Local company creates eye candy for The Farm

 Creating eye candy for children. That's what a local company is doing. Ad Sign Service of Minden is making giant candy pieces for an upcoming public art project. Seems the local sign company accepted the challenge to create a giant gingerbread house for the upcoming Spring Arts Festival,Chickenstock.

 Cultural Crossroads, sponsors of the annual festival geared for children, offered a challenge to the local company to create a lifesize gingerbread house as a backdrop for this year's theme; “Hansel & Gretel Reimagined.” The 20 year old festival staged at The Moess Center for the Arts & City Farm, will celebrate it's german heritage this year with their interpretation of Grimm's fairtytale. “The story is a little gruesome and we wanted to 'lighten' it up a bit,” comments Chris Broussard with Cultural Crossroads. “Children from Mrs. Mourad's 5th grade class have reimagined the characters as, you guessed it, chickens. ”

Sticking with the principals of recycling and reclaiming set forth by Cultural Crossroads, the local sign company created the majority of their pieces out of their own trash. “We used scraps and cardboard rolls and throw away film to create our candy pieces,” remarks Chancy Valentine. Miss Valentine is a Minden High graduate and past festival art contest winner. Chancy works with a family of creative minds. Her mother Brenda Valentine and father Chuck, also work at Ad Signs. “Everyone in the company got excited about this and we've all worked on the project,” states Teresa Streetman, who also manages the family-owned company.

 Ad Signs will install the giant candy pieces, the icing, the M&M's and the lollipops the week of the festival. The giant gingerbread house will serve as a backdrop for the festival as well as the backdrop for a twenty minute play hosted by Glenbrook's 5th graders. Hansel and Gretel will appear as chickens and other fairytale heroes will help the duo find their home again. Photo ops are encouraged and special cut out elements will help festival goers re imagine themselves as chickens and capture it on film.

Admission to Saturday's festivities is $3 per person and children under 3 admitted free. ChickenStock is being sponsored in part by a grant for the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the La. Office of Culture, Recreation and Tourism and the Shreveport Arts Council. Corporate support to offset the festivals $20,000 budget include the Webster Parish Tourism Commission, Citizen's National Bank, Ad Sign Service, Drs. Scott and Elizabeth Phillips, Harper Motors, Elm Street Dental, and Terry Gardner. Other contributors include The Minute Magazine, Coca Cola Bottling Co, Lyda and James Madden, Cindy and Tommy Walker, Dr. Micheal Chanler, State Farm Laura Horton and Jeanne Martin, and Chief Steve Cropper.

 For more information about Cultural Crossroads or the festival, visit their website at www.artsinminden.com.

Thornton Sisters News

We're working on something pretty special. And if everything pans out, you might see more of these lovely ladies. The Thornton Sisters were the oldest African/American siblings in the world according to Guiness. An original play was written about the Thornton Sisters. The script came from their last recorded interviews. It's an amazing tribute to the lives of these centenarians who were part of the The Greatest Generation. We hope we can keep their memory alive and better yet tell the incredible story of how faith, family and friendship helped each one to live long past 100 years.

Zenobia's Gift...

Zenobia's Dream--"That all children have access to the arts regardless of color or status," The four acre estate known as 'The Farm' was the family home of Zenobia West. She gave her land to Cultural Crossroads 14 years ago with the blessing of her sister, Marjorie who was an art teacher. On Friday, April 25th we will host a biannual fundraiser for The Farm so that we can continue to fulfill Zenobia's Dream. We will host a live and silent auction. You can donate or you can bid or you can buy a ticker and enjoy the evening...... Either way,...we hope you will support the Arts!!!!

The BIG DAY is getting closer!

Anyone can make The Farm park of their civic work or charity...

Alex Montegna of Haughton earned his Eagle Badge the year he chose The Farm of Cultural Crossroads for his project. He spent the month of August with his band of faithful volunteers and Scout leaders to install our beautiful white vinyl fence around The Farm. So, when you visit The Farm, be sure to notice the beautiful white fence and know that a young community servant did it! So many wonderful and giving people have left 'their mark' at the Farm. Have you? — with Alexander Montegna.

KIDS DAY AT THE FARM

Thousands of children were exposed to the arts when they visited the annual Spring Arts Festival on 'Kids Day on the Farm.' We hope that those children will come back and help us celebrate our 20th Birthday on Saturday, April 26th at The Farm of Cultural Crossroads

Lots of help along the way has made The Farm what it is today...

Lots of good people have helped us over the years. Our barn raising was one of those special events....thanks to Br. Mike Marsters. Our little red barn that now serves as a background for The Farm of Cultural Crossroads was built because people cared. A grant from Conoco-Phillips provided the red paint and the labor to paint it! We are so grateful to all who see the value of this little four acre plot of land.