FEAST OF FOOD AND WORD

FEAST OF FOOD AND WORD

Traditional Nova Scotia Saturday Night Supper followed by
a Talk about Life and Art by author Donna Smyth

A “WORD IN THE VILLAGE” MAIN EVENT

Great Village Legion, Great Village, N.S.
Saturday 27 September 2008
4:30 to 6:30 p.m.


Join us for a traditional Nova Scotia Saturday Night Supper of home-made baked beans, brown bread, potato scallop, ham and mouth watering seasonal desserts, provided by the Friends of St. James United Church. This event is a fund-raiser for the St. James United Church. Cost: $10.00. Tickets must be purchased in advance as seating is limited. No tickets at the door. Tickets are available from Nancy Corrigan and Sandra Barry (see information below).

Nourishment for the body will be followed by nourishment for the mind, provided by novelist and playwright Donna Smyth, who will reflect on Elizabeth Bishop, the importance of art to life, and her own years as a writer, teacher and activist.

This event is part of WORD IN THE VILLAGE, a day-long literature and literacy festival to honour and celebrate Elizabeth Bishop’s art and her connection to Nova Scotia. See separate press release for details of the day’s events.

For tickets and additional information: Nancy Corrigan at nancy.corrigan@gmail.com, Great Village Pastoral Charge, 47 Lornevale Road, RR #1, Great Village, N.S., B0M 1L0, 902-668-2001; or Sandra Barry at slbarry@ns.sympatico.ca, 1323 Dresden Row, #3, Halifax, N.S., B3J 2J9, 902-429-6385.

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Donna E. Smyth lives on an old farm in Hants County. She’s published two novels, Quilt and Subversive Elements, as well as numerous short stories, poems, and non-fiction pieces. Her novel for young adults, Loyalist Runaway, was co-winner of the 1992 Dartmouth Library Fiction Award. Her collection of short stories, Among the Saints, was published by Roseway in 2003.
Smyth has also worked as a playwright with Mermaid Theatre who produced two of her plays in the early 1980s. Her one-woman play celebrating the life and work of poet Elizabeth Bishop, Running to Paradise, was produced by the Studio Group in Wolfville and Halifax in 1998 and published by Gaspereau Press in 1999.
Her two-act play on Bishop, Sole Survivors, was produced by the Ship’s Company Theatre in 2000 and published by Broken Jaw Press in 2003.
George Elliott Clarke has called Smyth’s writing “startling, nerve-racking, provocative…Smyth shatters clichés and dismisses mere sociology. She knows that pleasure is besieged by terror. She tells us what we don’t want to know, but need to know. Smyth’s writing disturbs us, enrichingly, because truth can never be at peace with language.”
Budge Wilson writes of Smyth’s novel: “Quilt is a remarkable work. With a unique and compelling voice. Donna Smyth tells a story that is full of complex relationships, raw domestic violence, and a saving compassion. As I read, I kept thinking, Why have I heard nothing about this novel?”
Smyth taught English and Creative Writing at Acadia University and was the founding editor of Atlantis, A Women’s Studies Journal. For many years she’s been a feminist and peace and environmental activist.

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Built in 1883, St. James United Church, stands at the intersection of Highway 2 and the Lornevale Road in the pretty village of Great Village on the shores of Cobequid Bay. Originally a Presbyterian Church, it is one of four provincially registered historic buildings in the community. The church was designed by noted Nova Scotia architect James C. DuMaresq and features a high ceiling shaped like the inverted keel of a ship, a testament to the community’s shipbuilding heritage. A plaque commemorating the life of the Pulitzer-Prize winning poet Elizabeth Bishop adorns the front of the building.

The Friends of St. James United Church is a group made up of both church and non-church members who meet one Saturday morning a month during the winter for a potluck breakfast. During the summer months, the Friends organize the Great Village Farmers’ Market Breakfast.

WORD IN THE VILLAGE – PRESS RELEASE

WORD IN THE VILLAGE – PRESS RELEASE

A festival of literature and literacy in Great Village, N.S.,
to honour and celebrate the poet Elizabeth Bishop
(Some events are fund-raisers for local groups.)

Friday, 26 September & Saturday, 27 September 2008

Friday, 26 September 2008

7:00 – 8:30 p.m. Truro author Paul Zann reading from and talking about his children’s book series The Aussie Six.
Location: Basement of St. James United Church, Great Village, N.S.
This event is for children, families and the young at heart!! All welcome.
No admission.

