suns along the Mohawk

 . . presenting two gift items to benefit Family and Child Service of Schenectady . . 

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. a calendar 

We’re celebrating the 2015 Holiday Season at suns along the Mohawk by using photographs of the Stockade and Riverside Park to create two fundraising gift items (shown above and described below) to benefit our friends at Family and Child Service of Schenectady. FCSS has been located in the Stockade for 70 years, at 246 Union Street (across from the Van Dyck Restaurant). Here’s how the 85-year-old non-profit organization summarizes the work it does to promote its mission of strengthening the integrity of family life:

“At any given time our services reflect current community demographics and priorities. Counseling, respite for tired caregivers, adaptive equipment for developmentally delayed children, support for the elderly to stay in their homes — these are just some of the ways your support makes a powerful impact on the lives of local people today.”

Today we serve more than 500 people a year with a total budget of about $1,500,000, 10% coming from donations and fundraising.

• All proceeds beyond the actual cost of printing the Calendar and the Photo-book will be donated to FCSS. The price of $16 for the Calendar and $20 for the photobook will include a $5 donation to Family and Child Service of Schenectady. 

THE CALENDAR

Price: $16.  The 2016 Play Lot desk calendar is 5.5 x 10.8 inches, and has a built-in easel for display.  Each month features one or more photos of the new and old versions of Schenectady’s Riverside Park playground area, along the Mohawk River. The Play Lot received a make-over in early November 2015, with only the Slide remaining from the “Old” configuration. The Play Lot Calendar is meant as a memento of the beloved Old Play Lot (see our “already nostalgic” posting), and a preview of the New. Its cover is shown in the image at the head of this paragraph (click on it for a larger version).

• You can view the entire Play Lot calendar by clicking on this link to its Shutterfly sharing page.
•  Note: The New Play Lot was not fully installed when I had the first batch of calendars printed. Therefore, half of the cover pages have a small insert showing only the survivor Slide [R], and half have new equipment in the insert photo.

Here are sample images showing the October and December pages from the Play Lot Calendar:

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 . . the regular price to purchase a single desk calendar from Shutterfly.com, including shipping and sales taxes would be $29.14. (click on shopping cart screenshot at left) We have used every available discount to reduce the cost.

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THE PHOTO-HAIGA BOOK

Price: $20.  The 24-page photo-book “Haiga on the Mohawk” has scenes from the Mohawk River and Schenectady Stockade combined with short, haiku-like poems. The book was created in the Fall of 2015 to celebrate Haiku North America 2015, a Conference presented at Union College, from October 14-18.  HNA 2015 attracted about 130 of the very best English-language haiku poets, publishers and educators from over a dozen countries to Schenectady. The Conference was an opportunity for the proprietor of this website (David Giacalone) to introduce the attendees to the Stockade, the Mohawk River, and Riverside Park. The book is a relatively painless opportunity to introduce lovers of the Stockade and Riverside Park to modern English-language haiku poetry (see a definition at the foot of this page*) and “photo-haiga” (explained below).

The hardcover book Haiga on the Mohawk is 8″ x 8″, and has 37 photo-haiga (explained below), with photos and haiku poems by David Giacalone, the photographer at suns along the Mohawk, whose haiku have been published in many of the best haiku journals. In addition, four of the poems in Haiga on the Mohawk were written by the distinguished members of the Route Nine Haiku Group.

• “Photo haiga“ are a modern form of a Japanese artistic genre that was originally composed of an ink-brush-painted image and a “linked” haiku or similar short poem rendered in calligraphy. Haiga on the Mohawk has haiku poems linked with photographic scenes of the Mohawk River and the Schenectady Stockade Historic District.  The photographs and poems are intended to stand on their own, but when linked to create a haiga, the juxtaposition, comparison or contrast can give added meaning to each, and perhaps inspire or provoke new meaning or understanding, or just a smile.
• You can view Haiga on the Mohawk in its entirety, by clicking on this link to its Shutterfly sharing page.
• In addition, on this website’s Mohawk-Haiga Page you will find each of the 37 “haiga” images found in Haiga on the Mohawk presented separately, and in a larger size. Viewers are urged to “Make Your Own Haiga” by submitting a poem to link with two sample photographs presented on that Page.

 . . the regular price to purchase a single 24-page hardcover photo-book from Shutterfly.com, including shipping and sales taxes would be $46.86. (see shopping cart screenshot at left) As with the Play Lot Calendar, we have used all available discounts to keep the purchase price as low as possible for this fundraiser.

To PURCHASE:

Please contact David Giacalone directly to arrange purchase and delivery of the 2016 Play Lot Calendar or Haiga on the Mohawk. If you leave a Comment to this webpage, David will respond with details. We’ll deliver free of charge if you are located in or near the Stockade, or you can pick up the item at David’s Stockade residence. There will be a charge for postage, if the item is mailed.

Note: We have only 20 copies of each item available.

. . share this page with the short URL: tinyURL.com/forFCSS . .

• Whether or not you purchase a Calendar or Photo-Haiga Book, we encourage visitors to this website to learn more about Family and Child Service of Schenectady and to consider making a donation to our Stockade neighbor. In theses tough financial times, FCSS has been focusing its funds on service to their clientele rather than to the cosmetic needs of the physical plant at its headquarters. However, I’m urging FCSS to use any proceeds from Haiga on the Mohawk and the Play Lot Calendar to spruce up the entry 246 Union Street, which is near the grand entryway to the Stockade Historic District. Thanks for giving them a hand.

  . . In 2012, FCSS purchased the lovely building at 1007 Maryland Avenue [R], corner of Union Street, to house its growing programs and as a meeting place for the Agency and community

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*what is haiku?

The haiku genre of poetry is often misunderstood. Despite what your grammar school teacher might have taught you, the consensus among English-language haiku poets, journals and associations is that haiku need not be written in three lines having 5, 7 and 5 syllables per line. Equally important, despite the so-called “haiku contests” you may see in the media or on the web, verse written in the form of three lines having 5, 7 and 5 syllables per line is not haiku unless it conforms to the basic characteristics of the genre. Definitions are tricky and evolving, but here is my attempt at quick definitions of haiku and the related form senryu, which are used in my photo-haiga. (for more, go here)

 Quick Definition of Haiku: English-language Haiku is a very short poem (no more than 17 syllables, but the best in English often have fewer), traditionally written on three lines, that relates nature to human nature and usually compares or contrasts a pair of sensory images, which are separated by a pause (pivot). At its best, haiku lets the reader share in the poet’s “haiku moment” — a moment of insight or awe.

 Quick Definition of Senryu: Senryu is a short poem similar in structure to haiku but featuring observations on human nature (often ironic, humorous and/or coarse).