Living Classrooms Foundation – Baltimore Magazine https://www.baltimoremagazine.com The Best of Baltimore Since 1907 Thu, 06 Aug 2020 13:49:48 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/cropped-favicon-32x32.png Living Classrooms Foundation – Baltimore Magazine https://www.baltimoremagazine.com 32 32 No Shortage of Need https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/community/ten-charities-pitching-in-to-fix-baltimores-problems/ Mon, 14 Oct 2019 08:30:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?post_type=article&p=16940

Edited by Ken Iglehart
Written by Hannah Chenoweth, Ken Iglehart, Rebecca Kirkman, Keri Luise, Jane MacLeod, Christianna McCausland, Corey McLaughlin, Nicole Noechel
Photography by Mike Morgan

Homelessness, gross inequities in education, shortages of affordable housing, a lack of job training, few options for underprivileged inner-city youth, and a thriving and deadly drug trade. Are we picking on poor, old, bad-mouthed Baltimore again? Actually, we could be talking about the challenges facing any large American city—check out St. Louis, New Orleans, Detroit, Birmingham, and even Chicago. But in the pages that follow, we look at the Baltimoreans who are wrestling with their hometown problems, not just wringing their hands. And we had no problem finding some great examples of people giving their time, money, and hearts to our big, beautiful, complicated city, warts and all. With the season of charity upon us, we found a handful of causes that you may never have heard of, but which cover the waterfront of philanthropy, from housing and poverty to pets in need. So pick your nonprofit—the rest is up to you.



THE MARYLAND SPCA

BARKING UP THE RIGHT TREE

BY NICOLE NOECHEL

AFTER HURRICANE MARIA hit Puerto Rico in 2017, a street dog rescued from the U.S. territory was delivered to the Maryland Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MDSPCA) in Baltimore.

“She was unadoptable,” according to Kaitlyn Thomas, foster-program coordinator. The brindle mutt was terrified and huddled in the corner throughout the day. “She was not going to thrive with just anyone,” Thomas says. “We knew we had to find a special kind of adopter.”

The staff had the idea of putting a camera in the dog’s pen, and they observed that she came alive after hours. They suspected the dog had grown accustomed to scavenging at night and seeking cool shelter during the day in her stifling homeland.

“Typically, a shelter would have euthanized that animal because she was breaking down in the shelter environment,” says Jim Peirce, executive director of the MDSPCA. But this story has a sweet ending: A local woman heard about the rescues and ended up adopting the dog and bringing it out of its shell, Peirce says. “We have a happy home now.”

Now celebrating its 150th year, the society was established four years after the end of the Civil War, when founder William Woodward and 50 other Baltimore citizens including such familiar figures as Enoch Pratt and Alexander Brown came together to address the abuse of the city’s work horses. The animals were beaten and underfed, and frequently collapsed from exhaustion on Baltimore’s cobblestone streets.

Today’s MDSPCA, which is not affiliated with the American SPCA or any other state organization, focuses on three areas: education, veterinary services, and adoptions. But the fastest-growing program area, education, is focused on humans, not animals, and involves everything from enlisting school children to visit the shelter read aloud to animals, to educating professionals like postal workers and first responders on how to interact with animals they might encounter on the job, to visiting senior facilities.

“AT ANY GIVEN TIME, THERE ARE ROUGHLY 150 ANIMALS AT THE MDSPCA CAMPUS.”

Another critical part of the MDSPCA’s veterinary service is its spay/neuter program. The staff performed 6,600 surgeries in 2018 and, in June 2019, marked 90,000 surgeries since the program started in 2006. The MDSPCA Wellness Center, located nearby in Hampden, offers a sliding payment scale to low-income people.

At any given time, there are roughly 150 animals at the MDSPCA campus on Falls Road, many waiting to be adopted. As of 2018, about 25 percent of MDSPCA admissions were strays, while 35 percent represented animals surrendered by their owners. Many animals are also transferred from other shelters, where they have been vetted and deemed ready for adoption, or sent due to overcrowding. Most of the animals come from Maryland, says Peirce, “but when there’s a national emergency, like a hurricane, we have taken animals in from Puerto Rico, Houston, and other parts of the country.”

The MDSPCA’s $6-million annual budget relies on fundraising and donations, and the organization enthusiastically welcomes animal lovers who want to help. Volunteers, says Peirce, “are a true reflection of the variety and diversity of Baltimore.” People from all backgrounds pitch in. “Some of our biggest donors are cleaning out the cat pens and dog pens, or they’re walking the dogs,” he says. “Everyone’s here for the same reason to improve the lives of pets and people.”


B and Dee’s Baltimore Love

A FRIENDSHIP FOSTERS A CAUSE

BY JANE MACLEOD

BRIAN DOLBOW envisions moving his nonprofit into an office someday, but, for now, the do-gooder, who works as a security guard at Chase Brexton and M&T Bank Stadium, is happy to operate from his apartment in Baltimore’s Mount Vernon neighborhood and donate money from his own pocket to feed lunch to hundreds of people each month.

Dolbow operates B & Dee’s Baltimore Love, a small nonprofit with a simple mission: to reach out to anyone who might need a meal or, in some cases, donated clothing, hygiene products, school supplies, or children’s toys. He started the organization in 2016 after the death of his friend Demetrius Mallisham, who had worked in the Mayor’s office as a neighborhood liaison and liaison to the LGBT community. For the previous three years, the two had been part of a small group of volunteers who would get together to distribute food and clothing to those in need. When Mallisham, known as Dee, passed away, Dolbow says, “I was inspired to start this organization in his honor.”

The monthly “Lunch Patrol,” is held the last Sunday of each month the last week of the month can be hard for people on public assistance, Dolbow notes. The location changes: Sometimes volunteers hand out brown-bag lunches to people living under the JFX, sometimes at small parks and open spaces throughout the city. Today, B & Dee’s volunteers have set up tables at a small park across from the Greenmount Recreation center on Greenmount Avenue. Attendees generally number around 200-300, Dolbow says, but they’ve had many more, especially at outings like the annual holiday party, Black History events, and Pride month celebrations. In September, a back-to-school event can draw hundreds.

Meg Corasaniti and her sister Mena Cooper were among the volunteers at last September’s event on North Avenue. Corasaniti purchased dozens of children’s backpacks on Amazon, and she and Cooper filled them with notebooks, pens, and pencils to distribute, joining many volunteers who similarly contributed.

The sisters learned about B & Dee’s in 2017 from their sister-in-law, who found it on Facebook while researching charitable organizations. That year, the family had decided to donate to those in need instead of purchasing Christmas gifts, Corasaniti says. Demetrius “was a friend of a friend” of her sister-in-law, she adds. So, on New Year’s Eve, in bitter cold weather, the women attended their first Lunch Patrol at the Fallsway, handing out sandwiches and warm clothing.

Social media has swelled the ranks of the group’s supporters: “People ask how we grew so large,” Dolbow says, but with more than 1,000 Facebook followers, the organization rarely lacks volunteers.

On one June afternoon, Corasaniti and Cooper have prepared about 50 lunches for the event on Greenmount; each brown paper sack has a ham and cheese sandwich, a bag of chips or pretzels, and fruit or a sweet treat.

Ice-filled bins hold bottled water and juice, which Dolbow purchased at Safeway, and D.J. Jubak has set up his speakers to spin tunes. with July 4th just around the corner, someone has brought small American flags and red-white-and-blue leis, which a small girl distributes to those gathered in the park. The mood is like a family picnic or a block party.

Charlita Watlington, known as C.J., arrives with more ice. Watlington, who says she often finds holidays lonely, discovered B & Dee’s nearly three years ago, pitching in on Thanksgiving Day to serve turkey to some 1,200 people. “Not only do we love working in the community,” she says, “but we’re a family.” The first time she volunteered for B & Dee’s, she says, “I realized, here’s the family that I was missing for all these years.”


BLACK WOMEN BUILD

IF YOU BUILD IT, YOU'LL COME

BY COREY MCLAUGHLIN

STANDING JUST outside the front door of her house on Etting Street, Quanshay Henderson, a slender and cheerful 27-year-old black woman, is right when she says she doesn’t look like the renovate-your-own-house type. Except, of course, for the bits of sheetrock caked on her arms and orange tank top, the clear protective glasses she’s wearing, and the white dust mask hanging around her neck.

It’s a hot summer afternoon on a mostly deserted West Baltimore block, and Henderson was just inside, knocking down plaster from the first-floor ceiling of the previously boarded-up vacant rowhome, that, if all goes according to schedule, she’ll live in about four months from now. A place to call her own. Two bedrooms. One bath. Three skylights (she’s very excited about that). Open concept, and an affordable $600 monthly mortgage payment.

“I like working with my hands, sure, but mostly I like feeling more in control of my life,” Henderson says. “I see a door and I open it.”

Henderson, a part-time hospice aide who grew up in the Sharp-Leadenhall neighborhood near M&T Bank Stadium as the middle child of nine, just opened her future front door this morning, with a little bit of help. A Baltimore-based nonprofit called Black Women Build-Baltimore, led by tireless founder Shelley Halstead, has provided the direction to get here, a path for worthwhile change.

Halstead a renaissance woman who is the rare carpenter and lawyer had this idea to give black women like her and Henderson the chance to build wealth through homeownership in a direct way, teaching the construction skills to renovate and maintain their own homes, then helping provide financial literacy so they’ll know how to pay for them. And all while hopefully rehabilitating an entire Druid Heights neighborhood block defined by the two-story brick vacant rowhomes that The Wire made infamous.

Henderson got where she is now by signing up for a 14-week construction-training program at Baltimore JumpStart, originally with designs on building her own small house after watching a few YouTube videos.

That move connected her to Halstead, who four years ago moved to the city’s Marble Hill neighborhood with just her cat and a new goal.

Halstead has had a fascinating life she became a union carpenter in 1996 in her 20s in Seattle, fought fires in the Pacific Northwest, worked as an electrician’s apprentice in Antarctica, went to law school at the University of Washington on a full scholarship, then moved to D.C. to work at an LGBTQ nonprofit. That’s where she devised the Black Women Build concept in 2015, after realizing office work wasn’t for her. She incorporated the nonprofit two years later.

“Homeownership has allowed me to do some things in my life that I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise,” Halstead says. “The idea was, where can I help make that happen? Where is there low-cost housing stock and black women? Because it seems like we have the least net worth of anyone in the United States.”

Through money raised from grant writing and a healthy dose of perseverance, Halstead secured the rights to the shells of four boarded-up city-owned homes on Etting Street, properties that otherwise would likely be demolished, she says, as part of Project C.O.R.E. Her plan is to stave off that trend and recruit two to three women per year for the next few years to rehabilitate these rowhomes “one house at a time.” Then she’ll do the same to a half dozen other vacants on the block.

