150 Cherry St. RSS Feed

Moldovan Orphan Art Exhibit

Default admin account — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 20:38:29 -0500

New Moon Cafe is hosting an exhibit of the artwork of Moldovan orphans from November 14th – December 5th, 2011. Moldova, a former Soviet Republic, is today the poorest country in Europe. Following the collapse of Communism the economic and social infrastructure of the country crumbled, and the resulting vacuum was filled with corruption, lawlessness and despair. In the ensuing years 25% of the population left the country seeking work. Many thousands of children were left behind, either with other family members who could not provide for them or they were simply abandoned. These kids find themselves on the street, or dumped into government run orphanages. Total funding for the orphanages is the equivalent of about $1 per child per day. As a result, programs and services are severely limited and conditions are marginal at best. The fate that awaits these children when they reach the age of 16 is horrific. At 16, they must leave the orphanages and often fall prey to traffickers who sell them as sex slaves. ARS DOR under the direction of Ghenadie Sontu, is an organization that regularly visits the orphanages providing art classes as a vehicle for the children to express what is in their hearts ~ the rejection, abandonment and loss they have experienced. In the process of exercising newly found creative gifts, the orphans begin to discover their identity, as precious and valued. Art therapy is a respected and effective method for dealing with childhood trauma. In the creative environment of art classes, leaders assess the psychological state of the children and work to build a sense of identity as well as hope and a future. An exuberant display of the artwork of these children is on display at New Moon. 150 Cherry Street Inc. is sponsoring this awareness and fundraising event for the benefit of ARS DOR and the orphans of Moldova. If you are interested to learn more about this program please contact michaelbeer@150cherryst.org.

An Early Summer Banquet

Default admin account — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 16:17:32 -0400

Our friends from the Burlington Emergency Shelter joined us this past Saturday night for a Banquet at 150.

It was a lovely time of feasting and connecting with our guests; volunteers came to us from 150, Stand, Dwell, and GMS. Here are a few photos that tell the story...

Pop Art @ Girls' Night

Default admin account — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 15:58:46 -0400

This month's Girls' Night took a pop-culture turn...and the girls' loved it! Art leader Debbie Beer says this: "We talked a little about pop art as a genre and images in pop culture right now..."

Creating & Progressing: Girls' Group!

Default admin account — Thu, 12 May 2011 11:38:16 -0400

The Girls' Group art night this past Monday was the second in a series on image transfers. Art coordinator Debbie Beer says this about the project:

Celebrate!

Default admin account — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 16:38:06 -0400

It's always cool when all of our worlds come together...

Such was the case recently...

The Season in Review

Default admin account — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 13:19:13 -0400

We stand now at the end of the inaugural season of our mentoring-through-snowboarding program, Burlington Freestyle. And what a season it has been.

A Saturday in Winter

Default admin account — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:57:40 -0400

As 150 continues to develop its community initiatives, it's cool to see how things come together.

A great example of this was Saturday, March 5th.

Interestingly, my day didn't begin at 150 at all; instead, it began at Sugarbush Resort, the venue that hosts our mentoring-through-snowboarding program, Burlington Freestyle.

Study Group

Default admin account — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 16:11:16 -0500

Every Wednesday night, the Kids Alive Boys' Study Group hangs out in our art studio, led by Phil Corriveau. We are excited to continue our partnership with KA well into the future, with more cool initiatives to come! [Photo]

Calligraphy and Identity

Default admin account — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 09:48:02 -0500

Once a month, the Kids Alive Girls' Group meets in our art studio for dinner and instruction from our incredible staff. This past Monday, the medium was calligraphy, and the theme was identity - specifically, names and the meanings of names.

From Dream to Reality

Default admin account — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 10:53:35 -0500

150 Cherry St. is a place - a place that facilitates community initiatives for the city.

Often, folks wonder why a place is so important - why, for us, it's such a big deal. Well, Burlington Freestyle is a perfect example of "why."

Mentors!

Default admin account — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 12:14:10 -0500

[This post is taken from the Burlington Freestyle blog, Equal Shred.]

Chris Vaughn and I may not be as cool as Denzel, but we took part in a pretty cool Mentor Training Day this past Saturday.

A Special Banquet

Default admin account — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 14:59:24 -0500

Last Saturday night, we hosted a special Thanksgiving Banquet for the youth and families of the Kids Alive ministry in the Old North End.

Tres Banquet!

Default admin account — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 12:21:10 -0400

Saturday night, 150 hosted our most memorable Banquet yet.

If you don't know, our Banquet initiative is a quarterly dinner in the New Moon Cafe that aims to give our homeless and at-risk neighbors an empowering experience of fine dining and even finer friendship.

Girls Night

Default admin account — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:53:42 -0400

On Monday October 11th, 150 Cherry St. began a new initiative: hosting the Kids Alive Girls' Group in our art studio once a month.

The Season is Upon Us!

Default admin account — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 12:44:44 -0400

Here in Burlington, there is a time known to all lovers of snow-sliding as "the season."

The season begins right when the demise of colorful, deciduous mountain flora gives way to a gracious covering of white.

Purveyors of Equal Shred

Default admin account — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 14:15:43 -0400

A couple of years ago, my friend Deane and I started talking.

The Second Banquet

Default admin account — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 19:24:57 -0400

On Saturday June 30th, we held our second Banquet @ 150.

And it was a blast.

The volunteers came from from several groups and networks, including Mosaic Burlington, New Moon Cafe, Dwell Church, UVM, and the 150 community.

The Sound Effect

Default admin account — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 19:11:00 -0400

As part of our Live @ New Moon initiative, The Sound Effect Summer Series has taken Friday nights in the Cafe by storm.

The Sound Effect is a perfect reflection of the Live @ New Moon ethos, bringing Good Food, Good Music, and Good Will together in one po