on all kinds of topics, events, speakers, sports, games for young or old. I hope the things we do at the ‘J’ can reinforce positive things about the Jewish community.”

Pre-pandemic, the JCC welcomed 27,000 visitors per month, more than every other Jewish organization in the city combined.

The one big bicentennial project for the JCC is “Under One Roof,” held during Sukkot, the Jewish celebration of harvest in late

Marc Fisher

September. The “J” invites 40 to 50 organizations, Jewish and non-Jewish, to submit an art panel inspired by a theme, which this year is “Renewal and Resilience,” the theme of the bicentennial.

When speaking about how Jewish people have contributed to Cincinnati, Fisher said, “The first thing that comes into my head is how proud I am of my brother, Michael, and how he has led Children’s Hospital the last 13 years. He’s

had a major impact on that institution. Also, the rich color Jewish people have added to Cincinnati, from HUC, to the early food businesses – Manischewitz, Kahn’s – to great doctors, like Albert Sabin.”

To Fisher, being Jewish means “living an ethical life and caring about our fellow man. And being an example for my kids and their kids.

I’m not a very religious Jew, but I know we have to start with Jews caring for the Jewish people, and hopefully others will follow.”

Fisher loves Cincinnati because “It’s not too big. It’s got everything you could want in bigger cities. It’s a great place to raise a family.

I just wish we had better sports teams!” 

Jewish Bicentennial Events Sept. 25, 6-11 p.m.

Matisyahu in concert and Night Market, Washington Park Sept. 26, 10 a.m.

Kickoff Ceremony, Chestnut Street Cemetery, Chestnut Street at Central Ave., The West End Sept. 26, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. ish Festival, Washington Park Sept. 30-Oct. 2 “A City Without Jews,” silent film with new score preformed by CSO & Ensemble Intercontemporain, Mayerson JCC, Amberley Village Oct. 17 Upstander Tour, Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center, Union Terminal  www.jewishcincy200.org

Friday, November 19, 2021 Cincinnati Museum Center

Raise a toast to invention, ingenuity and innovation during an adults-only night at the museum!

For tickets and more information, visit cincymuseum.org/layers

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

37

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL

Milestones of the Jewish community in Cincinnati Reader version for devices

1817 | Arrival of Joseph Jonas, who claimed to be the first Jew to settle in Cincinnati.

1821 | Land at Chestnut and Central is purchased from Nicholas Longworth to establish the Chestnut Street Cemetery, used for Jewish burials until 1849. The cemetery, in the West End, is the oldest Jewish cemetery west of the Alleghenies.

T

he Israelites have their great stronghold in this city ...

I doubt whether an equal number of Israelites – estimated at 15,000 – can be found anywhere in the world as prosperous, as well educated, and as highly esteemed.

They occupy honorable positions, and in business their standing is the very best. They are bankers, manufactures, merchants, and professional men, and own and occupy many of the finest buildings.

– Moses King, Esq. for the Boston “Advertiser” and reprinted in the “Ameerican Israelite,” Aug. 1, 1879. (“The Jews of Cincinnati,”

by Jonathan D. Sarna and Nancy H. Klein, 1989)

1824 | K.K. Bene Israel (now Rockdale Temple), the oldest Jewish congregation west of the Alleghenies, is officially established. In 1836, its first synagogue building was built at Sixth and Broadway with contributions from local Jews and gentiles and from Jewish congregations in other cities.

Joseph Jonas

Many business owners began as peddlers

Jewish owner of the Cincinnati Reds.

1883 | First four rabbis educated in

Jewish Hospital

the USA are ordained by HUC at the Plum Street Temple.

1883 | Elias Kahn, a German-Jewish immigrant, establishes Kahn’s Meat Packing in Cincinnati.

1888 | Dov Behr Manischewitz,

1854 | The Israelite (now American

Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise

Plum Street Temple

1854 | Bloch Publishing Company is

Movers & Makers

1889 | The Jewish Home for the 1889 | The first and oldest rabbinical

1866 | Plum Street Temple is built

SEPTEMBER 2021

a Lithuanian-born rabbi and businessman, launches the Manischewitz Company, which started as a small matzah bakery in the basement of his home in Cincinnati.

By the early 20th century, it was shipping mass-produced kosher products throughout the world.

Aged and Infirm is dedicated.

founded by Edward H. Bloch (Wise’s brother-in-law).

38

1877 | Lipman “Lip” Pike is the first

1882 | Justus Thorner is the first

lifetime contract to assume the pulpit of the then-traditional congregation, K.K. Bene Yeshurun (now the Isaac M. Wise Temple). He envisions a new form of American Judaism – later known as Reform Judaism – that will modernize traditional Jewish customs and observances.

at the corner of Eighth and Plum to house the growing Bene Yeshurun congregation. It still stands, a mix of Moorish and Gothic styles, opposite St. Peter in Chains cathedral and catty-corner to City Hall.

congregational association in America, the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (known today as the Union for Reform Judaism), is established. The Union’s purpose is to support American congregations and to provide financial support for Hebrew Union College.