“I never thought I would be a homeowner,” says Henderson. “I didn’t see it growing up, but I’m going to be one soon.”


SANTA CLAUS ANONYMOUS

YES, SANTA HAS HELPERS

BY JANE MACLEOD

WHEN JIM RUSSELL was a kid growing up in the low-income Claremont Homes in Northeast Baltimore, he would get a toy each Christmas—just one. He doesn’t remember the actual toys, but he remembers how it felt to receive them. “My father died when I was young, and I was raised by my mother,” he says. The family didn’t have enough money for gifts, but would attend an annual holiday party at the neighborhood rec center, where each kid would receive a toy. “It was always a joyous day,” he recalls.

Although Russell, now 66, didn’t know it then, those toys came from Santa Claus Anonymous, an 85-year-old organization with the motto, “Give a Child a Christmas.”

Each year, Santa Claus Anonymous distributes some 15-20,000 gift certificates each worth an average $20 to families throughout Maryland. As the organization grew from its early years, the model of distributing the actual gifts presented logistical issues. “Storage was difficult,” says Russell. Now Santa Claus Anonymous raises money and purchases vouchers that can be redeemed by participating vendors, he says. “That’s where the anonymous comes in.”

Russell, now CFO and COO of an industrial maintenance company, rediscovered the nonprofit 30 years ago and immediately became a volunteer. Since then, he’s served on the board and as its president. His daughter Nicole Russell is the organization’s executive director—the only paid position planning events, securing volunteers, and coordinating with both the social service groups that distribute the vouchers and the merchants who redeem them. “Our recipient families never know who is contributing to the program,” says former president David Blumberg, now chairman of the board, in a letter on the organization’s website.

At the same time, donors don’t know who their gifts are going to which means, he writes, “Supporting Santa Claus Anonymous . . . is an act of truly altruistic generosity.”

Gift certificates are usually distributed by social service organizations such as Catholic Charities or through public housing authorities.

Harriet Johnson, who works for the Housing Authority of Baltimore City’s Office of Resident Services, is tasked with distributing about 2,500 Santa Claus Anonymous gift vouchers each year. In the fall, she sends out a mailing to families qualified for the vouchers those who live in low-income and subsidized housing inviting them to a number of events.

Last year, the Baltimore City gift certificates could be redeemed at stores including Rite Aid and Shoe City. Johnson remembers watching a little girl who had just received a pair of sneakers. “They were sparkly. The kind when you walk the lights come on at the bottom of the heels,” she says. The little girl “immediately tried on her shoes and pranced around. She didn’t want to take them off.”

Gail Hamlet, a grants and contracts specialist at The Johns Hopkins University, is the current president of Santa Claus Anonymous, after nearly five years of volunteering and serving on the board. “I’m really big on Christmas,” she says. “It’s part of who I am.” As a kid, she remembers the excitement of waking up at 4 a.m., the subsequent big dinner, and the flurry of relatives in the house. And she volunteers because she wants to impart that holiday spirit. “Families can’t always do it,” she says. “They just need some extra help.”


LOYOLA EARLY ED CENTER

GOING TO SCHOOL ON FATHER WATTERS

By CHRISTIANNA MCCAUSLAND

GABRIELLE AUTRY , 29, wanted her daughter Alyssa to attend preschool. She wanted her to have her own cubby, learn to listen to a teacher, and have classmates. Autry, who has experience as an elementary school paraprofessional helping kids with learning differences, has seen firsthand the importance of a high-quality preschool program. “In that birth-to-school-age time, I think a lot is lost or could be better reinforced,” she explains. “Especially working at an elementary school, I watch the kids who have only been in daycare or at home and how they struggle in the first months of school with attachment issues and crying. I also see kindergarteners who don’t even have letter recognition.”

Research backs Autry’s anecdotal evidence. The most definitive study on the value of early education, the Perry Preschool Project, documented that children who attend high-quality preschools not only learn and behave better, they also live healthier lives and earn more over their lifetimes.

Yet when Autry sought a preschool in her community on Baltimore’s west side, options were slim, especially for a full-day program, which Autry needed as a working parent. A friend told her about Loyola Early Learning Center (LELC), a new school opened in 2017 that offered tuition-free scholarships for Baltimore City residents. The program, located in Mount Vernon, is year-round.

“I loved the atmosphere of the school, that it was located in a rich cultural district, and that the building was tailor-made for these little babies,” says Autry.

LELC Director Erica Meadows underscores that being a preschool, not a daycare, is an important distinction. “We expect students to be in school every day, all day. They know we have high expectations for them,” she says. “We’re creating an environment that is nurturing, positive, and happy, so kids learn to love school and where parents feel valued and respected.”

LELC is open to all city residents regardless of faith and, though income is one of three main determinates for a child to receive a scholarship, the average household income for applicants is $25,000 for a single mother of one. LELC also conducts monthly parent-education seminars covering topics such as health and nutrition and financial literacy, and a family member must give 20 hours of volunteer time and write three letters to their tuition sponsor each year. Tuition is underwritten almost entirely by donors who agree to support a student with $16,000 per year for three years.

The school is a colorful, joyful space where students receive a healthy breakfast, lunch, and snack. The typical day includes circle time, where kids learn to talk about their feelings and pursue play-based learning and arts and crafts to build fine motor skills. There’s a playground and a neighborhood splash zone for hot days. Kids also learn mindfulness techniques and take yoga at a nearby studio, and go on field trips.

While LELC is new, it’s backed by longtime successful Jesuit educator and school president Father William Watters. Watters founded the all-boys middle school St. Ignatius Loyola Academy in 1993 for underserved families in the city, then created the coed Cristo Rey Jesuit High School. He was hoping to open an elementary school when he realized the dearth of preschools in the city.

“Many children in the low-income families of Baltimore don’t have the opportunity to have their children educated and prepared for kindergarten,” says Watters. “We want these children to be fully prepared with their spiritual, emotional, and physical gifts developed so that they are up and ready to pursue education at kindergarten and beyond.”

“We want to be with our kids all the way to help them become successful, productive citizens of Baltimore and to have the spirit of giving back so they give back what was given to them,” he says, “and they can’t do that unless they have a good education.”


WEEKEND BACKPACKS

WHEN THE FOOD FOLLOWS YOU HOME

BY REBECCA KIRKMAN

BALTIMORE CITY PUBLIC SCHOOL students are served breakfast, lunch, sometimes even a late afternoon snack, for free during the week. But for the most vulnerable kids—the more than 3,000 in the city and 5,000 in the county that are homeless or in unstable living situations—everything changes on the weekends.

“Come Friday to Monday, there’s little to no access to food,” says Sandie Nagel. That’s why she founded Weekend Backpacks for Homeless Kids with her husband, Fred, in 2015, providing children with backpacks filled with enough healthy food to last through the weekend.

“We have even seen kids who have been given a peanut butter sandwich at lunch, and they stuff it in their pocket and say, ‘My mother’s hungry, too.’” With that in mind, the organization makes sure there’s enough to provide six meals to a family of four and more when there is a long weekend or it’s the end of the month and government benefits are most likely running low.

Nagel first heard about backpack food assistance programs while watching an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show. A retired teacher, the 82-year-old has devoted her life to serving others, from running large-scale nonprofits to personal projects, like volunteering and donating holiday presents to needy students at Tench Tilghman School in Fells Point.

While delivering the holiday gifts, Nagel asked the school’s social worker how many homeless students attended Tench Tilghman. “I was expecting to hear something like 10,” Nagel recalls. “She said 100. My husband and I eventually packed 18 backpacks on our dining room table, and the story continues.”

Nagel’s charity has grown quickly. In June, it packed 506 bags distributed to children at 21 pre-K through eighth grade Baltimore City schools, enough to feed about 2,000 people.

“This is an all-volunteer organization. Nobody gets paid,” Nagel says. “All the money raised is used to feed the kids.”

It does, indeed, take a village: More than 200 volunteers come together to get the backpacks into the hands of the kids who need them each week. An assembly line of 50-70 people pack on Thursday mornings, then 20 drivers drop off the stuffed backpacks at the schools.

At the end of August each year, children identified as qualifying for the program get a new backpack filled with school supplies. Then, each Friday, the children visit their school counselor to take home their backpack, discreetly filled with food. On Monday, they return, and volunteers fill the backpacks again.

Nagel’s personal touch is evident in the contents, ensuring that meals are healthy (they’re nutritionist-approved, and there’s always some fresh fruit) and include seasonal items (incorporating canned ham and other holiday foods). Occasionally, there’s more than just food.

“We found out that homeless kids, when they sleep at the shelters or most other places, they either sleep in their clothes or their underwear,” Nagel says. “So, once a year, we started giving them pajamas. Once a year, we also give them hats, gloves, and scarves.”

During site visits to the schools, Nagel is reminded of her organization’s impact. “We had a grandmother who came up to us and said she’s a caretaker for a first, second, and fourth grader, and, without this, they would have no food.”

“It’s a huge need out there,” Nagel says. “We only want to be bigger and feed all the kids. If you think about a hungry, homeless child, you just have to join our cause. They’re innocent victims of hunger.”


SHARP DRESSED MAN

MEET BALTIMORE'S SARTORIAL SAVIOR

BY HANNAH CHENOWETH

EVERY WEDNESDAY afternoon, somewhere between 20 and 60 men gather outside a large, Civil War-era building at Old Town Mall in the Jonestown neighborhood. One by one, the men disappear inside and emerge with fresh haircuts, a suit in hand, and a pep in their step that hints at hope.

The beneficiaries of this sartorial magic trick all have different stories, but they have one thing in common: The desire for a second chance, which they get, thanks to a program called Sharp Dressed Man.

Since 2011, the nonprofit has provided more than 7,000 men with gently worn suits to dress for a new life. The premise is simple, says founder Christopher Schafer, owner of upscale Christopher Schafer Clothier in Harbor East: When you look good, you feel good. For men who have fallen on hard times, finding appropriate business attire is often the last hurdle to getting back on their feet but one that can make all the difference in making a fresh start.

Schafer, who was born in Baltimore and learned the art of tailoring in London, has seen firsthand that a change of clothes can change lives. “A lot of these guys have a past they’re ashamed of. We’re trying to give them a hand up, to help them turn the page and move forward with confidence,” he says. “It’s so powerful to see these men look in the mirror and see their potential.”

Demetrius Byrd, 31, is just one of those helped by the program and Byrd believes his new suit will help him make the right impression at an upcoming job fair. “I want to look smooth and decent, you know? Once I get suited up, I’m going to shave, twist my hair, and get my handshake ready,” he says.

There are a few types of men who typically donate, according to Schafer: Those who have retired, lost weight, gained weight, or are clearing out their wardrobe. And then there are widows donating things after a husband passes away. He gladly accepts donations from them all at his downtown shop on Aliceanna Street.

