Newspaper Page Text
June 21, 2018
Page 7A
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Exporter
Public Art comes to Forsyth
Skate Park, Golf Course,
playground, walking trails
and Pavilion in the park).
Council member Julius
Stroud came to see the new
Kite Mural. He said he is
pleased with the increased
use of the park and saw
Kite Day as a good example
of an event that will be hap
pening in the city park.
“It bridged the genera
tional gap between young
and old, and all enjoyed it,”
said Stroud. “It is low tech
nology with something for
everyone. It has so much
potential. I bought a new
kite; so we have four and
a collapsible wagon [ready
for next year].”
Kite Day was inspired by
the history of Trio Manu
facturing in Forsyth. From
1949-mid 1970 s, Trio
made more than 500,000
miles of kite string for the
Hi-Flier Kite Company in
Illinois.
It created a strong prod
uct and became the exclu
sive supplier of string for
the company that was long
synonymous with kites in
America.
In another art partnership
with Burruss CTC, Forsyth
has a new artistic bike rack/
selfie spot in front of the
Old Train Depot on Adams
Street that houses the
Monroe County Historical
Society Museum. It is in
place, but a dedication for it
is planned later.
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Forsyth celebrated some
giant steps in its efforts to
add public art in the city
to make Forsyth more
inviting and interesting to
both residents and visitors.
On Tuesday, June 19 artist
Andrew Patrick Henry
delivered the Public Safety
mural to the city. Forsyth
also celebrated progress
toward completion of the
Kite Mural at Country
Club Park, a mixed media
creation by Denise Buff and
her art students with con
tributions from the inmates
at A1 Burruss Correctional
Training Center.
The Public Safety mural
is a mobile piece, created
on three lightweight 4’ x 8’
panels in such a way that it
can be moved to different
venues. Its home will be the
Welcome Center lobby, but
it can easily be moved to
the Monroe County Con
vention Center, the Fine
Arts Center, the Square
or other spots for special
events. It was funded by
the city and a matching Vi
brant Communities Grant
for $10,000 from Georgia
Council for the Arts.
The city and the Forsyth
Convention & Visitors
Bureau applied for the
grant and worked together
on its design and creation.
Henry was the artist who
created Forsyths first mu
ral, a depiction of a steam
engine bringing passengers
and freight to Forsyth, and
with its favorable reception
Henry was commissioned
to create the Public Safety
Mural. It spotlights For
syths designation of Geor
gia’s Public Safety Capital
as the location of the states
Public Safety Training
Center and Department of
Corrections headquarters
as well as the A1 Burruss
Correctional Training
Center.
The three panels focus on
emergency medical service,
firefighters and police
respectively. Henry said he
planned the mural to show
first responders in situa
tions where people really
needed them, where they
are defending and saving
lives.
“I wanted it not to be
generic, to make it mean
something to the people
looking at it,” said Henry.
“We often don’t know what
they do because we’re not
there to see.”
As Henry, who lives in
Barnesville, worked on
the mural, he allowed the
youth at Lamar County
Arts Camp to watch it take
shape. It was an opportu
nity for the campers, who
number about 20 each
week, to see a unique piece
of art become reality.
He said the initial design
changed as he worked on
the piece and he is pleased
with the result.
“I try to do my job as best
I can,” said Henry. “It takes
a lot of emotion; good art
takes a lot of energy. I put
part of myself into each
piece.”
Henry was under pres
sure to complete the Public
Safety mural by the June
30 deadline of the grant.
Denise Buff has had a little
more flexibility in bring
ing the ‘Kite’ mural to life
at Country Club Park, but
since she is working out
side, she has had to cope
with torrents of rain and
now blistering heat.
But the results are
worthwhile and she is now
hearing the compliments
as visitors to the park tell
her how they appreciate the
addition to the atmosphere
of the park.
Buff, who owns and man
ages the Art Buff Studio
in Forsyth, accepted the
challenge of creating a mu
ral on the concrete block
restroom wall at the park to
reflect “Kite Day’’ Forsyth
held its first Kite Day on
April 14 and plans to make
the event annual. The
painting shows the green
grass, blue sky and trees
and flowers associated with
being outside and flying a
kite in the wind.
The mural is also a
partnership with the artist-
welders at A1 Burruss CTC.