Saturday, 27 September 2008

10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Family Reading Tent.
Location: parking lot of St. James United Church.
Halifax author Judith Meyrick reading from and talking about her children’s book Gracie, The Public Gardens Duck.
Reading of Elizabeth Bishop’s story “Primer Class” by Harold Cooke, with puppet-show re-enactment.
Plus fun activities, including a “Primer Class” orienteering game.
These events are for children, families and the young at heart!! All welcome.
No admission.

10:30 – 11:30 a.m. – Walking Tour of Elizabeth Bishop’s Great Village
Location: Tour participants will gather at St. James United Church for start time.
Elizabeth Bishop’s childhood home will be open to the public during this time and through lunch.

11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Lunch
Provided by and fund-raiser for the Great Village Community Association.
Location: basement of St. James United Church

2:00 – 4:00 p.m. – Reading of Elizabeth Bishop’s story “In the Village”
Location: sanctuary of St. James United Church
Hosted by CBC Radio Mainstreet Host Carmen Klassen. Featuring: Brian Bartlett, Susan Crowe, Lisa Lindo, Alexander MacLeod, Anne Simpson, Harry Thurston, Agnes Walsh and Tim Wilson. There will be conversation following the reading.
See separate press release for more details of this event.
Fund-raiser for St. James United Church and the Great Village Pergola Historical Display. Cost: $10.00. Tickets available from Nancy Corrigan and Sandra Barry (see contact information below) or at the door.

4:30 – 6:30 p.m. – Feast of Food and Word
Traditional Nova Scotia Saturday night supper with guest speaker, novelist and playwright Donna Smyth.
See separate press release for more details of this event.
Location: Great Village Legion
Come for home-made baked beans, brown bread, potato scallop, ham, and mouth-watering seasonal desserts and for Donna Smyth’s insights about life and art.
Fund-raiser for St. James United Church. Cost: $10.00. Tickets must be purchased in advance as seating is limited. No tickets at the door. Tickets are available from Nancy Corrigan and Sandra Barry (see information below).

7:00 – 8:30 p.m. – “Gather around the radio”
Wind down the busy day by gathering to listen to the BBC Radio 3 documentary about Elizabeth Bishop and Great Village, “As Big As Life,” originally broadcast in November 2007.
Location: Home of poet and scholar Deborah Stiles, 33 Lornevale Road (Scrabble Hill Rd.), Great Village, N.S.
No admission.

For more information and tickets contact: Nancy Corrigan at nancy.corrigan@gmail.com, Great Village Pastoral Charge, 47 Lornevale Road, RR #1, Great Village, N.S., B0M 1L0, 902-668-2001; or Sandra Barry at slbarry@ns.sympatico.ca, 1323 Dresden Row, # 3, Halifax, N.S., B3J 2J9, 902-429-6385.

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A quick heads up on another reading event – On Friday evening, 3 October 2008, at 7:30 p.m., Newfoundland poet, playwright and storyteller Agnes Walsh will read from and talk about her work at the Joy Laking Gallery in Portapique, N.S.
No admission.

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Authors/Readers

Harold Cooke from Great Village, N.S., is the son of Patricia and Terry Cooke. He is 14 years old and started Grade Nine this year. Harold’s favourite subject is English. In his spare time he likes to read history books, write short stories with his friends, and hopes to join the swim team at school this year.

Judith Meyrick has lived and worked in Nova Scotia for many years. She was born in Aotearoa, or New Zealand as it is more commonly called, and left to “see the world.” However, unlike most Kiwis, she never returned permanently. She settled in Halifax, where the sea air reminds her of home. She is a freelance writer, editor and reviewer and is currently working on a novel for 7-11 year olds, and several other shorter works for children. Her first published children’s book, Gracie, The Public Gardens Duck was published by Nimbus in 2007.

Paul Zann was born in Australia and emigrated to Canada with his wife and daughter in 1968. After teaching at the University of Saskatchewan, he moved to Truro. He was a writer in community for the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia in 1984. His work has appeared in The Antigonish Review, The Atlantic Advocate, Grain, Poetry Canada Review, and many other journals and anthologies. His most recent book of poetry Crouching at the Keyhole was published by Borealis Press in 2007. His most recent children’s book in the continuing series The Aussie Six was published also by Borealis in 2008.