After the clothes are sorted by volunteers, they’re transferred to the organization’s space at Old Town Mall, which is open one day a week for those who have been referred by Sharp Dressed Man’s partners. The beneficiaries aren’t left to simply rifle through the racks, either; they’re treated like true gentlemen from start to finish.

“It’s all one-on-one: We take their measurements and provide a custom styling experience,” says Schafer. “We believe when you treat a man with dignity, he has a better chance of treating himself with dignity.”

So far, Sharp Dressed Man has operated on a shoestring budget, an all-volunteer crew, and donated clothes. “We’ve done a lot with a little, and right now we are looking to take our impact to the next level,” says Schafer.

The current goal is to raise $150,000, which will go toward hiring an executive director to expand the organization and also cover the overhead for the nonprofit’s expenses, including a new location in Los Angeles run by Schafer’s oldest son, Seth.

“I’ve been in recovery for a long time, and I’m reminded all the time how lucky I am. I’m in a spot now where I have dreams, I work toward them, and it’s super-exciting to help other people,” says Schafer. “In the world we live in, you judge a book by its cover. When a guy puts on a suit, he sees his second chance happen in front of his eyes. Ideally, every city will have a Sharp Dressed Man someday.”


ART WITH A HEART

PICTURE THIS, BALTIMORE

BY HANNAH CHENOWETH

WE CAN GIVE THEM FOOD, clothing, or shelter, but in 2000, lawyer Randi Pupkin envisioned a nonprofit that would enhance the lives of people another way—through art. She was certainly not a fine artist, and had zero nonprofit experience—just a strong belief in the healing powers of creativity. So the mother of two began pounding the pavement, practicing law by day and bringing art classes into the community by night.

Nineteen years later, Art With a Heart’s impact on the community is indelible: The nonprofit offers more than 15,000 interactive visual art classes a year to vulnerable populations in shelters, schools, community centers, group homes, hospitals, and senior facilities. And the program is no longer a one-woman show—more than 4,000 volunteers support it each year through public art workshops, community-service events, and classroom support.

Pupkin, now the executive director with a staff of 13, says the organization has evolved in ways she never imagined. Its newest initiative, The Art of Leadership, is a 13-month program that brings together a diverse group of 10th- and 11th-grade students to explore the greatest issues facing Baltimore and encourage fresh solutions.

“A recent study from IBM showed that creativity is the number one leadership competency that CEOs say they look for, in both executives and staff,” says Pupkin. “If we don't give young people the opportunity to stretch their creative muscles, we are doing them a disservice. We need for them to imagine and explore places they might not otherwise know but if not for creating art.”

HeARTworks is another youth-focused initiative at Art With a Heart. Participants learn soft job skills in addition to social and emotional skills, and create marketable pieces of art that are sold in its social enterprise/retail store, HeARTwares. Participating in HeARTworks gives young people a sense of accomplishment and pride, and there’s also a 73 percent job-placement rate for those who complete the program.

The magic happens in an airy, open-concept building on Falls Road, filled with funky artwork, mosaics radiating from every corner, and laughter. Klause Ferrel, 24, who was referred to the program as a homeless teen, says that before discovering HeARTworks, he struggled to find a place where he belonged. Today, he serves as an assistant on Art With a Heart’s Workforce Development and Social Enterprise team.

“What I found at Art with a Heart is something I’ve been searching for my entire life: a reason to be alive, to care, and to be part of something bigger than myself,” says Ferrel.

While its headquarters is indeed a safe space of healing for countless people, the nonprofit’s impact isn’t contained by a roof and four walls: Art With a Heart volunteers and program participants are diligently beautifying Baltimore, with over 300 large-scale art projects completed throughout the city to date. “It’s been an extraordinary experience,” says Pupkin. “I'm just a person who has ideas, and I’m so blessed to have this incredible, talented, and compassionate team ready and willing to forge those ideas into reality. Almost 20 years later, we are an important part of the fabric of this city.”


BALTIMORE WOMEN'S GIVING CIRCLE

LADIES WHO DO SOME HEAVY LIFTING

BY HANNAH CHENOWETH

WHEN WOMEN JOIN FORCES, they can change the world. Case in point, the Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle (BWGC): What started as 52 women with a vision to better the community has expanded to a thriving group of 460 members.

The circle’s diverse members are united by a common goal: to promote self-sufficiency for underserved women and their families in the greater Baltimore area. Since 2001, the BWGC has awarded more than $5.3 million in grants to local nonprofits that support this mission, made possible by each member’s yearly contribution of $1,150.

“Our ability to effect change is amplified by pooling and leveraging our enthusiasm, expertise, and financial resources,” says circle co-chair Dawna Cobb. “I first got involved because I wanted to tap into the collective power of women supporting other women.”

The BWGC works entirely through volunteer committees and is led by co-chairs that are elected by the membership every two years. Cobb and fellow co-chair Susannah Bergmann are both forces to be reckoned with in their own right. Cobb is a New York native who practiced law for 22 years and previously served as the dean of students at the University of Maryland Francis Key Carey School of Law; Amsterdam-born Bergmann owns a commercial construction company with her husband.

Both women have proudly made Baltimore their home, praising its most admirable qualities, yet not turning a blind eye to the systemic issues that plague the city.

“When I was recruiting at UMD, I would tell students, ‘If you want to come to a town with complex problems, lots of great resources, and where you can be sitting across from your delegate in two phone calls, come to Baltimore,’” says Cobb. “There’s a level of grit, determination, and incredible accessibility here.” Bergmann echoes the sentiment, adding: “You can’t just say, ‘Oh, the problem is over here so I’m just going to move to another neighborhood.’ We’re all in this together.”

Indeed, the hands-on, engaged nature of BWGC’s grant process exposes its members to parts of the city that they otherwise wouldn’t be in touch with. In 2018, the circle received 122 grant applicants; each went through a thorough review process from committee members. Forty-five were chosen to give presentations, of which 24 were ultimately selected. The circle supports all sorts of organizations, helping one-person startups gain momentum while also ensuring that well-established nonprofits aren’t left behind.

“There are so many people out there who are trying to solve the same problems and don’t know each other. We bring them together,” says Cobb. “We’ve had situations where our grantees form partnerships, which is something that’s fairly unique to our model. There’s a level of engagement and interest; we don’t just write grantees a check and tell them how to spend it.”

The BWGC is more than just a major grantmaking force—they also bring about change through education, advocacy, and other community-based activities. Each year, members vote on a topic; housing is the focus in 2020. The education committee organizes speaker series, events, and book clubs all year long to raise awareness among the group, which then creates a ripple effect into the community.

“The more you know, the more you can do. It’s an incredibly empowering energy,” says Bergmann. “The circle allows women to connect to each other, to the community, and to causes they support to the extent that they desire. Each member is an essential link in the chain that continues to grow.”


LIVING CLASSROOMS

CRACKING THE TOUGHEST NUTS

BY JANE MACLEOD

IN THE 1980S, when Jesse Garner was a teen, after bouncing around in foster homes in New York City, he was arrested at the Baltimore bus station for transporting drugs. He was sent to a juvenile detention center and ended up in a woodworking program building boats. “I was a terror, so uncooperative,” Garner recalls. A guy named James Bond ran the program. “I’d cuss him out on a regular basis,” he says. “But it seemed like the more rebellious I was, the more patient he was.”

Now Bond is Garner’s boss. “Jesse was a tough man,” Bond recalls. The program, Fresh Start, which continues to this day as one of the many branches of the Harbor East-based Living Classrooms Foundation (LCF), was designed to provide academic and vocational training to youth, most of them referred by the Department of Juvenile Services. “They gave us some of their more challenging young people,” Bond says. Garner went on to start a business, raise a family, and send his children to college, Bond says. “Now he’s come back to work as an instructor.”

The first paid employee at LCF, James Bond (no relation to the fictional international spy, but his family is responsible for naming Fells Point’s Bond Street) is now its CEO. And the nonprofit, which began when two McDonogh teachers wanted to teach kids to build a replica 19th-century schooner, is currently engaged in multiple education, job training, wellness, and violence-prevention programs throughout the city and in Washington, D.C.

“From the beginning, we were involved in job skills, work force development, and working with teenagers,” Bond says. “Those threads have carried through, but we have evolved into looking at how we can meaningfully disrupt the cycle of poverty in Baltimore.”

With about 500 full-and part-time employees and a long-standing expertise in the art of restoring historic boats, Living Classrooms also manages the U.S.S. Constitution, the paddle boats, and the pirate ships in the Inner Harbor, as well as operating the Historic Ships of Baltimore museum. “These become the living classrooms for the community,” says Bond.

Living Classrooms opened the charter school Crossroads Middle School in 2002 and partnered with the city to turn around The Commodore John Rodgers Elementary/Middle School in Butchers Hill. It began a Safe Streets program modeled on a Chicago initiative that trains mediators to go out in the streets to stop shootings in the McElderry Park neighborhood in 2016, leading to a 545-day stretch without a homicide. The city awarded funding for LCF to expand the program into nearby Belair-Edison. Living Classrooms manages playing fields, oversees youth athletic leagues, and has established a 2.5-square-mile target investment zone in East Baltimore.

“Living Classrooms saved my life,” says Garner. After graduating from Fresh Start, he had a few more run-ins with the law and was “piddling around,” he says. “I saw James Bond somewhere, and he said, ‘You should come back and work at Fresh Start.’” This was 2004, and Garner saw 20-year-old photographs of his younger self in the organization’s brochure. “I thought, all right, this is what I am supposed to be doing,” he recalls.

He later left and started a small trucking company that employs former convicts, and he’s helping put three of his six children through college. He also works with the Baltimore police to teach a class called “Men over Manhood.” Garner returned to Fresh Start this year as a vocational instructor, teaching kids about tools early in their apprenticeships. “All of them remind me of the young Jesse,” he says. “Someone’s got to give them a chance just like someone gave me a chance.”


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]]> Open & Shut: Clean Juice; Michael’s Cafe; The Civil https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/fooddrink/open-shut-clean-juice-michaels-cafe-the-civil/ Thu, 07 Feb 2019 15:11:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=25521

OPEN

Clean Juice: Located just a stone’s throw from CrossFit, REV Cycle Studio, and the Under Armour Performance Center, this new Locust Point juice bar has already become a favorite for post-workout fuel. Now open at McHenry Row, the first Maryland location of the North Carolina-based chain was brought to the neighborhood by former NFL safety (and Under Armour intern) Anthony Walters. He and his wife, Kaitlyn, offer a variety of juices, smoothies, açaí bowls, and signature toasts topped with everything from avocado to almond butter. Taking a Friends approach, the organic menu lists smoothie options like “The So Basic One” (almond milk, banana, maple syrup, and strawberries) and “The Coffee One,” mixing cold brew coffee with banana, dates, and almond milk. 1702 Whetstone Way.