Jewish Cincinnati Reds player and captain.

1854 | Isaac Mayer Wise is given a

Israelite) newspaper is founded by Isaac M. Wise to promote his ideas of American Judaism in Cincinnati and throughout the country.

1873 | The first Jewish

is founded in the basement of K.K. Bene Israel, to educate and ordain American rabbis. HUC moves above ground in 1881 to a large house on West Sixth Street. Funds are raised to build the current campus on Clifton Avenue, which opens in 1912.

1850 | The first Jewish Hospital in America is founded to provide health care for Jews in need. From its earliest days, the Jewish Hospital served people of every faith.

Fleischmann, immigrants from Moravian Silesia, create the first commercially produced yeast in Cincinnati.

1875 | Hebrew Union College (HUC)

1842 | Solomon “Samuel” Fechheimer opens a small dry goods company that will evolve into The Fechheimer Brothers Company which, to this day, manufactures uniforms for public safety workers.

1868 | Charles and Maximilian

association, the Central Conference of American Rabbis, is established.

1893 | The Phoenix Club (Samuel

First HUC classroom

First HUC building

Elias Kahn

Hannaford, architect) is built on the corner of Ninth and Race Streets to house the first Jewish businessmen’s organization in the region.

September 25, 2021 Washington Park, OTR

doors open at 6pm

TICKETS

www.ishFestival.org www.matisyahuworld.com

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL

1896 | Irwin Krohn and Samuel Fechheimer found the KrohnFechheimer Shoe Company, which produces Red Cross shoes.

1896 | Jacob Frank and his brothers Emil and Charles establish Frank’s Spice & Tea Company.

1900 | Two prominent Jews run against one another in the hope of becoming mayor of Cincinnati – the distinguished lawyer Alfred M. Cohen and Julius Fleischmann, son of Charles, a founder of Fleischmann’s Yeast.

Fleischmann wins the election and is later re-elected. At 29, he is the youngest mayor in Cincinnati history.

B

oth Jewish and general philanthropies in Cincinnati rallied in the twentieth century behind the aims of “scientific charity.”

No longer were donors content, as once they had been, to (in the words of the United Jewish Social Agencies) “relieve the deserving poor … prevent want and distress and discourage pauperism.” Instead, they spoke of “prevention,” “social philanthropy” and “education,” and supported projects aimed at improving community (and especially the immigrant community’s) health, welfare and “happiness.”

– “The Jews of Cincinnati,”

by Jonathan D. Sarna and Nancy H. Klein, 1989

1902 | Losantiville Country Club is established in response to the exclusion of Jews from established clubs of the time.

one of the first businesses in Cincinnati to integrate its workforce by training and hiring three black women.

1929 | Sidney Weil becomes majority owner of the Cincinnati Reds.

1931 | Eliezer Silver, the president of Agudath HaRabbonim, the oldest organization of Orthodox rabbis in the US (est.1901), assumes the pulpit of Kneseth Israel Congregation in Cincinnati, where he remained until his death in 1968.

1931 | Jewish Community Center Association is formed by the merger of the Young Men-Young Women’s Hebrew Association and the WiseRockdale Center. Within 12 months it has over 1000 members.

1937 | Eden Park Greenhouse

1903 | Irvin F. Westheimer befriends a young boy in Cincinnati; seeds are formed for the start of Big Brothers (and later Big Sisters) movement.

is renamed in honor of Irwin M. Krohn, who spent 25 years as a commissioner on the Cincinnati Park Board.

1913 | Union Museum (currently the

1939 | Dr. J. Louis Ransohoff, Rabbi Abraham Franzblau, Julius Holzberg, Dr. Jacob Rader Marcus and Henry C. Segal establish what would become the Jewish Community Relations Council.

HUC-JIR Skirball Museum) is founded at HUC by its president, Kaufmann Kohler.

1915 | The Psychopathic Institute, the first inpatient facility for the study and treatment of behavior disorders in children, is established at the Jewish Hospital.

Setty S. Kuhn Eliezer Silver

1916 | Setty Swarts Kuhn establishes Cincinnati’s Better Housing League.

1917 | The Helen S. Trounstine

1920 | Frank’s Red Hot Sauce goes on the market.

Irvin Westheimer

Rockdale Temple

the Charter Party, driving out the corrupt political machine left behind by party boss George B. “Boss” Cox. Seasongood is elected mayor the next year and is credited with instituting the city manager form of government, with city employees hired on merit rather than favoritism. The amphitheater in Eden Park bears his name.