Organizations involved:

Built in 1883, St. James United Church, stands at the intersection of Highway 2 and the Lornevale Road in the pretty village of Great Village on the shores of Cobequid Bay. Originally a Presbyterian Church, it is one of four provincially registered historic buildings in the community. The church was designed by noted Nova Scotia architect James C. DuMaresq and features a high ceiling shaped like the inverted keel of a ship, a testament to the community’s shipbuilding heritage. A plaque commemorating the life of the Pulitzer-Prize winning poet Elizabeth Bishop adorns the front of the building.

Elizabeth Bishop Society of Nova Scotia (EBSNS) was formed in 1994 to celebrate the life and work of the poet Elizabeth Bishop. It publishes an annual newsletter and in 1996 published Elizabeth Bishop: An Archival Guide to Her Life in Nova Scotia, by Sandra Barry. The EBSNS contributed to the purchase of an extensive family archive, which documents Bishop’s Nova Scotia childhood and which is housed at Acadia University Archives in Wolfville, N.S. The EBSNS holds its AGM in Great Village in June. The EBSNS seeks through its various activities to reclaim Elizabeth Bishop as a Nova Scotia writer, thus enriching our literary and cultural heritage.

The Great Village Community Association, formed in 2003, has as its motto “Bringing a Community Together by Building Ideas.” This dynamic group meets the third Monday of each month in the donated former Seniors’ Hall in the centre of the village. Several associated groups have been formed under the sponsorship of the Community Association: Fitness Program, Emergency Co-ordination, and Community Learning Network. Living up to its mission statement, “to develop a more close-knit sense of community among residents,” the Association sponsors many important projects, including Body and Mind Youth Group, computer classes, the weekly Farmers’ Market, Canada Day festivities, a Library/book exchange, employment fair, Community Kitchen, adult education classes and student summer employment. More information about this group and a calendar of community events can be found at its website: www.greatvillage.cobequid.net.

The Great Village Historical Society was formed in 1993 and through the years has worked hard to preserve the history and heritage of Great Village, having gathered photographs and background history on most of the houses in the village and interviewed senior community members, recording their knowledge of Great Village history. At present the society is working with the Elizabeth Bishop Society of Nova Scotia to create panels for the heritage pergola which will portray the history of area in a prominent place in the centre of the village.

“IN THE VILLAGE”, A reading of Elizabeth Bishop’s work

“IN THE VILLAGE” in Great Village – PRESS RELEASE

A reading of Elizabeth Bishop’s work
by some of Atlantic Canada’s finest artists

A “WORD IN THE VILLAGE” MAIN EVENT

On Saturday, 27 September 2008, at 2:00 p.m., a group of well-known artists will come together to do a complete public reading of the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Elizabeth Bishop’s masterpiece story of her Nova Scotia childhood, “In the Village.” The reading will take place in the beautiful and historic St. James United Church, a provincial heritage property, in Great Village, N.S. This event will be a fund-raiser for the church and for the Great Village Pergola Heritage Project. Cost: $10.00. Tickets available from Nancy Corrigan and Sandra Barry (see information below) or at the door.

The fantastic line-up of readers includes: poet and naturalist Harry Thurston, poet and novelist Anne Simpson, singer and musician Susan Crowe, writer and film-maker Tim Wilson, poet and playwright Agnes Walsh, poet and teacher Brian Bartlett, writer and teacher Alexander MacLeod, and jazz singer Lisa Lindo. The event will be hosted by CBC Radio One Mainstreet’s Carmen Klassen. (see below for bios)

Elizabeth Bishop (1911-1979) wrote “In the Village” in Brazil in 1953. It was published in The New Yorker on 9 December that year, reprinted in Questions of Travel in 1956 and reprinted in The Complete Poems in 1984. It evokes her vivid memories of growing up in Great Village during the 1910s, and recounts the powerful affect of the early loss of her ill mother, who was hospitalized in 1916 until she died in 1934.

A scream, the echo of a scream, hangs over that Nova Scotian village. No one hears it; it hangs there forever, a slight stain in those pure blue skies….Its pitch would be the pitch of my village. Flick the lightning rod on top of the church steeple with your fingernail and you will hear it...

So begins “In the Village,” and it is entirely appropriate that, in the village which has changed little since Bishop lived there, this story will be read aloud in the church and under the very steeple she so hauntingly invokes, by a group of artists who have themselves been affected and influenced by Elizabeth Bishop’s art.