Michael’s Cafe White Marsh: This decades-old Timonium staple known for its crab cakes, Crushes, live music, and spacious outdoor patio recently widened its footprint to White Marsh. The second location officially opened inside the Greenleigh at Crossroads development off White Marsh Boulevard last month. At about half the size of its flagship, the new space offers a slightly scaled back menu, but diners can still expect the same crab soup, colorful salads, raw oysters, prime cuts of meat, and jumbo lump crab cakes that have been passed down in owner Michael Dellis’ family for four generations. Similar to the original, the new Michael’s is also equipped with a fully stocked bar (everything from local beer and cocktails to an extensive list of rye and Irish whiskies) and plenty of flat screens for game-watching. 720 Concourse Circle, Middle River. 410-335-5370

COMING SOON

The Civil: An elegant dining destination is taking shape in the former home of Warehouse 518 in Mt. Vernon, which briefly operated as G.A.Y. Lounge until the fall of 2017 when co-owners Robert Gay and Joshua Persing closed amid landlord disputes. Come spring, the building at 518 North Charles Street will debut as The Civil, a renovated concept featuring craft cocktails, New American brunch and dinner dishes, live DJ sets, and private VIP spaces on its mezzanine level. The renovation yields stylish upgrades such as refinished original wood floors, glass chandeliers, sleek black furniture, and pops of gold throughout. 518 N. Charles St.

Bentley’s: On the heels of Dear Globe Coffee opening on Antique Row in Mt. Vernon last summer, this new jazz club is also readying for a debut on the 800 block of North Howard Street. The former home of Cooker’s Music Bistro is being revamped by cousins Glenda Laws, Mark Bynum, and Glenn Bydume, along with their family friend Maurice Stokes. According to Baltimore Fishbowl, the vision is for the spot to be a modernized version of their family’s neighborhood bar from “back in the day.” Opening this spring, the full bar and restaurant will focus on fare with Southern, Asian, and Latino influences downstairs, and a lounge and bar for live music performances upstairs. 885-889 N. Howard St.

Refocused: Since New America closed its doors last year, its former diner aesthetic (regulars remember the checkered floors, counter seating, and local artwork) has been replaced with repurposed woods, earthy gray tones, and ring-shaped light fixtures. The cafe space on North Eutaw Street is being converted into Refocused, a plant-based palace from local owner Jerel Jefferies. Although the restaurant isn’t expected to open its doors until March, it will host a preview night on February 16 to coincide with the the this year’s Vegan Restaurant Week. Jefferies, who won the inaugural Vegan Mac-and-Cheese Smackdown in 2016, plans to serve vegan sandwiches, wraps, salads, burgers, and, of course, his dairy-free spin on the classic oven-baked mac and cheese. 429 N. Eutaw St.

EPICUREAN EVENTS

3/1: Mardi Gras Masquerade
Mark your calendar for this festive Mardi Gras celebration benefiting the Living Classrooms Foundation’s BUGS Program—an after-school initiative which teaches students a combination of cooking, gardening, STEM, and creative arts. The New Orleans-inspired fundraiser at Ampersea in Fells Point will highlight creole cuisine, boozy hurricanes, raffles, live music by DJ Impulse and Black Dandelion, and desserts crafted by the restaurant’s executive chef Casey Williams. 1417 Thames St. 7-11 p.m. $70

3/4: Cocina con Amor Pop-Up at Ekiben
In a heartfelt message posted to social media earlier this week, the owners of Ekiben expressed their support for Fells Point neighbor Cocina Luchadoras—whose owner Rosalyn Vera received arson and personal death threats last week because of a political poster hanging inside her restaurant. “The Ekiben family wants to put this out there: Threats of violence against businesses who choose to express themselves genuinely and honestly will not fly here,” the post reads. “Not in Baltimore; not in our neighborhood.” To celebrate the diversity of the community, Vera and Ekiben chef Steve Chu are teaming up to host a one-time-only lunch pop-up that fuses the flavors of both restaurants. The event at Ekiben will run from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on March 4. “Ekiben is honest and quirky and creative in a way that we believe is uniquely Baltimorean,” the post reads. “This is because Baltimoreans recognize realness and authenticity over everything. And because Baltimoreans recognize the value in our differences.” 1622 Eastern Ave.

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]]> Baltimore Kids Show Off Their Skills at Living Classrooms Talent Show https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/artsentertainment/baltimore-kids-show-off-their-skills-at-living-classrooms-talent-show/ Fri, 26 Oct 2018 12:33:25 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=26153

Last night, the afterschool program at UA House at Fayette, operated by Living Classrooms, hosted a Youth Talent Showcase to spotlight the talent of young Baltimore City residents. This event was one of more than 8,000 events across the country as part of Lights On Afterschool, an annual nationwide celebration of youth-based programs organized by the Afterschool Alliance.

Children ages 6-20 were invited to perform musical numbers, dances, poetry, and spoken word pieces in front of an audience of their peers, family, and friends for a chance to win the top prize at the end of the night—a $100 cash prize. Jasmine Campbell, director of programming at UA House, says that the kids were looking forward to this from the moment it was announced.

“One of the things about our afterschool program is we are striving to create opportunities for students to explore their talents,” Campbell said. “The goal of the program is to give them the confidence and the tools to learn the things they are interested in.”

The idea for this showcase stemmed from an open mic night that the music director for UA House, Christina Campbell (no relation), hosts each month called Showcase You. All of the kids that participate in the afterschool program through Living Classrooms—and youth in the surrounding community—were able to audition to be a part of this talent show.

“I think part of why we do this also is because it’s an avenue for them to perform their gifts,” Christina said. “We try to engage the community as much as possible, and building awareness around the work that we do. Seeing them all so excited, preparing for it, the confidence from it all—it’s such an amazing thing to witness.”

Lights on Afterschool created the grant that made this showcase possible to highlight the benefits of afterschool programs in a city like Baltimore. This nationwide event is meant to urge lawmakers to support to funding of this type of programming to help disrupt the cycle of violence and poverty.

In keeping with that theme, the planning committee for the event wanted to select a group of judges that were in line with those values. Making the tough decision last night were Living Classrooms CEO James Bond, Councilman Brandon Scott, Deriece PateBennett of PepsiCo, Eean Logn of Baltimore Votes, Stacey Ulrich of Under Armour, and Travis Street of Living Classrooms.

The children were judged based on their creativity, stage presence, execution, and crowd involvement. The judges had a tough decision when it came to selecting winners. Scott said that this decision was harder than approving budgets for the city council.

“This was so hard,” he said. “These kids are much more talented than I ever was at that age. Stuff like this shows that the youth in Baltimore can and will do great things in the world.”

There were a group of young girls who live near the facility in Pleasant View Gardens who called themselves the PVG Girls that took home the first place trophy. They wowed the crowd with a high-energy dance number with some pretty unique moves. Fourth grader Tylor Robinson placed second for his emotional (and adorable) rendition of Bruno Mars’ “If I Were Your Man,” and sixth grader Tony Johnson, Jr. rounded it out in third place with his powerful pipes belting out Adele’s “Someone Like You.”

Aside from the contestants, there were other featured performances by 16-year-old Baltimore rapper Prophet, Living Classrooms UA House Dancers and AMPlified music group, and even a performance by the Baltimore Hawks dance team.

UA House at Fayette, formerly the Carmelo Anthony Center, was re-imagined and reopened in 2016 after an investment from Kevin Plank, Under Armour, and the Baltimore Ravens. The center services more than 300 students daily as a response to the community’s need for intervention that supports the academic and social development of disadvantaged youth in East Baltimore.

“We just really wanted to bring in people who support the work that we do,” Campbell said. “People who have a history of supporting East Baltimore and supporting initiatives that uplift youth and community in Baltimore.”

In everyone’s eyes the event was a success—a packed house of nearly 200 people—and they are eager to plan next year’s event.

“At the end of the day, it’s about giving them the space to showcase their talents in a safe space,” Christina said. “We also want to make sure that people understand the importance of afterschool programs and the effect it has on the development of the youth in the city.”

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]]> Smooth Sailing https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/educationfamily/living-classrooms-sail-solar-powered-pirate-ships-inner-harbor/ Mon, 20 Aug 2018 08:30:00 +0000 http://server2.local/BIT-SPRING/baltimoremagazine.com/html/?post_type=article&p=1223

It’s a typical summer afternoon at the Inner Harbor, with ambient music emanating from the National Aquarium and pigeons strutting along the Baltimore Waterfront Promenade—but over at the Living Classrooms Foundation dock, a crowd of kids and their parents sway in excitement, mirroring the pint-size pirate ships they’re about to board.

Through November, swashbucklers can live out fantasies of sailing the seven seas with the Pirate Ships of Baltimore, a new 12-ship armada decked out with solar-powered motors, mini crow’s nests, and decorative cannons. The half-hour ride offers panoramic views of local landmarks including the Domino Sugars sign and the starboard side of the Chesapeake.

The fleet, which is owned and operated by Living Classrooms, is the first attraction to open at the Inner Harbor in five years and joins the organization’s iconic Chessie Dragon paddleboats for locals and visitors to explore the city by water. Designed by Baltimore-based manufacturer Premier Rides, the fiberglass ships, which hold six buccaneers each, are powered by lithium-ion batteries that use solar energy to cruise along the water for $25-35 per trip.

During the summer, Living Classrooms’ floating attractions employ more than 50 local teens and young adults, who pick up nautical know-how in addition to business skills. Darius Dickey, who oversees maintenance at the dock and has worked with the organization for the past six years, says it’s the kind of opportunity the city’s youth need during the summer.

“It keeps young people out of trouble,” Dickey says, “keeping them off the streets, having them on the right path. It makes them want to work and strive for something better.” As of late June, more than 700 riders have set sail on the pirate ships since the dock opened. “It’s easy for us to see the water from the city,” says Chris Rowsom, vice president of Heritage Programs for Living Classrooms, “but to see the city from the water is pretty cool.”

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]]> Weekend Lineup: October 6-8 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/events/weekend-lineup-october-6-8/ Thu, 05 Oct 2017 11:14:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=28624

Five things to eat, drink, see, hear, and do with your Charm City weekend.

lydia_eat_1.png EAT

Oct. 6: Maritime Magic

Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park, 1417 Thames St. 7 p.m. $110. 410-685-0295.

On Friday night, fulfill all your foodie dreams at one of the best benefits in Baltimore. Underneath the stars against the backdrop of the rippling harbor, sample your way through delectable dishes from more than 80 top area restaurants, including classic favorites like Birroteca, Cunningham’s, and Waterfront Kitchen, and new go-tos like Sandlot, Minnow, and Points South Latin Kitchen. Wash it all down with local beer from Union Craft, Diamondback, and Heavy Seas, to name a few, plus wine and booze from the likes of Old Line Spirits and Lyon Distilling. With a rocking music lineup, silent auction, and annual chefs’ competition to tie it all together, it’ll be an exceptionally memorable night, especially since all proceeds go to support Living Classrooms, one of Baltimore’s longest standing nonprofits for disadvantaged youth and adults.

lydia_drink_1.png DRINK

Oct. 7: Baltimore Craft Beer Festival

Canton Waterfront Park, 3001 Boston St. 12-5 p.m. $15-55. 410-252-9463.

