Friday, March 11, 2011

South High Student Art Showcased in Deer Park

Hey Neighbors!
The students at South Omaha High have a magnificent art display at the Bancroft Street Market.  Oscar and I went to the opening reception and we were floored by the amount of discipline these students have when it comes to creating masterpieces.  Some of my favorite pieces were family sticks (see picture).  Each different color represented something important in the students' lives.  They each added different embellishments on each to enhance their individuality.
I have never seen so many kinds or art.  These students excelled in oil, chalk, sculpture, trading cards, watercolor and some kind of art where they layer newspaper, paint on top of it and rip apart the layers.

A small but mighty orchestra ensemble filled the room with immaculate notes to set the tone for a real art show.  Art teacher Linda Shepard told us the students won 26 AWARDS at the state competition.  I think we need to show these kids our pride in their work by supporting them at the show this Saturday and Sunday at the Bancroft Street Market (10th and Bancroft) from 1-5 p.m. on both days.
See you there.

Katie Duran: Deer Park Secretary / Newsletter Editor

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Temperature Changes in Deer Park Omaha

Greetings Neighborors,
I hope your March month is beginning nicely. This morning, as I stepped out to get my Snoopy lunch box out of my car, yeah, I rock a snoopy lunch box to work, the cold weather caught me off guard literally stinging my senses. Once outside I began to recall the sensual temperatures of yesterday, and a large smile overtook my face. No I am no crazy, but if you do not know me I am certainly a glass half full person.

Rather than be upset that the weather had returned to a shockingly cold temperature, the temperature fluctuation assured me a season change had arrived. For me, the season transition time is typically the most reflecting and exciting time of the year. During this transition time I start to get excited of the things I will get to do in the coming season; Moped rides through downtown, trips to the South Omaha palleteria with my wife, playing basketball at Deer Hallow park, bike riding to Baylis park, biking the Taco ride on Thursday nights, hosting a community garage sale, and having a bar be que outside with neighbors and family.
I then reflect on the things I will miss from the previous season. Do not get me wrong, I dislike the extreme cold, however, there is something beautiful about the winter season; how the street and yards turn powdery white,  the excitement of my family members' anticipation of Christmas, children outside playing in the snow, and our Deer Park Christmas party. Well it was a quick reminder that things always change, even in less than 12 hours. This made me think that I should remind everyone that, like the weather, community action and progress can take a change just as dramatically. Sometimes it takes shocking a 40 degree overnight temperature drop to remind us of this, other times it takes noticing a newly designed newsletter or a growing web page following to grab your attention.

If you have not been to the last couple of meetings, brace your self, you are in for a dramatic temperature change of our association. As the seasons, our neighborhood is also in a transition stage, and we should all use this time to reflect and celebrate the things that made this neighborhood great, and start to anticipate the exciting things to change and will make our community thrive.

To end this blog post, I want to provide two videos about community organization/development programs. This will be a teaser of something that is starting in our boundaries, and will spurred by a partnership between the Deer Park Neighborhood Association and Habitat for Humanity. The project is in planning stages, and we expect to kick it off soon. If you want to learn more, and I bet you do, come to our meetings and see how you can be a part of our neighborhood revitalization initiative.

Remember, celebrate our transition season.