This reading is part of WORD IN THE VILLAGE, a day-long literature and literary festival to honour and celebrate Elizabeth Bishop’s art and her connection to Nova Scotia. See separate press release for details of the day’s events.

For tickets and additional information: Nancy Corrigan at nancy.corrigan@gmail.com, Great Village Pastoral Charge, 47 Lornevale Road, RR #1, Great Village, N.S., B0M 1L0, 902-668-2001; or Sandra Barry at slbarry@ns.sympatico.ca, 1323 Dresden Row, #3, Halifax, N.S., B3J 2J9, 902-429-6385.

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Biographies of Readers & Host:

Brian Bartlett has published several collections and chapbooks of poetry, including The Watchmaker’s Table and The Afterlife of Trees, as well as Wanting the Day: Selected Poems, published in both Canada and Britain. He has edited Don McKay: Essays on his Works, and two collection of poetry, Earthly Pages: The Poetry of Don Domanski, and, forthcoming, The Essential James Reaney. He has edited the Elizabeth Bishop Society of Nova Scotia Newsletter for several years. He teaches Creative Writing and literature at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, N.S.

Susan Crowe is an award-winning songwriter and singer. Described as “a writer’s writer,” she has toured Canada, the U.S. and Europe, and is now based in her native Nova Scotia. With four critically acclaimed cds to her credit, she is currently working on her fifth. The Vancouver Sun described her like this: with one of the most distinctive voices in Canada today, she is destined to become one of our lasting folk heroines.

Once upon a time, in a parallel universe, Lisa Lindo sang professionally in operas, world music ensembles, and her own jazz group. She recorded for CBC and many independent artists. Lisa’s penchant for putting things in order lead her to a time warp with a portal exiting at the Nova Scotia Community College, where she found the World of Accounting. Lisa fights the good fight of reconciliation as an employee of the NSCC and is currently working on her Certified General Accountant designation.

Carmen Klassen was born in Kitchener, Ont., but spent most of her youth in Thunder Bay. She received an Honours B.A. in English at Thunder Bay’s Lakehead University and then studied theatre at Lancaster University in the U.K. She got her start in broadcasting at CBC Thunder Bay doing theatre reviews. That work led her to being hired as the host of the afternoon show there. She then moved to Halifax and worked as CBC’s Maritime Arts Producer for four years. In December 2003, she signed on as the host of Mainstreet.

Alexander MacLeod is an assistant professor in the Department of English and the coordinator of the Atlantic Canada Studies Program at Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, N.S. His scholarship and short fiction have appeared in many leading journals, including The New Quarterly, Canadian Literature, Studies in Canadian Literature, Exile, The Fiddlehead, and The Notre Dame Review. His first collection of stories, Light Lifting, will be published in 2009 by Biblioasis, and in July 2008 a special limited edition of his story “Miracle Mile” was released by Frog Hollow Press in Victoria, B.C.

Anne Simpson’s most recent novel, Falling, came out last winter. She has published several Gooks of poetry; her second, Loop, won the Griffin Poetry Prize. Her most recent, Quick, appeared in 2007. She is currently working on a book of essays about poetics, art, and nature, which includes an essay on Elizabeth Bishop.

Harry Thurston is a poet, playwright and journalist. His many award-winning books include Tidal Life, A Natural History of the Bay of Fundy and A Place Between The Tides, A Naturalist’s Reflections on a Salt Marsh. His poetry collection A Ship Portrait was adapted for stage and performed at Ship’s Company Theatre in Parrsboro in August. He has been a fan of Elizabeth Bishop since discovering Geography III in a used bookstore in Manhattan.

Agnes Walsh was born in Placentia, Newfoundland. She has published two collections of poetry, In the Old Country of My Heart and Going Around with Bachelors. Her work has been translated into French, Portuguese and Icelandic. She is a founder of Tramore Theatre in Placentia, which has been performing Newfoundland-based work for nine years. She is the inaugural poet laureate for the city of St. John’s.

Tim Wilson is an award-winning filmmaker and radio documentary writer, host and producer. His work has been featured on CBC Radio IDEAS, National Public Radio and elsewhere. His love of poetry was set alight by a wild-eyed Irishman who recited Hopkins’ “The Windhover” in his first-year English class, and nourished since by working with poets from Robert Bly to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Tim lives with his wife and three small children in the tiny mythic village of Bear River, N.S.