This Saturday, grab your growlers and hop on over to Canton Waterfront Park to celebrate the city’s craft beer boom. This small-batch brew festival features unlimited samplings from more than 40 Maryland breweries, from seasoned veterans The Brewer’s Art, Flying Dog, and Oliver Brewing Co. to up-and-comers like Attaboy, Black Flag, and Hysteria. Don’t miss the homebrew competition with Nepenthe, the beer yoga session led by HopAsana, a feast of local food trucks, and the Battle of the Brewskies band contest. Proceeds support Strong City Baltimore, which works to strengthen neighborhoods through community programs and invested partnerships.  

lydia_see_1.png SEE

Oct. 7-8: Baltimore Open Studio Tour

Locations vary. Sat.-Sun. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Free. 443-263-4350.

Calling all art aficionados: This is your chance to peer into the studios of more than 100 area artists and discover where phenomenal art starts. In its 29th year, this citywide event presents local artists with a wide range of styles in every corner of the city, from Woodberry to Brooklyn Park. Explore new and alternative arts spaces, like SpaceCamp and the Baltimore Jewelry Center in Station North, or Terrault in the Bromo Arts District, or Y:Art Gallery in Highlandtown. Get to know local creatives like Annie Howe and her beloved papercuts, Mary Mashburn of local letterpress fame, Taha Heydari and his mesmerizing installations, and Ernest Shaw, who creates some of the city’s most beautiful murals. Presented by the School 33 Art Center in Federal Hill, this self-guided tour with an official map allows art lovers of all kinds to get out and get inspired by Baltimore.

lydia_hear_1.png HEAR

Oct. 7: The Local Oyster’s 2nd Anniversary Party

Mt. Vernon Marketplace, 520 Park Ave. 7-11 p.m. Free. 844-748-2537.

What’s a better combo than oysters and live music? This Saturday night, one of Baltimore’s favorite party bands is making its way to the Mt. Vernon Marketplace to celebrate the second birthday of our beloved Local Oyster. Having performed at The Kennedy Center, Rams Head Live, and Baltimore City Hall, this Swingin’ Swamis will bring a gumbo of R&B, rock-and-roll, jazz, and world rhythms, while L.O. devotees slurp down ice-cold, award-winnig bivalves and tip back tall pours of oyster stout. With the city’s best shrimp sammy in hand, boogie down to the groovy sounds of this musical sextet with shell-ebrity owner Nick Schauman and cheers to his evolution from roving shucking stand to Mount Vernon mainstay. Long live the Local Oyster! 

lydia_do_1.png DO

Oct. 7-8: Fells Point Fun Fest

Thames St. at Broadway. Sat. 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Free. 410-675-8900.

In 1966, Fells Point started a small neighborhood festival to fight the proposed highway that would have cut through the heart of the historic ’hood. Thanks to a local outpouring and diehard efforts by the likes of Barb Mikulski, that dreaded road never came, and over the past 51 years, that little festival has grown to mass proportions, reaching as high as 100,000 attendees in 2016. This year, they’re scaling things back to highlight the artists, restaurants, and businesses that made Fells Point great in the first place, while also supporting the revitalization of the neighborhood. Sample snacks from the area’s best eateries, comb the cobblestone streets with local beer in hand, and peruse a handful of local crafters, hawking homemade goods. Maryland bands will be performing from two stages, with revered Fells regulars like the Kelly Bell Band and Sean K. Preston, while the music at local haunts like Cat’s Eye Pub and Admiral’s Cup will be playing into the wee hours of the night. 

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]]> Mind Over Matter https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/health/black-male-yoga-initiative-strives-to-change-community-through-yoga/ Thu, 22 Jun 2017 10:33:00 +0000 http://server2.local/BIT-SPRING/baltimoremagazine.com/html/?post_type=article&p=3087

Many people can say that yoga changed their lives, but for Changa Bell, yoga may have actually saved his. 

When he was just 30 years old, Bell, now the founder of The Black Male Yoga Initiative (BMYI) and owner of the Sunlight & Yoga Holistic Wellness Center, was suffering from severe arrhythmia. He began practicing yoga and mindfulness as a way to cope with his diagnosis. After three or four weeks of healthy living and regular yoga practice, his heartbeat stabilized. 

Grateful for what yoga had done for him, Bell received certification as an instructor in 2011, and it was then that his mission took shape. 

“I was the only male in a class of 17 people when I got certified,” he says. “It was intimidating to me, and I didn’t want people, specifically black men, to not get the life-saving possibilities of yoga because they didn’t feel comfortable in a space with a bunch of strong, mostly white, mostly young women.” 

So Bell started his nonprofit, BMYI, in 2015. The program is contracted through Living Classrooms and aims to give black men ages 16 to 65 a space to practice yoga, mindfulness, healthy living, and self-care, while certifying them as registered yoga teachers. Bell hopes that many of them will go on to teach and promote these practices in their own communities. The group meets once a week for eight weeks, alternating between yoga and mindfulness lessons. 

Bell says that while he was drawn to yoga because of his heart ailment, some of the men are using yoga to deal with emotional trauma, too. 

“It takes time for some of these guys to get to a place where they are vulnerable enough to talk about this trauma,” he says. 

Bell hopes to expand BMYI in the coming years by establishing more partnerships locally and replicating his curriculum in other cities. 

“If I could put out a call for help on a megaphone it would be for partnerships,” he says. “It comes down to who values this community. I just want the change to take place.”

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]]> A Place Like Home https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/community/kevin-plank-and-living-classrooms-unveil-ua-house-at-fayette/ Tue, 21 Feb 2017 08:30:00 +0000 http://server2.local/BIT-SPRING/baltimoremagazine.com/html/?post_type=article&p=3676

Growing up in the public housing development Perkins Homes, Travis Street saw firsthand the importance of community centers in Baltimore City. “Once ours closed, I started to notice a lot of my peers getting into trouble, using drugs, selling drugs, going to jail,” he says. “And our communities were divided.”

As their numbers have dwindled from 150 in 1990 to a mere 42 today, the lack of community centers in Baltimore’s underserved neighborhoods has become a critical component in conversations about the city, an issue underscored by the 2015 uprising after the death of Freddie Gray.

But beside the heavy traffic of Fayette Street stands a bright blue beacon of hope for East Baltimore and the city as a whole. Here, Street now serves as the director of UA House at Fayette, a newly renovated, 30,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art community center—operated by Living Classrooms—which opened in November with a generous donation from Under Armour’s Kevin Plank. The cobalt-colored entrance beckons you inside where, to the left, a recording studio offers guitars, drums, and keyboards for making music and, to the right, a covered field house features a turf field and sky-high garage doors. There’s also a yoga and dance studio, a full-purpose neighborhood kitchen, and a regulation-size basketball court.

Just a few steps from where Street grew up (and near other low-income housing like Pleasant View Gardens and Douglas Homes), the 37-year-old now finds himself working to help transform the lives of those same kids he grew up with, not to mention their own children, and even grandchildren. “We’re taking a multigenerational approach,” he says. “The whole goal is to strengthen the communities and bring people together.”

As the anchor of Living Classrooms’ Target Investment Zone initiative, which aims to disrupt the cycle of poverty in 2.5 square miles of underserved communities from the JFX to Patterson Park, the UA House offers more than just fun and games. “This is the heartbeat of the community,” says James Piper Bond, president and CEO of Living Classrooms. “The programming that’s happening here is rippling out across the city.”

The space offers year-round after-school programming for elementary through high school students, and features a STEM classroom with white boards and Mac computers. The building’s lower level houses an impressive workforce development and entrepreneurship center with job and skill training for adults. “It’s about overcoming and eliminating barriers, looking at the long term, and making sure people succeed,” says Street. “When we say we are community-driven, we are. We know every household. This is my family.”

James Piper Bond024 James Piper Bond094 James Piper Bond096 James Piper Bond040 James Piper Bond033 James Piper Bond036

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]]> Weekend Lineup: Sept. 30-Oct. 2 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/events/weekend-lineup-sept-30-oct-2/ Thu, 29 Sep 2016 17:02:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=30557 Continued]]> Five things to eat, drink, see, hear, and do with your Charm City weekend.

EAT

Sept. 30: Maritime Magic

Living Classrooms Foundation, 1417 Thames St. 7 p.m. $110.

For one
night, the pier at the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park will
transform into a foodie haven. Now in its 30th year, the big shebang will treat
more than 2,000 guests to dozens of local restaurants from across the city,
including old mainstays like Peter’s Inn, B&O American Brasserie, and the
one-and-only Andy Nelson’s Barbecue; beloved go-tos like Hersh’s, Birroteca,
and Parts & Labor; and new favorites like Cosima and Gunther & Co.
Local beer will be on hand by Diamondback Brewing, Flying Dog, Key Brewing, and
Union Craft, as well as local liquor by Sagamore Spirit, Lyon Distilling, The
Baltimore Whiskey Company, and Blackwater Distilling. Under the stars (or tent,
depending on the weather), hear the sounds of Cuban music and conga drumming by
New Orleans’ Alexey Marti and Urban Minds followed by San Francisco’s funk and
psychedelic-soul band, Con Brio. Best of all, in the heart of its waterfront
campus, support one of Baltimore’s longest standing nonprofits, Living
Classrooms, which has served disadvantaged youth and young adults in the city
for more than 30 years.

DRINK

Oct. 1: Meet Your Maker at WTMD

WTMD Studios, 1 Olympic Pl., Towson. 3-7
p.m. $30.

With all of the
buzz surrounding Sagamore Spirit these days, it might seem like Kevin Plank is
the only game in town. But his soon-to-be-local rye whiskey aside, Maryland is
home to more than 45 local hooch creations. Bringing together the Land of
Pleasant Living’s nine local distilleries, WTMD’s Meet Your Maker is the
largest gathering of its kind to date in the state, and will include the likes
of Stevensville’s Blackwater Distilling Company (Sloop Betty), St. Michaels’ Lyon
Distilling Company (Lyon Rum), and Tenth Ward Distilling Company (White Caraway
Rye), plus Charm City’s brand-new Old Line Spirits (Single Malt) and young-gun The
Baltimore Whiskey Company (Shot Tower Gin). With your commemorative whiskey
glass in hand, sample the goods and soak up the sounds of up-and-coming Baltimore
bands, local folk group Hollywood Blanks and rockabilly trio High &
Lonesome. Don’t worry about the forecast—the event is rain or shine.