40

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

established by Charles Heiman, a Dachau escapee and refugee, as a small business based out of the Heiman family’s third-floor apartment in Cincinnati. The company grows quickly and in 1945 expands to an old shoe factory downtown.

1943 | Sydney “Syd” Nathan founds King Records.

1943 | Eliezer Silver organizes a mass protest of more than 400 Orthodox rabbis in Washington, D.C., to urge the US government to do more to save European Jews from the Nazi inferno.

1925 | Philip M. Meyers, a prominent UC football hero, organizes Fashion Frocks, a pioneering enterprise that sells products door-to-door. In the early 1950s, Fashion Frocks becomes

from across the nation gather in Cincinnati to establish the National Federation of Temple Youth, the nation’s oldest federated organization of synagogue youth.

1940 | Standard Textile is

Foundation is established. In 1931, the Foundation becomes a division of the Community Chest, predecessor of the United Way.

1924 | Murray Seasongood founds

1939 | Nearly 200 youth delegates

1945 | David Lazarus becomes Jewish Hospital Psychiatric Institute

Murray Seasongood

president of Federated Department Stores (now Macy’s) and moves the headquarters to Cincinnati.

JEWISH CINCINNATI BICENTENNIAL

1947 | Jacob Rader Marcus establishes the American Jewish Archives on the campus of Hebrew Union College.

1947 | David Frisch acquires a franchise to open the first Frisch’s Big Boy drive-in restaurant, Big Boy One, on Central Parkway north of downtown Cincinnati.

1949 | Cincinnati Hillel is established on Straight Street by a group of students and sponsors to provide a center for Jewish life to University of Cincinnati students.

1997 | The Orthodox Jewish Home for

‘N

one of the great charities, none of the theatres, none of the societies of art, artistic development or music could live if it were not for the support of the Jews,’ William Howard Taft once said, speaking of Cincinnati.

However much he exaggerated for the benefit of his Jewish listeners, it nevertheless remains true that Cincinnati Jews played a central role in creating and maintaining their city’s cultural institutions.

– “The Jews of Cincinnati,”

by Jonathan D. Sarna and Nancy H. Klein, 1989

founded by parents interested in creating a high-quality dual education in English and Hebrew with special emphasis on spoken Hebrew and the study of Modern Israel.

In 2008 the school is renamed Rockwern Academy after a generous donation from the Rockwern Charitable Foundation.

Nelson Glueck

Jacob Rader Marcus

2012 | Jewish Vocational Service and

Jewish Hospital 1968

Easterseals Work Resource Center combine to provide services to help children and adults with disabilities and/or special needs as well as support to their families.

Cincinnati is formed to centralize educational, community relations and social welfare agencies within the Jewish community.

2015 | Rosenthal Education Center for families at the Cincinnati Art Museum opens thanks to a donation from Lois and Richard Rosenthal.

1972 | HUC-JIR ordains Sally Mayerson JCC

Rabbi Sally Priesand

1995 | As a result of the Jewish

2017 | Ish, a new arts and cultural festival, debuts in Washington Park.

2021 | Cincinnati celebrates 200

Health system joining the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati is formed to benefit health care initiatives and Jewish causes in Greater Cincinnati and throughout the world.

years of Jewish communal life in the Queen City.  Timeline created by the Cincinnati Jewish Bicentennial Steering Committee and The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives in cooperation with Movers & Makers. This is a glimpse at the past 200 years and not meant to be comprehensive.

1995 | Stanley J. Aronoff Center for

Community Center opens in Amberley on a large campus adjacent to Rockdale Temple.

Food Pantry begins in the basement of Golf Manor Synagogue. In 2013, it moves to the HUC-JIR campus and is named the George & Anne Heldman Food Pantry.

1967 | The Jewish Federation of

the Arts opens, named for the former president of the Ohio Senate. The accompanying art gallery is named for patrons Alice and Harris Weston.

2003 | The Lois & Richard Rosenthal

2008 | The Jewish Family Service

1963 | HUC-JIR President Nelson

Priesand, the first woman rabbi ordained by the faculty of a rabbinical seminary.

Humanity Education is formed by the Combined Generations of the Holocaust of Greater Cincinnati on the campus of HUC-JIR. It is relocated to the Cincinnati Museum Center in 2019 and named the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust and Humanity Center.

2008 | The Mayerson Jewish

1960 | 180,000 Cincinnati school

Glueck appears on the cover of Time Magazine for his work as a Biblical archaeologist.

2000 | Center for Holocaust and

Center for Contemporary Arts opens and is the first U.S. museum designed by a woman, Zaha Hadid. It is hailed by the New York Times as “the most important American building to be completed since the Cold War.” Another gift by the Rosenthal Foundation to the Cincinnati Art Museum eliminates the general admission fee, making it free to all.

