prof maia

Last Saturday I had both the pleasure and the privilege of being a guest at the weekly Woodstock Saturday Jamboree. Whilst there, I was very kindly given a front row seat, plentiful refreshments and permission to record some of the acts for the purposes of a short video. I found an array of talent there and put together this short montage of the residents in action, singing their favorite numbers. Enjoy!

Yesterday I took one more chance to photograph and document the most recent artworks produced at the Woodstock Senior Center. As per usual, the theme was animals (predominately birds) and the quality was excellent. I was surprised and delighted however, to find that a farewell drawing had been made for me as this would be my last week at the center. It reads 'Lucky Are People Who Know You' and can be seen on the right hand side here. It was a privilege to be among such wonderful artists which such enthusiasm and talent. Once more, here is a small slideshow of the most recent art produced at Woodstock. It can be viewed below, enjoy!

Quite simply, eight weeks was not long enough! Indeed, this summer has gone in faster than no other in my lifetime. Regrettably, this will be my final entry of the Project FIND diaries as this my last day as an intern with the organisation. To conclude here is a short list of my favorite aspects of Project FIND and some of my own personal highlights during my time here:

Last week, another generous resident of Project FIND was courteous enough to share with me an additional self-written poem. Lourdes Rao of the Hamilton Senior Center calls this piece 'A Day In The Museum.' Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed this particular poem due to it's unique style, theme and elegance. I have been so privileged here at Project FIND to meet and listen to so many talented poets, all of whom were delighted to share with me their works. The poem is shown below, enjoy!

It's been around a week since the departure of everyone's beloved superintendent. Martin of Hargrave House was dearly loved by the residents at Project FIND and cherished by the staff who worked alongside him. Undoubtedly, Martin was the admiration of everyone. In accordance with the previous entry that paid tribute to him and his services to Project FIND, below is a short slideshow of a number of snapshots taken from his own farewell party just over two weeks ago. My brief time at Hargrave House was enough to show me how central Martin was to everyone's lives there, and how sorely he will be missed as he moves on to seek further employment. I sincerely wish him all the best for his future. Enjoy!

Fantastic art and great talent are not in any short supply at Project FIND, especially at the Woodstock Senior Center where an art class is held every Sunday. Each week more works or art are produced without fail. Indeed, the residents who take part are both eager and passionate about their works, hence why fresh artworks are never too far away. This week I found many new pieces, all of of them based around different species of birds (mostly owls!). Enjoy these ornithological entries in the short slideshow below!

Since my arrival at Project FIND, no one has been held in higher esteem among the residents and staff than Hargrave's own superintendent Martin. My first experience with Martin was within my first few days at Hargrave, after fixing up my cooker in my apartment it was quickly established that we both had a mutual interest, one of which we both held above all other interests and hobbies... football of course (or soccer perhaps?). Despite being in the USA for so long, Martin has not easily forgotten about his passion for the beautiful game and still fanatically follows many European football teams such as Real Madrid, Schalke 04 and Manchester City. Nevertheless Martin has also taken up an interest in the more popular sports of the USA, alongside his multiple football teams he is also a die hard New York Knicks, New York Yankees, New York Rangers and Dallas Cowboys fan! Although he assured me that as expected football will always come first and foremost! I was then given an invitation by Martin to go watch the match that was being played that night, I accepted and just like that Martin welcomed a total stranger into his home and showed great hospitality after knowing me less than an hour. Indeed, Martin is an admirable character, and he was kind enough to grant me a short interview about his time at Project FIND.

 

Last week I had the honor of meeting the chief artist at the Woodstock senior center who has started to take a class there. In this class he encourages others to create their own works of art, some of which I was lucky enough to see! Below is a short slideshow displaying a selection of such masterpieces. The themes are varied, but you'll find many of Cecil the lion who was recently killed in Zimbabwe. Enjoy!