SEE

Sept. 30-Oct. 2: Little Italy Madonnari Arts Festival

Little Italy, S. High St. Thu. 6-9:30 p.m., Fri. 4-10 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Free.

Rain won’t be
the only thing painting the streets of Little Italy this weekend. Following the
16th-century tradition of Madonnari artists, the sidewalks and pavement will be
turned into works of pastel and chalk art by dozens of local and international
artists. In celebration of Italian Heritage Month, stop by their tents and
admire as little strokes of color transform into awe-inspiring masterpieces.
Throughout the weekend, indulge in as much homemade pasta and Italian wine as
your heart could desire, and enjoy live music at the neighborhood’s various
venues, like gypsy jazz at Germano’s Piattini on Friday night or steel pan
drums at Amicci’s on Saturday. There will also be outdoor performances by the
Annapolis Shakespeare Company and Baltimore Mandolin Quartet.

HEAR

Oct. 1: Baltimore Jazz Festival

Druid Hill Park, 900 Druid Park Lake Dr. 12-8
p.m. Free.

The roots of
jazz run deep in the city streets of Baltimore. In the early decades of the
last century, this town brought us the likes of Billie Holiday, Cab Calloway,
Chick Webb, Eubie Blake, Cyrus Chestnut, and Ethel Ennis, to name a few, and soon
enough, Pennsylvania Avenue was home to hallowed stages graced by the
likes of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Etta James, and Nat King Cole. A
handful of decades later, the genre isn’t as prolific or vibrant as it once
was, but in the pockets and corners of this city, you can still catch some of
the best music in town, like on once-a-month Monday nights at An Die Musik with
the Dunbar Alumni Jazz Band, or on Thursdays at Bertha’s with the Jeff Reed
Trio. This weekend, celebrate the heritage of Baltimore jazz as well as its
future with an all-day festival in beautiful Druid Hill Park. As part of Free
Fall Baltimore, enjoy hot sax, Django-inspired guitar, and Wynton-esque
trumpet, with Rumba Club, the Clarence Ward III All-Stars, Hot Club of
Baltimore, Art Sherrod Jr., and the next generation of local musicians with the
Dunbar Jazz Ensemble, all in tow. Rain or shine, bring the whole family to
enjoy food from HarborQue and Ethel’s Creole Kitchen, Union Craft beer, and a
petting zoo.

.

DO

Sept. 30-Oct. 2: Fells Point Fun Festival

Fells Point, S. Broadway & Thames St.
Fri. 6-9 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Free.

It’s going to be
a bit soggy this weekend, but whatever the weather, the cobblestone streets of
Fells Point will fill for three full days of food, drink, music, and
celebrations of this historic neighborhood. Now in its 50th year, the lively little
festival will honor its history—once upon a time, it was founded as an anti-highway fundraiser to save Fells from connecting to I-95 and
I-83—as well as its ever-evolving days ahead. While old establishments continue
to shutter (R.I.P. Leadbetter’s), promising new businesses continue to
pop up (we see you, Treason Toting and Modern Cook Shop), and at the end of the day, the heart of
the community remains the same, with swashbuckling blues lovers, eclectic
historians, and tipped tourists still running amuck. Hear live music by 10
bands (including Waterfront Hotel and Cat’s Eye regular Sean K. Preston),
indulge in street eats from local restaurants (like drool-worthy mini lobster
rolls from Thames Street Oyster House), grab an orange cup, and raise a glass
to the city’s 250-year-old waterfront.

Source

]]> Rebuild Baltimore https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/events/volunteer-opportunities-clean-up-rebuild-reconnect-baltimore/ Wed, 30 Mar 2016 10:54:40 +0000 http://server2.local/BIT-SPRING/baltimoremagazine.com/html/?post_type=article&p=5210

April will mark the the one-year anniversary of the Baltimore Uprising. In that moment and the months that followed, our city was in a state of turmoil, but we came together to clean up, rebuild, and reconnect our communities, though we still have a long way to go. Get involved, starting with these events.

PAUL’S PLACE SERVICE OUTING
April 2: Paul’s Place, 1118 Ward St. 8:30 a.m. Free. 410-357-6242. Participate in the Sierra Club’s Baltimore Inspiring Connections Outdoors community outreach program, which introduces urban youth to nature through exploration, lessons, and community service.

TORREY SMITH CHARITY BASKETBALL GAME
April 2: Royal Farms Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St., 3 p.m. $17-80. 410-347-2020. Meet former Raven Torrey Smith at his annual charity basketball game for the Torrey Smith Foundation, which supports Baltimore City youth.

BALTIMORE STORIES
April 3: Red Emma’s, 30 W. North Ave. 8:30 p.m. Free. 443-602-7611. Local activist, author, and Loyola professor Kaye Whitehead hosts an evening of storytelling where community members can share recollections of the Uprising.

COMMUNITY LOT CLEANUP
April 6-27: Locations vary. 9 a.m. Free. 410-366-8533. Every Wednesday throughout the month, join AmeriCorps members as they work to transform vacant lots into beautiful community gardens and green spaces in neighborhoods across Baltimore.

CONVERSATION THREAD
April 7: Locations vary. 6:30 p.m. 410-660-8343. This local community organization brings 1,000 people together at 100 dinners across Baltimore, where attendees will gather, eat, and connect to help support young people in the local community.

URBAN ALLIANCE MOCK NETWORKING EVENT
April 8: The Urban Alliance, 1500 Union Ave., Ste. 2100. 3:30 p.m. Free. 410-366-5780. All professional are welcome to this mock networking event to help under-resourced students sharpen their interpersonal skills and prepare for interviews.

BOUNDARY BLOCK PARTY
April 16: Pennsylvania Ave. & Presstman St. 12-4 p.m. Free. 410-728-1199. This large community festival will feature live entertainment, art activities, and a “Get out the vote” campaign in Upton.

BMORE THAN THE STORY
April 16-Aug. 28: Reginald F. Lewis Museum, 830 E. Pratt St. 1 p.m. Free. 443-263-1800. Local students have collaborated to present powerful narratives and a series of visual performing arts to show different perspectives of the Baltimore riots.

SBLC CELEBRATION GALA
April 16: Horseshoe Casino, 1525 Baltimore St. 6:30 p.m. $125. 410-625-4215. For the 25th year, this cocktail party benefits the South Baltimore Learning Center, which helps provide life-skills training and career preparation to Baltimoreans in need.

BALTIMORE CLEANUP
April 27: 316 S. Caroline St. 5 p.m. Free. 410-685-0295. Join kids from the POWER House Community Center and members of the Living Classrooms Foundation in this new neighborhood cleanup series, conceived last summer after the Baltimore Uprising.

QUESTION BRIDGE: BLACK MALES
April 28-Aug. 30: Reginald F. Lewis Museum, 830 E. Pratt St. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $8. 443-263-1800. This video installation offers a glance into the perspective of 150 black men living in cities throughout the U.S. to deconstruct stereotypes and build a constructive dialogue.

Source

]]> Kevin Plank Donates $5 Million to East Baltimore Youth Center https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/community/kevin-plank-donates-5-million-to-east-baltimore-youth-center/ Wed, 03 Feb 2016 14:07:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=31841 Continued]]> On Tuesday, the Living Classrooms Foundation announced that a youth recreation center in Pleasant View Gardens will receive a significant renovation, funded by a $5 million donation from Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank.

The facility, located at 1100 E. Fayette Street and formerly known as the Carmelo Anthony Center, will undergo a 10,000-square-foot expansion that includes a covered turf field, state-of-the-art STEM classroom, workforce and entrepreneurship center, dance and yoga studios, a recording studio, and a neighborhood kitchen.

“I really have no words for it,” says Travis Street, director of the youth center. “I grew up in this neighborhood, I grew up in poverty. When I was their age, I didn’t have these types of opportunities. I feel privileged to even be a part of it.”

Currently, organizers from the Living Classrooms are in the “needs assessment” phase of the project, in which they’re knocking on doors of the 201 units in Pleasant View Gardens to ask what they’d want out of the new community center.

“At the top of a lot of people’s priority list are programs for entrepreneurship and workforce development,” Street says. “Whether it’s teaching our students about resume writing, or how to dress for success on an interview, these are important keys for the community.”

The youth center—in its after-school program alone—serves 130 students from five feeder schools in Southeast Baltimore. The program provides healthy meals, homework help, and art outlets. Living Classrooms hopes that Plank’s $5 million donation, plus $1.275 million for general programing, will further expand its reach.

“We’ve put together a pretty exciting canvas for this center,” says Living Classrooms CEO and president James Piper Bond. “We’ll have an incredible music studio where we’ll be working with Thomas Dolby. Our outdoor basketball court, which is kind of crummy, will be a turf with a pavilion so it can be used year-round. Our computer labs will allow our kids to learn code. We’ll be building a kitchen not only to provide healthy meals, but so our kids can start a local catering company. Our new yoga and dance studios will provide fitness. This center will be the heartbeat of the East Baltimore Target Investment Zone.”

That zone to which Bond refers is home to more than 20 city schools and other Living Classrooms centers, which will all greatly benefit from the renovated youth center as a model. Another aspect of the yet-to-be-named center will be providing multi-generational guidance.

“How cool would it be, just hypothetically speaking, if we had a GED program for the parents during the day, and then after-school programs for the kids?” Street says. “Every portion of the day, we want this building to be lively.”

Living Classrooms aims to begin construction by the end of February and is already planning summer programming.

“I started out as a community organizer in Perkins Homes when I was 14,” Street said. “This is my passion, to help disrupt the cycle of poverty. These kids are our future doctors, lawyers, reporters, and so on. This center will be a place for them to take ownership of their community and of themselves.”

Source

]]> ​Six Charitable Ways to Give Back https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/artsentertainment/six-ways-to-give-back-this-holiday-season/ Mon, 30 Nov 2015 11:52:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=69810 Continued]]> Twinkling lights are being hung left and right, Christmas music is starting to invade radio airwaves, and you probably already have an ugly sweater party or two penciled into your calendar. The holiday season is officially upon us, and while these traditions are all great ways to get into the spirit, we can’t forget that the countdown to Christmas is also a time to give back to the community. So in between cooking up a storm and scouring stores for the perfect gifts, be sure to check out these charitable events and volunteer opportunities happening all over town throughout December.

Enoch Pratt Free Library Book Bowl Challenge
Dec. 1: The Ravens won’t be the only ones duking it out against Cleveland this week. In the spirit of tonight’s matchup against the Browns—which just so happens to fall on the eve of Giving Tuesday—The Enoch Pratt Free Library has challenged the Cleveland Public Library to a fundraising competition, which will support each system’s free community programs. (If the Pratt Library collects the most donations, we’ll get to see a video of Cleveland’s director wearing a Ravens jersey and reciting Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven,” posted online.) Online donations can be made from kickoff tonight until the end of the day on Giving Tuesday. To jump-start the competition, Pratt Library’s young professional’s organization is hosting a Ravens-Browns viewing party at Bond Street Social Monday at 7:30 p.m.