1958 | Yavneh Day School is

children receive the oral polio vaccine pioneered by Albert Sabin at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, effectively eliminating polio in Cincinnati and paving the way to worldwide eradication of the disease.

the Aged and the Home for the Jewish Aged (Reform-affiliated) merge to form Cedar Village.

Richard Rosenthal Photo by Tina G utierrez for Movers & Makers

Contemporary Arts Center Photo by Brian Kurtz

Images are courtesy of The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, except where noted.

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

41

Gifts/Grants Impact 100 grants $55K in new Next Step Awards Impact 100, a leading women’s philanthropic organization for Greater Cincinnati, announced the recipients of its new Next Step Awards, meant to introduce Impact 100 to new, smaller nonprofit partners.

Most of Impact 100’s traditional $100,000 grants have gone to large, well-established organizations.

The Next Step Awards will go to smaller nonprofits.

The recipients: • Althea Augustine Technology Center (AATC), Digital Equity and Technology Infusion: $20,000 • Cincinnati Recycling & Reuse Hub, Expansion of Collection & Education Programs: $20,000 • The HELP Program of Cincinnati, On the Road to Work: $15,000 Awards support innovative, collaborative projects or programs that meet a community need.  www.Impact100.org

Verneida I. Britton

Freedom Center opens fund to honor educator The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center recently announced the Verneida I. Britton Memorial Fund to honor her commitment to excellence in education.

Britton lived her life educating and helping others achieve their goals, bringing this passion to the Freedom Center when it opened in 2004 and playing a significant 42

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

role in developing some of its key programs. She died in March.  www.freedomcenter.org/ engage/donate

GCF funding enhances Roselawn nature center A $25,000 grant from Greater Cincinnati Foundation (GCF) allowed Great Parks to complete necessary improvements to the Nature Center at The Summit outdoor nature education space. The upgrades deliver new recreational opportunities and connections to nature for Roselawn. The center was established in 2019, thanks to a partnership with New Prospect Baptist Church.  www.greatparks.org

Urban projects receive $250K in Duke grants Duke Energy has donated $250,000 in urban revitalization grants to help Greater Cincinnati neighborhoods through projects that create jobs, restore and redevelop urban properties, and bring growth to the region. The 2021 recipients: • Corporation of Silverton, $20,000 • HCDC, Bond Hill and Roselawn, $40,000 • Norwood Together, Northwoods Cider Co., $20,000 • ROMAC/Regal Project, West End, $50,000 • Catalytic Development Funding Corp., Char Restaurant, Covington, $35,000 • Catalytic Development Funding Corp., Raymee, 6th and Berry, Dayton, Ky., $40,000 • Catalytic Development Funding Corp., The Granary, Newport, $35,000 • Center for Great Neighborhoods, St. Elizabeth Studios, Covington, $10,000

Great Parks CEO Todd Palmeter, Shawnie Dukes from the Ronald McDonald House; and Park Board Commissioner Stacey DeGraffenreid

More than $2.9 million in grants have gone to 91 projects since 2011.  www.duke-energy.com

$120K donation to aid LGBTQ+ health services A $120,000 donation from Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Board Chairs Stan Elliott and Jay Shatz will be dedicated to helping the organization improve access to health care for the LGBTQ+ community during the next three years. The aims: • Expand general efforts in LGBTQ+related health care needs • Ramp up work with genderaffirming care • Support Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy program • Educate Ohioans on the importance of LGBTQ+ health care  www.ppswo.org

Matinee Musicale funds scholarship program The Ben Carlson-Berne Scholarship Fund was awarded $2,000 from the Matinee Musicale Endowment Fund, made possible by the Louise Dieterle Nippert Estate. The fund provides classical music instrument lessons to underserved and economically disadvantaged youth in Cincinnati.

Susan Carlson and Philip Berne established the fund in 2004 in

memory of their son, Ben, who was passionate about providing classical music lessons to those who did not have access to lessons.  www.bcbscholarship.org

‘Parky’ items donated to Ronald McDonald House Great Parks of Hamilton County has donated hundreds of “Parky’s Great Parks Adventure!” books and stuffed animals of Parky, the parks’ mascot, to Ronald McDonald House for the enjoyment of children and families staying at the house during health care treatment. The mascot’s “home” is Parky’s Farm, the educational farm within Winton Woods. The book’s author is Joel Altman, a Great Parks ranger.  www.rmhcincinnati.org

LaRosa’s, Freestore raise $35K for school pantries An eight-week campaign by LaRosa’s and Freestore Foodbank, created to stock 60 school pantries in 20 counties throughout the region, raised $35,000 through Buddy Card sales to help supply schools with high food-insecurity rates. The Freestore Foodbank School Pantries program provides permanent, on-site food assistance at schools with year-round access for kids and their families to obtain shelf-stable and frozen food.  www.freestorefoodbank.org