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Organizations involved:

Built in 1883, St. James United Church, stands at the intersection of Highway 2 and the Lornevale Road in the pretty village of Great Village on the shores of Cobequid Bay. Originally a Presbyterian Church, it is one of four provincially registered historic buildings in the community. The church was designed by noted Nova Scotia architect James C. DuMaresq and features a high ceiling shaped like the inverted keel of a ship, a testament to the community’s shipbuilding heritage. A plaque commemorating the life of the Pulitzer-Prize winning poet Elizabeth Bishop adorns the front of the building.

Great Village Pergola Heritage Project – In 2003 the Elizabeth Bishop Society of Nova Scotia and the Great Village Historical Society began collaboration on a historical panel display, which will depict the history of Great Village, including Elizabeth Bishop’s connection with the village and Nova Scotia in general. In June 2007, the pergola and initial panels were unveiled in a ceremony attended by the Minister of Education, Karen Casey. Fund-raising is on-going to complete the remaining panels.

The Community Association is pleased to announce that is has two summer students. That's Jessica Fletcher on the left and Catherine Cooke on the right.


We'll just let them intrduce themselves say a few words.

My name is Jessica Fletcher and I am a student at NSCC, Truro Campus. I just completed my first year of Business Administration, and am enrolled in the International Business Advanced Diploma program for September. The Great Village Community Association has hired me on as an Event Coordinator for the summer, where I will be helping out with events such as Canada Day, Blueberry Social, and the Musique Royal to name a few. I will have a display set up at the Great Village Farmers Market on Saturdays, with details of what is going on in the community. If you have and questions or ideas, feel free to let me know and I will see what we can do. Hope to see you around.


Hello community members. My name is Catherine Cooke. I have been recently employed to work for the Great Village Community Association as the Community Centre and Recreation Director. This opportunity was made possible with a grant from Service Canada and the Great Village Community Association.
I am a first year student at the Institute for Human Services Truro Nova Scotia and am taking a degree in Early Childhood Development. I am 19 years of age and very much enjoy physical activities, the out doors and working with the public. I am very excited as the summer starts off to accomplish many things over the duration of the summer. I am interested in having some day sports camps for children 5-9 years of age and having some seniors scrap- booking classes. At the present time a am involved in many existing programs such as Body and Mind (BAM) Sports Night, led by Mike Francis, at the Great Village school starting on July 2nd and every Monday and Wednesday 7-9 or until dark for children ages are 12 and up. I am also starting a program called Younger Years, This program will be held at the Great Village St. James United Church 9:30-11:30 on Wednesday mornings where parents can bring their toddlers 19 months up to age 5 to interact with other children their age, while the parents are interacting with other parents and enjoying coffee and or tea. I will be holding a group of activities which will help your child developmentally in many areas. There will be art, stories, songs, dance and free playtime. All you need to do is show up and we will supply all the craft or art supplies. This is a free opportunity to allow your child to explore and grow socially and emotionally. I also am going to be spending a fair amount of my time at the Community Hall, and I will be there for free computer access as well as C@P high-speed Internet access, so come in and enjoy. I you have any ideas or wish to see something happen in your community, please feel free to stop into the community hall and I will be glad to see what I can do for you. Because "alone we can do so little, but together we can do so much".

Great Village Community Kitchen is up and cooking!

Great Village Community Kitchen is up and cooking! Some of you who are not able to come out to cook with us have asked if we might post some recipes on the Great Village Community Association website. I am going to try posting one of the recipes we cooked last night here in the Blog. We made amazing Cabbage Rolls with Great Village cabbages donated by growers Harold and Patti Sharpe and family.

Cabbage Rolls
24 large cabbage leaves
2 eggs beaten
1/2 cup milk or water
1 8 ounce can tomato soup
1/2 cup finely chopped onion (1 onion)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tsp. Garlic powder—and add whatever other spices you like
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 cups cooked rice
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce or soup
1 can diced tomatoes (seasoned ones are good)
2 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce

Immerse cabbage leaves in large kettle of boiling water for about three minutes or until limp; drain. Combine eggs, milk, 1 can tomato soup, onion, salt, pepper, beef, garlic and spices and cooked rice. Place about 1/4 cup meat mixture in center of each leaf; fold in sides and roll ends over meat. Place in slow cooker pot or roasting pan.

Combine tomato sauce and tomatoes with brown sugar, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce. Pour over cabbage rolls. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours in slowcooker or bake in oven, 350 degrees F for ½ hour, then 325 degrees F for 1 ½ hours.

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