Urban Light Pop-Up at Wit & Wisdom
Dec. 1: In support of the international day of generosity known as Giving Tuesday, three notable Charm City chefs are teaming up to host a pop-up dinner at Wit & Wisdom that will benefit Urban Light—a local organization dedicated to helping the large population of homeless and trafficked boys in Thailand. From 7-10 p.m., take in the waterfront views and indulge in a four course Thai-inspired prix-fixe with additional wine pairings prepared by chefs Tim Dyson of Dooby’s, Cyrus Keefer of 13.5 Wine Bar, and Zack Mills of Wit & Wisdom. One-hundred percent of all ticket sales will be directly donated to Urban Light. 200 International Drive, 410-576-5800, $100

12 Bars of Charity
Dec. 5: Power Plant Live has organized this holiday-themed pub crawl that will donate a portion of each individual ticket sold to one of eight local charities. The price of admission includes drink deals from 6-10 p.m., no-cover access to 12 of the district’s bars, and a sweatshirt supporting the charity of your choice. Attendees are invited to sip half-priced beers and Ketel One vodka cocktails all night to benefit participating organizations such as The Maryland Zoo, Casey Cares Foundation, BARCS, The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, March of Dimes, and The Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. 34 Market Pl., 410-727-548, $30

Volunteering Untapped Salvation Army Toy Drive
Dec. 12: Throw on a Santa hat, don your most festive holiday sweater, and head to The Salvation Army in Hampden for this annual event hosted by Volunteering Untapped—a local nonprofit whose mission focuses on getting millennials involved in community outreach programs. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., grab some friends and help sort and wrap toys that have been donated to the Salvation Army for families in need. Then, after a morning of giving, head over to Union Craft Brewing to take a tour, down drafts, and hang out with fellow volunteers. Multiple locations including 400 E. 29th St., 410-370-2882

Hyatt Regency Baltimore Blanket Drive
The Old Farmer’s Almanac estimates that we’re in for an especially chilly winter this year, and in an effort to help displaced locals stay warm, the Hyatt Regency Baltimore has arranged a blanket drive through New Year’s Eve. In partnership with the Franciscan Center, The Maryland Center for Veterans Education & Training, and New Vision House of Hope, the Inner Harbor hotel has pledged to collect 1,000 new blankets this season. Donations can be purchased online and shipped to the hotel directly or dropped off at the front desk or valet station. 300 Light St., 410-528-1234

Maryland Gives More
This charitable campaign, whose goal is to make Maryland the most generous state in the nation on Giving Tuesday for the second year in a row, has set up Crowdrise fundraisers for upwards of 85 local programs and nonprofits. From the Living Classrooms Foundation and Fluid Movement to the Maryland Historical Society and the Maryland Women’s Coalition for Healthcare Reform, there are plenty of causes in need of support. Last year, Maryland Gives More raised more than $9 million over the holidays, and the group is hoping to defend its title as the most generous state once again this season.

Source

]]> Believe In Music Students Appear On The Meredith Vieira Show https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/artsentertainment/believe-in-music-students-appear-on-the-meredith-vieira-show/ Wed, 21 Oct 2015 16:44:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=68216 Continued]]> First, they got to record their own inspiring song about their love for Baltimore with some of the city’s music elites at local radio station WTMD. Now, they have performed in front of a national audience on The Meredith Vieira Show.

Students from Believe in Music, an organization that promotes self expression and community engagement in young people through music and technology education, appeared on the show today to perform “Believe in Baltimore”—which we wrote about this summer—and talk to Vieira about their experiences. They wrote the song to promote togetherness and peace after the unrest following the death of Freddie Gray.

Make sure you watch the end of the performance when they get a special surprise. Trust us—it just might bring a tear to your eye.

Source

]]> Weekend Lineup: Sept. 25-27 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/events/weekend-lineup-nov-28-30-2/ Thu, 24 Sep 2015 16:29:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=68393 Continued]]> Five things to eat, drink, see, hear, and do with your Charm City weekend.

EAT

Sept. 25: Living Classrooms Foundation’s Maritime Magic

Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park, 1417 Thames St. 7 p.m. $110-120. 410-685- 0295. livingclassrooms.org.

One of the best benefits in Baltimore returns to the Inner Harbor this Friday as Maritime Magic celebrates 30 years of the Living Classrooms Foundation. Join thousands of guests along the historic Fells Point waterfront to nosh on food from more than 80 area restaurants and chefs, including Thames Street Oyster House, Ryleigh’s Oyster, Birroteca, and Wit & Wisdom. Enjoy beer by the likes of Heavy Seas, Union Craft, and Flying Dog, as well as wine, cocktails, and lots of live music. It costs a pretty penny, but think of it as dozens of dinners out and, of course, a good cause.

DRINK

Sept. 26: Hammers & Ales

Baltimore Community
ToolBank, 1224 Wicomico St. 6-10 p.m. $60. 410-244-5565. baltimore.toolbank.org.

Located in South Baltimore, this little-nonprofit-that-could
has done some great things in its first three years. The ToolBank offers an
inventory of tools to the local community, helping organizations, nonprofits, churches, schools, and
volunteers increase their impact around the city. For instance, they can rent a rake to
clean a vacant lot, a shovel to start a garden, paint rollers to fix up an old
building, or some drills to build a playground. Toast their efforts on Friday
and help raise funds for the future with a party in their warehouse courtyard
with live music, Mission BBQ, and giant mugs of great beer. Sip Public Works
Ale from Peabody Heights
(which we named “Best Brewery” this year), as well as a number of Paulaner varieties, like Oktoberfest and Hefeweizen.

SEE

Sept. 26: MakeScape 2015

Open Works, 1400

Greenmount Ave., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Free. 2015.baltimoreinnovationweek.com.

With a growing number of startups sprouting up around the city, there’s no better time to celebrate innovation in Baltimore than now. This weekend starts seven days of it, with the 2015 Innovation Week, featuring speakers, discussions, activities, competitions, and festivities across a variety of venues. On Saturday, kick it all off with the first annual MakeScape, which takes place at future incubator Open Works in Station North, slated to open in 2016. The community maker-space will offer workshops, classrooms, and small studios for artists and craftspeople, as well as classes and programs for local youth and adults. Get excited for its beginnings with a full-day preview with tours, inventions, workshops, kids’ activities, job-training events, and awesome area vendors like the Baltimore Jewelry Center, Baltimore Clayworks, Almanac Industries, and the Station North Tool Library.

HEAR

Sept. 26: Bombadillo Festival

Druid Hill Park, 2600 Madison Ave. 11 a.m.-11 p.m. $35. bombadillofestival.com.

It’s a beautiful thing watching the local art and music scenes come together and become such good friends. This weekend, amidst the tall, old oak trees of Druid Hill Park, with the early fall light landing on the lake, immerse yourself in these melding milieus at this inaugural daylong music and arts festival—Bombadillo. On four stages of music, hear homegrown bands like Lower Dens, Celebration, Arbouretum, Blacksage, TT The Artist (pictured above), Flock of Dimes, Chiffon, Bond St. District, Wume, Oh Hang, DJ James Nasty, Hi$to, and many more. While you’re at it, browse art by Gallery 788, pick up some gems from the Bmore Flea, and indulge in local bites and brews from The Gathering food truck rally. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Friends of Druid Hill Park, The Rawlings Conservatory, and Tree Baltimore.

DO

Sept. 25-27: Baltimore Book Festival

Baltimore Inner
Harbor. Fri.-Sun. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Free. 410-752-8632. baltimorebookfestival.com.

Now in its 20th year, the Baltimore Book Festival is bigger
and better than ever. Stretching around the Inner Harbor, from the National Aquarium
to AVAM, it’s three full days featuring hundreds of local, national, and
award-winning authors appearing on multiple stages for readings, book
signings, workshops, and discussions. There will also be more than 100 booksellers, kids’
projects, live music, food, drink and cooking demonstrations. Expect the local likes of author Wes
Moore, The Wire’s Maria Broom, “Best
of Baltimore” novelist Jason Tinney, and writer D. Watkins, who is releasing his new book The Beast Side on Friday at 6 p.m., as well as national notables like former presidential candidate John
McCain, witty memoirist Joanna Rakoff, and NASA engineer Jack Clemons. Also on Friday, aspiring writers can
bring their drafts to the CityLit Stage between noon and 2 p.m., where our own
arts and culture editor Gabriella Souza will be offering her edits.

Source

]]> Beach House Discusses Duo’s New Album https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/artsentertainment/beach-house-discusses-duos-new-album/ Wed, 05 Aug 2015 14:59:00 +0000 http://server2.local/BIT-SPRING/baltimoremagazine.com/html/?post_type=article&p=6332

It’s been 10 years since indie dream-pop duo Beach House started its journey towards becoming one of Baltimore’s biggest bands. French-born singer/organist Victoria LeGrand and Baltimore native guitarist Alex Scally burst into indie stardom with their last two albums, Teen Dream (2010) and Bloom (2012), and now they’re about to drop the much-anticipated Depression Cherry, out August 28 via Sub Pop Records. We talk to Scally about still loving Baltimore and their upcoming show at Pier Six Pavilion.

You guys just got back from a press tour in Europe. Is coming back to Baltimore still rejuvenating after being on the road?
Yeah, I’m born and raised in Baltimore City and I love Baltimore. I keep expecting the love to go away but it really doesn’t. There’s just something about the way the seasons are here, the people are here.

You’re about to start a pretty extensive tour for Depression Cherry.
We have a lot scheduled because we’ve always loved it. It’s always been fun and we learn a lot from it. I’m expecting to still love it, but it might be a little harder, because of the weird entity of getting old.

You’re playing some pretty amazing venues, too: Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, the Fillmore in San Francisco.
We’ve played a lot of small venues and big venues and middle venues in our 10 years of doing this. We’ve tried to avoid big ones—they don’t lead to very good shows for us. I don’t think we’ve ever done Ryman before and that might be our biggest venue on the tour. We’ve played Fillmore probably five times, but it’s a pretty small place for such a big city.

And then you’ll be at Pier Six for Windjammer on August 29. We’ll be there.
You know, Baltimore is notoriously lacking in mid-sized venues. For one reason or another, whether its location or the way it’s designed, there just isn’t a place in Baltimore that’s 800, 1,100, 1,200 seats that is a place where everybody loves to go and is beautiful and sounds good. Imagine something like the 9:30 Club. Even when we had Sonar, it was one of the worst sounding places in the world, you know? We have The Lyric, but that’s very formal and kind of uptight.