GIFTS/GRANTS

Shane Knisley Mercy Health-Clermont Hospital Tim Totin of Smithfield Foods, Erin Rolfes of Kroger Cincinnati-Dayton Division, Trisha Rayner of Freestore Foodbank, and competitive eater Joey Chestnut

Freestore Foodbank wiener of Nathan’s donation Nathan’s Famous brand joined Kroger at its On the Rhine Eatery to celebrate National Hot Dog Day, distributing free beef franks to customers and making a donation of more than 40,000 pounds to the Freestore Foodbank – more than 160,000 servings. Professional competitive eater Joey Chestnut, whose dogged determination won him his 14th Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest in July (76 hot dogs in 10 minutes), was on hand.  www.freestorefoodbank.org

Frankenthaler aids two Cincinnati museums The Helen Frankenthaler Foundation has awarded funds to the Cincinnati Art Museum and the Taft Museum of Art, part of a grant of $5.1 million to 79 institutions nationwide through the Frankenthaler Climate Initiative. Both museums received Implementation Grants for efforts in energy and greenhouse gas reduction.  frankenthalerclimateinitiative.org

Schmidlapp supports mental health for Latinos The Central Clinic Behavioral Health Child & Family Treatment Center has received a $25,000 grant from the Jacob G. Schmidlapp Trust, Fifth Third Bank, Trustee, to support outreach

for the Latino population. The goal of the program is to increase the referrals and expand existing behavioral health prevention services to the Latino population, alleviating disparities in the Latino community and bridging gaps in academics, language, and social and emotional learning.  www.centralclinic.org

Horizon Funds distributes $62K to NKY nonprofits Horizon Community Funds has deployed $62,000 across six nonprofits for their work in Northern Kentucky through its Community Impact Fund: • Adopt A Class received $6,000 to expand its mentoring program into Ockerman Elementary in Florence.

• The Catalytic Fund received $10,000 to support its Impact Investment Program.

• Covington Partners received $10,000 to support its Individual Strength Plan.

• Gateway Community and Technical College received $7,500 to support the River City Promise Scholarship Program.

• The Northern Kentucky Education Council received $13,500 to support its One to One Reading Program.

• Refugee Connect received $15,000 to support its Northern Kentucky Community Navigator Program.  www.horizonfunds.org

Angel in the hospital: Mercy Clermont gets record donation An angel donor has made a $1.2 million gift to Mercy HealthClermont Hospital, the largest gift to the hospital in its 47-year history.

“This gift will allow us to enhance the healing environment in which we provide compassionate care,” said Clermont Hospital President Shane Knisley.

The gift is earmarked to enhance the patient and family experience by replacing furniture in 52 patient rooms and upgrading 62 hospital beds. Additionally, with a match from Mercy Health, the donation will fund the renovation of the Wound Care Center and build the Linda Thacker Healing Garden, an outdoor healing area for the inpatient behavioral health unit.  www.mercy.com

SATURDAY 6:30PM CET SUNDAY 8:30PM CET ARTS Join Barbara Kellar as she showcases artists and cultural leaders from the Greater Cincinnati community.

www.CETconnect.org www.CETconnect.org

Emmy Award Winner Regional - Interview/Discussion Program

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

43

Snapshots

Who, what, where & why

‘Prescription Fore Fun’ raises $82,000 The 14th annual Prescription Fore Fun Golf Outing and Wine & Bourbon Tasting raised over $82,000 for the St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy, the only pharmacy in Southwest Ohio dedicated to providing free medication and professional pharmaceutical care to people in need. For every dollar invested, the pharmacy is able to provide $13 worth of medication to the underserved or underinsured.

This memorable outing will help St. Vincent de Paul fill thousands of prescriptions and keep patients safe and healthy. Special thanks to title sponsors of the event, Home City Ice and Protective Life Corporation.  www.svdpcincinnati.org

Rick Rohde, Paul Dorger, Whitney Green and Sabino Baluyot Tadd Fowler, Susie Fowler, Becky Seurkamp and Aaron Seurkamp, president, Retirement Division at Protective Life Heidi Heinrich and Dave Heinrich

Gregg Vollmer, Mike Mendenhall, Sean Kelleher and Alan Carlyle, golfers representing First Financial Bank

Mike Jennings (at the hole), Chris Chirumbolo and John Muller

David Hammerstrom, Jeffrey Bartlett and Cindy Hammerstrom

Mary Catherine Moroney and Michael Huheey Carole Suess and Betty Chriest

Nicole Wess, Miss Ohio USA/Charitable Pharmacy Intern and Bart Kohler Gregg Vollmer

44 SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Todd Szewc and Ryan Sevek

SNAPSHOTS

West Side Brewing’s Braille Ale can supports CABVI The Cincinnati Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired (CABVI) partnered once again with West Side Brewing, introducing a one-of-a-kind limited edition Braille Ale Raspberry Gose.