They created a large metal
kite which will fly above
Pictured top, right, are the three panels of the movable Forsyth Public Safety Mural. Pic
tured above, left to right, are Mayor Eric Wilson, artists Celeste Taylor, Ava Walker and
Denise Buff, council member Julius Stroud with Kite sculpture and Kite Mural.
Below, pictured, left to
right, are artist Andrew
Henry, Eric Wilson, Matthew
Perry, David Herndon, Eddie
Harris, Al Shackleford, Mike
Ogletree, Richard Coughe-
nour and Lawson Bittick
representing local public
safety officials. Left is the
bike rack train sculpture
made by Burruss inmates.
(Photos/Diane Glidewell)
the building and its scene,
anchored by its kite tail and
kite string. The resulting
art, which is also designed
as a selfie spot, is the
product of the partnership
fostered by Burruss CTC
Warden James Payne with
the city in using the talents
of his artistic inmates.
The mural overlooks the
open grassy field where
kites were flown on Kite
Day and are invited to be
flown on other days as well.
Buff enlisted the talents
and energy of three of her
art students in creating the
kite mural: Celeste Taylor,
11th grade; Ava Walker, 9th
grade; and Emily Adams,
8th grade.
Buff said she worked with
Forsyth CVB executive
director Gilda Stanbery
and other members of the
Public Arts Committee
on designs for the mural,
sketching and changing
and sketching some more.
She incorporated the
impressionistic features of a
little Monet and a little Van
Gogh in the mural, making
it bright, cheerful, fun and
child-friendly.
“I want people to inter
act with it,” said Buff. “I’m
pleased with the use of
color.”
And she’s not through yet.
She has plans for a park-re
lated design on the front of
the building and plans for
a directional sign (possibly
pointing to the Splash Pad,
NEWTON
Continued from Front
formation with whomever
wanted it. She shared her
records and research with
Monroe County Historical
Society (MCHS) so that it
will always be available to
those looking for stories
from the past, and the
Monroe County genealogy
room is named for her.
Ralph Bass, president of
Monroe County Historical
Society, said MCHS has
four bulging file cabinets
of legal documents, cor
respondence, newspaper
articles and related items
that Jane compiled and
catalogued by family names
as she researched genealogy
and related history in the
county.
“She preserved valu
able information, much
of which would have been
lost,” said Bass. “Anyone
who does research on Mon
roe County stands on the
shoulders of Jane Newton.”
Bass, who has known Jane
for several decades, said
that she took it upon herself
to respond, unofficially, to
everyone who called the
courthouse looking for
genealogical information.
“She wrote neat, chatty
letters and had friends all
over the United States who
knew her through her ge
nealogical help,” said Bass.
“She was incredibly friendly
to these people she didn’t
know. She was unfailingly
interested when I called
with a question—one as
recently as two months
ago—and was always happy
to share what she knew.
Being helpful came second
nature to her.”
Virginia Remick said that
Jane had probably visited
every cemetery in Monroe
County; people in town
knew to send anyone with a
question about a cemetery
to her. She enjoyed visit
ing even the small, remote
graveyards that could be
hard to access. Remick said
she was not sure how Jane
got started in her pursuit of
knowledge about Monroe
County but knew that she
was a good historian who
enjoyed learning about the
past and about how every
one is connected.
Remick knew Jane as
they grew up attending
Ebenezer United Methodist
Church. Their sisters were
best friends, and Remick’s
family shopped weekly for
groceries at the Roque-
mores’ store. Later Jane and
Sonny owned a dairy farm
just about five miles from
the dairy farm of Elmo and
Virginia Remick, and the
two families would help
one another out in the de
manding business of dairy
farming.
Remick described Jane as
a hard-working, sweet lady
who helped many people
without ever looking for
recognition for her efforts.
In May 2013 the Reporter
held its first contest for
Founders’ Day, asking for
essays on what one loved
about Monroe County. Fit
tingly, Jane’s essay won the
adult division as she poured
onto paper her love for her
home county, beginning
“How can I not love living
in Monroe County?” She
praised its geographical
features, its “good people”,
its churches, schools, busi
nesses, community events
and sports programs.
After enumerating the
county’s virtues, she closes
by saying how good it is to
call Monroe County home,
“for home is, first of all, in
our hearts. Come home
with me to Monroe County.
There is something here for
everyone to love.”
Graveside services will be
held at Forsyth City Cem
etery at 11 a.m. on Wednes
day, June 27, and the family
suggests people “come as
you are.” For more infor
mation, see the complete
obituary on Page A6.
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