It’s going to be pretty epic—triple headlining with Dan Deacon, Future Islands, and then all the other Baltimore bands. How did the idea come about?
I forget how it started but I think Dan and I were both saying, well, if we all joined forces, maybe we could play somewhere really fun, rather than have to do shows of our own in places we’re not psyched on. Future Islands hasn’t really done a Baltimore show since everything happened with them. I’ve gone to a couple summer shows at Pier Six and it just feels so fun being in the breezy harbor. We were like, shoot, let’s try to do a summer show there. Then we all invited a band and a DJ and the bill was set.

At first, I thought, interesting. Pier Six. I don’t know. It feels like such a big Baltimore venue for you guys but . . .
It’s actually not that big! When I was a kid and I would go there, it always felt so huge, but when I went to see Hall & Oates [last September] or whatever, it didn’t feel that huge. And it’s so cool having water on either side of you. And the way the hill rises up and the wind just blows across. It seems like a killer place to just lie around in the sun and drink beer all day.

And it’s going to be a benefit concert for Believe in Music, the Living Classrooms music education program.
Somewhere along the line, money started being discussed. Not in a negative way, just like, how we should set the ticket price? We saw all these different amounts that could make it sell out and it just started feeling weirder and weirder. Around the same time was when everything was happening surrounding the death of Freddie Gray and we decided this should definitely just be a charity show. So after expenses paid, it’s all for charity. I think our idea was: It should be small enough that the money would go directly into action, as opposed to an established, giant charity, where it would kind of just be another bit on the heap.

What band and DJ did you and Victoria pick for the lineup?
We picked Romantic States. Jim [Triplett] was in a band called Videohippos and this is his new band. We really like his songwriting. It’s just really unpretentious and simple. Their music is really beautifully simple, with just guitar and drums. In an era where everything feels overthought, it’s under-thought, in a good way. And we picked a DJ friend of ours, Big Party, who plays great music. We’ve played with Dan a bunch of times, and we were all on the Round Robin Tour [in 2008]. I would consider all of those guys good friends at this point.

It’s been a decade since you started Beach House. With all the work and travel and acclaim, do you still feel connected to the Baltimore music scene?
I feel really connected. We still have a lot of friends here. I don’t spend as much time out every night, and I might not know as many people every time I go out, but that also might be, like, getting older. Ten years ago, we were out every night of the week. It’s just a different culture being really young. But I still really love Baltimore and feel like a part of it. I think Baltimore is changing. It was changing back then, too. Like everything in reality, it’s always shifting and changing.

What sparked this album? Was it just the right time?
Touring is such a big part of our life because we learn so much. It’s so much of the way we interact with the universe. And then, when touring ends and you get home and you start to write, there’s a natural pace. This time, it took a little bit longer to decompress and take stock of things and feel natural again, and when we did, we began writing. Nothing is pre-imagined. Nothing is conscious.

You recorded and produced in Louisiana, but did you write it here?
We’ve written every song we’ve ever made in Baltimore. We always write at home.

Do you write in your practice space in Fells Point?
Every song comes about differently. Little things start—maybe at sound check, maybe at home on a guitar—and they evolve into something else and grow. We do a lot of jamming. It’s very collaborative. But we take our time with it. Sometimes it happens fast and other times it’s months before a song goes where it’s supposed to. These songs were probably starting around the same time Bloom came out. We didn’t have any time to work on them [before] then. We had burnt the candle on both ends and needed to recover.

Should it be listened to as a whole, as you’ve said in the past?
That’s something we were saying last album that we then realized is so stupid to tell people. I think people should listen to things however they want.

That being said, are there any songs that stand out for you?
Was there one that stands out to you?

I really love how bare bones “10:37” is. It feels like you, but it feels like something completely new, too.
Yeah, I personally think we’re breaking a lot of ground on this record, but we move at such a slow pace, it probably won’t even be noticed. I think every song is special to us for some reason. It’s awesome that you chose that song; someone else might say another. I often feel like a fool when I’m trying to convince someone to like a song I love—just playing it really loud and staring at them like, ‘Do you hear this?!’ And they’re like, ‘I don’t know . . . I don’t know if I’m hearing what you’re hearing . . .’

“Do you feel what I feel?!”
It’s so funny. It’s the ultimate human condition: wanting to know how someone else is feeling and if it’s similar to you.

Read our review of Depression Cherry in the August issue of Baltimore magazine, on newsstands now.

Source

]]> All Good Festival Boasts New Venue and High Profile Bands https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/artsentertainment/all-good-festival-boasts-new-venue-and-high-profile-bands/ Wed, 08 Jul 2015 08:30:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=68781 Continued]]> Usually a large-scale festival with high profile acts requires an epic road trip with pre-planned playlists and plenty of snacks on reserve. But the 18th annual All Good Music Festival, July 9-11 at Berry Hill Farm in Summit Point, WV, is just a 90-minute drive from Baltimore.

“We didn’t want to bring the festival back unless we had an absolutely perfect spot,” says festival co-founder and president Tim Walther. “Berry Hill Farm’s lush, rolling foothills and naturally formed concert bowl make it a fantastic site and All Good’s best venue yet.”

The mostly jam band festival has expanded its genre repertoire in recent years. This year’s installment is no different with headliners Cake, known for its monotone vocals and trumpet-heavy alternative rock; Primus, a funk-metal band with tons of Frank Zappa influence; and the groovy D.C.-based DJ duo of Thievery Corporation.

The rest of the lineup includes more of the usual suspects like moe., Lotus, STS9, John Butler Trio, Greensky Bluegrass, Dark Star Orchestra, Keller Williams, and Yonder Mountain String Band. All Good is also featuring a ton of Baltimore-based bands, no doubt because of its close proximity to the city, including The Bridge, ELM, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, and Second Self.

Many of the local-market bands will be playing on the Believe in Music stage, which is named after the Living Classrooms Foundation program that provides music education to kids in first through eighth grade. Each band playing the stage is donating a sizable portion of their pay to the Baltimore-based nonprofit, an amount that will also be matched All Good organizers.

“People just assume that bands are full of rock stars,” says Kenny Liner, a member of the Bridge and founder of Believe in Music. “But these are extremely hard-working musicians, so for them to give us that donation, it’s a huge deal.”

Additionally, Frederick-based Flying Dog Brewery will be creating a signature beer for the festival, All Good Ale, a session IPA with notes of passion fruit and crisp hops. And, if staying the entire weekend sounds overwhelming (we don’t blame you), All Good is offering Saturday-only tickets, which are discounted until midnight Wednesday night.

“This is so awesome for the residents of Baltimore to have a festival of this size so close,” Liner says. “For years, All Good was four to eight hours away. So to bring it back home and have all these local bands play, it seems only natural.”

Source

]]> ​Restored USS Constellation Ready for Inner Harbor Return https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/community/restored-uss-constellation-ready-for-inner-harbor-return/ Tue, 03 Mar 2015 16:40:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=66616 Continued]]> As Melvin Moses and William Jackson shoveled failing snow off the deck last week, water filled up around Baltimore’s historic, tall ship Constellation as it prepared to leave its Curtis Bay dry dock.

The USS Constellation, a U.S. Navy “sloop-of-war,” dates to 1854. The ship’s storied career includes serving as the flagship of the African Squadron and freeing thousands of captured slaves in places like the mouth of the Congo River, and later, assisting in the blockade of southern ports during the Civil War.

Usually berthed at the Inner Harbor, a rot was discovered below the ship’s waterline during its last dry dock in 2011. Since that time, more than $2 million has been raised to save the National Historic Landmark, which after four months of work, is due to return to the Inner Harbor’s Pier One this Thursday.

Alongside the crew of skilled men and women leading the repair of the ship’s hull, workers from Project SERVE, a Living Classrooms Foundation program that provides on-the-job training for unemployed ex-offenders and disadvantaged young adults, have been gathering carpentry and construction skills.

“It was heavy, physical labor removing the rotted wood,” said Project SERVE worker Melvin Moses, 43, part of the ship’s rehabilitation effort from beginning to end. “Pulling those long lag screws loose, using chain saws—it was arduous work. And then adding the layers of treated wood and doing lot of sanding. We were real busy, putting in long days, often from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., working on a tight schedule.”

Overall, Project SERVE workers made up roughly half of the daily crew working on the Constellation, which, when fully rigged, reaches 180-feet tall.

“If you’d told me years ago I’d be working on restoring the U.S.S. Constellation, I would’ve looked at you like you were crazy,” continued Moses while offering a tour of the gun deck and sleeping quarters to a ship visitor recently. “But this has been a great experience to be part of something historic. Now that we’re done, it’s kind of bittersweet.”

“If you’ve got a line on another job, let me know,” said Jackson, 54, another Project SERVE worker, nodding with a smile.

According to Living Classrooms, Project SERVE helps to lower the recidivism rate of ex-offenders. Project SERVE members, the foundation reports, experience a recidivism rate of less than 10 percent compared to a Baltimore City rate that’s nearly 55 percent and a state of Maryland rate that’s almost 40 percent.

Initially the Constellation was set to return Feb. 20, but the frozen water around the Baltimore Harbor delayed plans. Once it does return, the ship will again be open daily as a floating museum for public tours.

Chris Rowsom, executive director of Historic Ships in Baltimore and vice president of Living Classrooms Foundation, acknowledged the challenging nature of the Constellation’s rehabilitation project, and said the effort was successful because of the strong partnerships developed between the personnel at the United States Coast Guard Yard and the Project SERVE members, as well as the generous support of the community at large.

“USS Constellation embodies the very essence of a ‘living classroom,’ bringing our heritage to life for students and visitors,” said James Piper Bond, president and CEO of Living Classrooms Foundation, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.

Source

]]> Haute Summer Night Fashion Show https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/styleshopping/haute-summer-night-fashion-show/ Tue, 29 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/?p=67618 Continued]]> Enjoy a night of fashion while giving back to Living Classrooms Foundation, a local nonprofit dedicated to bettering Baltimore’s youth through educational programs using environmental and maritime resources.

The Stella and Dot Collection has teamed up with Christopher Schafer Clothier, Handbags in the City, and Jean Pool to put on the charity fashion show. The catwalk will showcase models outfitted in the latest from these vendors.

Not only will attendees have the opportunity to shop vendors’ merchandise at the show, but also have access to special savings.

In addition to runway shows and shopping, tickets will include drink specials and complimentary hors d’oeuvres catered by Red Maple (930 N. Charles St.), where the event will be held on Wednesday, August 27 from 6 to 9 p.m.

Buy your tickets here for just $35 (plus a $2.92 fee) until the day of the show. All proceeds from ticket, fashion, and photo sales will benefit Living Classrooms.

Can’t attend, but still want to donate and take advantage of the same discounts? Click here to check out the Stella and Dot Collection Living Classrooms Online Fundraiser Trunk Show.

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