Braille Ale is one of the first beer cans with raised Braille letters.

The event included fundraising games such as split the pot, chance auction and a blindfolded beer-tasting contest.

“This was truly a win-win event in support of CABVI’s mission: Empowering people who are blind or visually impaired with opportunities to seek independence,” said CABVI spokesman Aaron Bley.

Each purchase of Braille Ale supports CABVI’s services to help people adapt to severe vision loss.  www.cincyblind.org

Glen Vogel and Teri Shirk

A Braille Ale can Terry McMillan and Melissa Schmidt

CABVI volunteer Sanserrae Frazier helps Natalie Jones of Q102 with a blindfolded beer tasting.

Taft groundbreaking kicks off infrastructure project

Speakers at the project kickoff included: Taft President and CEO Deborah Emont Scott, Love This House campaign chair Jill McGruder, Fifth Third Foundation Managing Director Heidi Jark, Taft board chair Gerry Greene, Western & Southern CEO John Barrett, and Ohio state Senator Steve Wilson.

The Taft Museum of Art has broken ground on its Bicentennial Infrastructure Project, aimed at preserving and reconstructing the museum’s 200-year-old house, a National Historic Landmark.

Taft President and CEO Deborah Emont Scott referred to the historic house as the Taft’s “largest work of art.”

Among the challenges in this project is the task of removing every exterior board and inserting insulation and a moisture barrier.

Preservationists aim to save as many original panels as possible.

In the meantime, visitors are still able to view some works at “In a New Light,” an exhibit that displays art in a novel location and context within the museum.  www.taftmuseum.org/lovethishouse

Friends of Music Hall celebrate restoration project The Friends of Music Hall recently celebrated the completion of its Finial Restoration Project for the historic building. The event was held at The Porch in Washington Park.

The project, chaired by Peter Koenig, reconstructed Music Hall’s previously degraded sandstone finials and lyre. FMH board member Thea Tjepkema led the effort, researching historic photographs of the lost details. Architect Samuel Hannaford’s original High Victorian Gothic designs had largely weathered away since their completion in the 19th century. The lyre design above the 1877 datestone is a symbol of music.

The project was part of FMH’s ongoing efforts to renew the architectural integrity of Music Hall, a National Historic Landmark.  www.friendsofmusichall.org

Annette Wick and Mark Manley admire the restorations Thea Tjepkema, Holly Brians Ragusa, Peter Koenig and Patricia Bittner

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

45

SNAPSHOTS

Architects group announces CRANawards winner The American Institute of Architects Cincinnati delivered eight CRANawards in an event held at Pinecroft at Crosley Estate.

This year’s 25 Year Award went to the John Senhauser Architects. The Architectural Addition award went to Terry Boling Architect. The Architectural Interior award and Kitchen award went to Ryan Duebber Architect.

The Multi-Unit Housing award went to New Republic Architecture, the New Custom Housing award to the drawing dept, the Student award to Lydia Klus, Andy Failor and Matthew Monterosso, and the People’s Choice Award to Architectural DesignWorks for the Ohio Farmhouse.

AIA Cincinnati’s Custom Residential Architects Network launched the CRANawards in 2009 to celebrate architects in Southwest Ohio. A jury of architects from outside the region select award recipients. Warren Knight Lloyd led this year’s jury.

An exhibit of the winning projects will be displayed at the Cincinnati Center for Architecture and Design in October.  www.aiacincinnati.org People’s Choice Award: Architectural

New Custom Housing: drawing dept for Dogtrot2 New Custom Housing: drawing dept for Dogtrot2 (interior view)

Architectural Interior: Ryan Duebber Architecture for the Standish Residence

DesignWorks Studio for Ohio Farmhouse

Kitchen: Ryan Duebber Architect for BC Kitchen

Architectural Addition: Terry Boling Architect for Elm Street Residence (interior view)

Architectural Addition: Terry Boling Architect for Elm Street Residence

Student: Lydia Klus, Andy Failor and Matthew Monterosso (UC DAAP) for Generational Modular Living

Multi-Unit Housing: New Republic Architecture for The Reakirt Building

46

SEPTEMBER 2021

Multi-Unit Housing: New Republic Architecture for The Reakirt Building (interior view)

Movers & Makers

25 Year Award: John Senhauser Architects for Chardonnay Ridge Residence

SNAPSHOTS

Top designers serve up Tables of the Taft The Taft Museum of Art recently welcomed audiences to Tables of the Taft, a new take on the museum’s annual fundraiser. The two-day event, which included tablescapes created by the region’s top designers and artists, was inspired by the special footwear exhibition from the Stuart Weitzman Collection of Historic Shoes.

Designers were: Anne Bortz and Kathy Drew; Chrissie Blatt Creative; Elegant Events

by Elisa; EVA & Co. Events; Evolo Design; Nancy Fehr; Hey Michelle; Interiors by Kurtinitis; Robin Wood Flowers; and The Scout Guide Cincinnati.

