TAUNY

It’s all about the strawberries! So we were told when wondering what to whip up for this month’s Savor the Season recipe, and so we knew ourselves as well, from the moment we saw their bright tones in the cooler at Nature's Storehouse, to when we couldn’t resist a fresh bite right away, to when the incredible aroma of them roasting wafted through The TAUNY Center, to when we tasted the layers of flavor they added to this unusual and delicious cake! This Pistachio Semolin...Continue reading

Juneteenth! Though newly a federal holiday, celebrating Juneteenth--a holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S.--has been a tradition for generations, first in Texas and then increasingly in communities throughout the country over the years. Due to the inspirations and efforts of many around our region, that includes the North Country, with celebrations this year including events in Potsdam, Plattsburgh, Saratoga Springs, Watertown, and Lake Placid. Is celebrating... Juneteenth one of your traditions? Whether it's something you've done for as long as you can remember or something you've connected with more recently, we want to hear about it! Comment below or drop us a line at [email protected] to share your Juneteenth traditions and experience. Learn more about the celebrations in our region below. NCPR "Juneteenth in the North Country": https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org//juneteenth-in-the. Pictured: -NCPR "Juneteenth in the North Country," Ferene Paris Meyer organized a sailing event for Juneteenth in Burlington, VT. Photo by Sean Morrissey courtesy of Ferene Paris Meyer. -Potsdam, NY Juneteenth Celebration info at: https://www.facebook.com/events/704690103534112 -Lake Placid, NY Juneteenth Celebration info at: https://johnbrownlives.org//juneteenth-weekend-celebration/ -Watertown, NY Juneteenth Celebration info at: https://www.facebook.com/watertownnny

Connecting the Blue Dots closes at 4 p.m. today. If you haven't seen the wonderful quilts in this exhibit yet come on down to The TAUNY Center! Our next exhibit in our upstairs gallery is part of our Personal Collections series. Meaningful Mementoes: Tourist Art from the Collection of Varick & Judy Chittenden will open on June 26th. Stay tuned for more information about that!

Happy Folkstore Friday! Father’s Day is coming up! Are you looking for gift ideas? Our Folkstore staff has put together a collection of suggestions for you, from Adirondack-themed books, to BBQ wood chips and sauce, to fishing lures You might find just what you need. Stop by or order online here https://tauny-folkstore.myshopify.com/search

There are quite a few bird carvings in our Folk Arts All Around Us exhibition. Today we want to share some of them with you. Snowy Owl and Cardinal, carved by Walt LeClair (Altamount, Albany County, NY). Walt carved wood for more than 22 years. He shared his skill with many, and continued to enhance his art by training with known artists such as Helen Gibson, a well-known Brasstown carver from North Carolina, and Ernie Mulmatt. Walt’s work consistently won awards at the New ...York State Fair, and he was a regular instructor at the Adirondack Folk School. Walt passed away in 2017, to learn more about him please visit https://altamontenterprise.com/06012017/walter-leclair Long Legged Bird, Blue Jay, and Water Bird, carved by unknown artists, collected by Alfred and Helen O’Brien (Salem, Washington County, NY). The O’Briens were avid collectors of a wide variety of items, including books, postcards, carvings, walking sticks. After Helen passed away, Alfred moved out of their house and the collections were dispersed, with a number donated to the Folklife Center at Crandall Public Library. Though we might not know the artists’ name, we are grateful for the beauty that they left behind. We hope you can stop by to see these and other carvings in the exhibit. The Folk Arts All Around Us exhibition is on display from February 13 through October 23. It features over 120 items from the folk art collection of the Folklife Center at the Crandall Public Library in Glens Falls, NY.

We’re having fun in the Folk to Table kitchen today putting together this month’s Savor the Season recipe feature, sponsored by @naturesstorehouse! Stop by in the next few hours to see it in process and try a sample when it’s ready, and stay tuned for the details early next week to see our strawberry season take on this pistachio semolina cake, a favorite submitted by a community member a few years back as part of our Buttermilk Baking Contest!

As we come to the end of a year that none of us will ever forget, one that has caused tremendous difficulty and loss for so many, we thank all of you who have helped us get through the past 8 months at TAUNY. With your support and encouragement, we’ve been able to keep The TAUNY Center open, maintain in-person services for small groups, and boost the reach of our online shop, providing an important outlet for the creative workers whose livelihoods were greatly affected by COV...ID. We were able to offer outdoor programs that satisfied the hunger we all have to connect with others, while still complying with best practices for safety. And we’ve been able to take our programming online, producing dozens of videos (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIgrOWjIcBcgGzLAyi7ezpw) featuring the people who keep traditions alive and lively in the North Country. Those stories and performances are a lasting record of the warmth, enthusiasm, and skills of people who care deeply about the place they call home and want to make it a better place for others. Now we are asking you to make a year-end gift to help us face 2021 and continue to adapt to a changing world. Donate online at tauny.org/support, or mail your check to: TAUNY, 53 Main Street, Canton, NY 13617. TAUNY is a community project, and all the wonderful things that happen at TAUNY are only possible because many people contribute what they can to keep the work moving forward. If we have learned anything this year, it is that in hard times we turn to each other and the traditions that ground us for comfort and strength. Thank you for your generosity and vote of confidence in the importance of TAUNY’s work.

Check out this great piece in the St. Lawrence University News about our project with Professor Rosa Williams' "Health Activism: Fighting for a Healthier Future" First-Year Program class this fall! And stay tuned, as we'll be sharing highlights from the student-community interviews over the coming days.

Tune in to SLC Shopping Network TODAY! TAUNY’s Executive Director Jill Breit will be on the show at 2:45. Stream through @visitstlc's Facebook page or YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsz3SeEZjqrcf-psi5X7eEA. Enjoy shopping from home with your favorite St. Lawrence Country businesses! This is a one-day event where you can live stream the local business showcase to see what they have for sale!

Each entry in our 2020 Sugar & Spice Display has a story. Today we share with you, Nesting built by Catherine LaPointe Vollmer from Potsdam. She said I wanted to focus on the idea of staying home with those closest to you, and focusing on household matters; thus, the idea of nesting. Many of my friends have also discovered a new love of birdwatching, since they’re home during the day and able to observe what goes on outside their windows. Stay tuned for other entries in this year's display, and vote for your favorite at The TAUNY Center or by emailing [email protected].

For our second visit of Traditions of the Season," we asked Efrat Ezra to share her recipe for delicious Kibbeh. This is a dish that she had on every Friday for lunch growing up in Israel. Efrat is a mother of four boys, a yoga teacher at Canton Yoga Loft , and the founder of Pirate Flo yoga wear. Watch the video and try to make your own Kibbeh--we would love to get a photo of it if you do! Send it through messenger or comment below. View other videos in this series: https:/.../www.youtube.com/playlist If you enjoy our work and want to see more of it, please support us at https://tauny.org/sections/8/support-tauny For future cooperation and sponsorship please contact [email protected]. Is there a tradition that you carry on or love seeing happen around you at this time of year, that you'd like to tell us about or see represented in a future series? We'd love to hear about it! Drop us a line at [email protected].

Happy Folkstore Friday! We love these colorful ornaments and decorative birdhouses made by Lynne Taylor from Merrill. Each of them is one of a kind. Work them into your holiday decorations or enjoy them all year long. Purchase several and make a mobile! If you don’t have time to come to The TAUNY Center, our online store is open 24/7. Shop online at tauny.org/shop.