The event raised over $160,000 to support the Taft’s educational and outreach programs, including Art for All and Artists Reaching Classrooms.  www.taftmuseum.org

Chrissie Blatt Creative

Nancy Fehr Anne Bortz and Kathy Drew

Evolo Design Hey Michelle

Price Hill Will opens ARCO, a renovated Masonic Lodge

The ribbon cutting Attendees had opportunities to create their own art and crafts.

During its sixth annual Creative Community Festival, Price Hill Will opened its new ARCO event venue. The event, with a ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony, unveiled the new arts and community space with performances by local artists including MYCincinnati Teaching Artists.

Previously the Price Hill Masonic Lodge, ARCO is a $10 million historic renovation that broke ground in April 2019 with the help of Model Group and City Studios Architecture. For its preservation efforts at this venue and at the Hannaford and Sons building in 2020, Price Hill Will has been awarded a 2020 Cincinnati Preservation Award.  www.pricehillwill.org

Sheila Rosenthal, president of East Price Hill Improvement Association, with Rachel Hasting, Price Hill Will executive director, at the lectern

Audience watching a Price Hillharmonic performance

Photo display of the ARCO renovation

The MYCincinnati Ensemble performs.

Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

47

SNAPSHOTS

Bourbon & Blessings dinner assists in preventing food waste

Chris Cusick, Tracey Cusick, Lisa Schretzman and Will Schretzman

Tammy Johnson and John Mocker of Union, Ky., hosted a Bourbon & Blessings dinner to raise funds for the faith-based nonprofit Master Provisions.

The first Bourbon & Blessings event was held at Triple Crown Country Club. It supported Master Provisions in rescuing surplus food while partnering with more than 225 nonprofits to feed over 67,000 people a month throughout Greater Cincinnati.  www.masterprovisions.org

Devinne Verst and Chris Verst

Shannon Willoughby, Cole Willoughby and Tanya Babik Ryan Turner, Master Provisions board chair, and Jordan Turner

Master Provisions President Roger Babik Susan Bivins and Jason Bivins

John Mocker and Tammy Johnson, event co-hosts

Garden cocktail party raises funds for Angels’ Castle Angels’ Castle hosted its first major fundraiser since its founding in 2018. The garden cocktail party was hosted in the home of the nonprofit’s founder, Dr. Beatriz Porras.

The event continued to establish community connections for Angels’ Castle, as well as raise money. Highlights included a silent auction, live performances from the Cincinnati Opera and local singer-songwriters, plus food and cocktails.

Angels’ Castle’s mission is to help young adults with intellectual disabilities transition from high school into adult life. Funds raised will go towards building a campus on 20 acres of land in Springfield Township to serve these young adults and support the organization’s mission.  www.facebook.com/AngelsCastleOhio

Board member Lisa Allgood, board president and founder Dr. Beatriz Porras, Alissa Sammarco, Cincinnati Opera Artistic Director Evans Mirageas, Dr. Olga Duarte, soprano Shannon Cochran and pianist Elena Kholodova

Jon Mason and Maria Mason (Far left) Angela Sampson and Aftab Pureval 48

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

Director of Su Casa Giovanna Alvarez, a young guest, Dr. JC. Reina, Mariarosa Reina, Dr. Beatriz Porras

SNAPSHOTS

Fairways for Furniture raises funds for families in need

From REMAX/TIME: Duncan Lahke, Dannel Shepard, Michelle Sloan and Scott Sloan

New Life Furniture Bank held its inaugural golf classic “Fairways for Furniture” at the Oasis Golf Club in Loveland. The event, presented by Prasco and sponsored by more than 30 local corporations, raised over $35,000 to furnish 1,500 homes for families in need.

“Many area residents are not familiar with the furniture bank. It was an honor to introduce them to an organization making a difference,” said Rick Wirthlin, Co-Chair and SVP at Huntington National Bank.

New Life Furniture Bank provides gently used furniture to help families overcome devastating circumstances.  www.nlfurniture.org

Kevin Keefe, Fairways for Furniture co-chair

From Messer Construction: Rich Coleman, Craig Knight, Stan Williams and Kevin Walker

From BRG Realty: Michael Brandy, Bruce Hellman, Jeff March and Jim Mandel

From Huntington Bank: Jack Smith, Ron Wittekind, Dan Walsh and Rick Wirthlin, Fairways for Furniture co-chair From Clark Schaefer Hackett: Tamara Avery, Dr. Carly Schweier, Tony Schweier and Bill Oeters

St. Patrick’s Day arrives late in Cincinnati

Clockwise from above: bagpiper Gerry Fritsch; Erickson Academy of Irish Dance; the band Conor Knox

Cincinnati’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration was held in July at the Irish Heritage Center of Cincinnati on Eastern Avenue after being delayed four months due to COVID. Celtic dance performances included The Erickson Academy of Irish Dance and The McGing School of Irish Dance. Musical acts included Irish singers Mick and Mai McEvilley, the Emerald Creek Trio, Conor Knox, the Lost Celts, Riley Musical Ensemble and others.

Eli’s Barbeque was on hand providing food throughout the day.

Attendee Cú Chulainn, a native of Dundalk, Ireland, said, “ ’Twas great to catch up with everyone. Music, pints flowing, dancing … what more could you ask for?”  www.irishcenterofcincinnati.com Movers & Makers

SEPTEMBER 2021

49

THE LAST WORD | Guest column

Polly Campbell: On the ‘good-deed doers’ of Cincinnati

Reader version for devices

M

y husband and I took a long road trip this summer across the West. We stopped for walks and hikes nearly every day in deserts, mountains, prairies and cities and always discovered something to think about.

One day, under a low gray sky, we hiked to the top of a tallgrasscovered hill with subtly beautiful prairie views, and came across what looked like a tombstone of pink limestone amid sunflowers and penstemon. On it, “Dodge” was carved in big letters, and under it the smaller words “Doer of good deeds” followed by his name and death date. We speculated whether “Dodge” had loved the hill as a child, whether his nickname was an anagram of “good deeds.” All we could tell was that he didn’t do

a long lifetime of them; he died as a young man in service in the Second World War. This was in Kansas, and not far from Wamego, home of many “Wizard of Oz” tourist attractions, so naturally I thought about that great humbug wizard. “Back where I come from, we have men who do nothing but good deeds all day,” he told the Tin Woodsman. “They are called phila-, phila-, er, good-deed doers,” and presented him with a testimonial and the heart he so wanted.

Well, that made me think of a proposal I’d gotten before we left that I’d been thinking about off and on: to write a first-person column for this magazine. Movers & Makers explains, above the title, that it is about “Arts & Culture.

Wine Cellar Inventory

Available Online!

JUNGLEJIMS.COM/WINECELLAR 5440 Dixie Highway Fairfield, OH 45014 & 4450 Eastgate South Drive Cincinnati, OH 45245 50

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers

​​Polly Campbell ​​Polly Campbell

Community. Philanthropy.” I’d been wondering if it was right for me to write for a publication about philanthropy, if that means rich people’s family foundations and fancy fundraisers I can’t afford to go to. I appreciate them, but it’s not a world I have connections in.

But that’s not all philanthropy is, is it? If we use the Wizard’s definition, we are all potential philanthropists, probably already are, because who doesn’t do a good deed from time to time? Not that we should give ourselves a testimonial anytime we shovel a neighbor’s walk or donate cupcakes to the school bake sale. But anyone who regularly takes money or time they could have used for themselves to help someone in need, or to support an organization that helps even more people, or makes a community stronger and more beautiful, well, that person deserves the name. And that’s what fills the pages of this publication.

I think the second part, Community, is the bigger one.

Philanthropy is a subset of that – because community, though it might have many definitions, is about interwoven, supportive connections. Communities are there when people live together, but the strong ones have to be built, and that means people helping each other with creativity and hard work.

And I do know about that. My writing life in Cincinnati until now has been writing about food and restaurants, so this may seem like a swerve. But the people I covered, the restaurant owners and chefs, the farmers and food producers, are movers. They are also makers.

They followed vision and passion

into the difficult business of selling people something to eat. I cannot tell you how much I admire so many of those people and how interested I am in what makes them work. They may do it for their egos or with dreams of getting rich (though, surely, someone bursts that bubble for them before they embark), but there’s no getting around it: By feeding people they are in the business of connection and community.

So are the artists who create moments for us that transcend dailiness. As are all the volunteers of our city. As are the people who work hard to bring money and awareness to a cause or charity they care about. And the people who have done very well in life and donate some of their resources for the greater good. What a rich source of interest, of thoughts and opinions, all those people are to me.

It’s funny how life can give you little signs if you’re open to them.

That Kansas hill and its memorial to Dodge’s good deeds set off a train of thought that led me to decide I did want to write this column, to be part of covering and commenting on the community-building Dodges of Greater Cincinnati. This is my first.  Polly Campbell covered restaurants and food for The Cincinnati Enquirer from 1996 until 2020.

She lives in Pleasant Ridge with her husband, and since retiring does a lot of reading, cooking and gardening, if that’s what you call pulling up weeds.

During the pandemic, she has missed the theater, live music, and most especially, going to parties.

Cincinnati’s Best Place to Buy Your Engagement Ring year after year.

Voted Cincinnati’s Best Jeweler & Best Place to Buy Your Engagement Ring - 2019 | 2020 | 2021 52

SEPTEMBER 2021

Movers & Makers