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Mom's Turn on Stage: The Cleveland Folk Festival

Mom is third from right in this newspaper clipping. In a stroke of serendipity following last week's post on my Grandpa's involvement in Cleveland's Theater of Nations, I ran across an email I had sent in an attempt to identify the newspaper and date for the clipping above. 1 My mother, Anna Kozlina Gilbride (1937-2010), is pictured third from the right, seated on the floor. Since I was fortunate to learn the background surrounding Grandpa's role in The Colleen Bawn , I thought I'd check the newspaper websites again to try to find this clipping and finally date it. And I did find it, in the 5 February 1952 edition of The Cleveland Press ; Mom was 14 years old in this photo, lots younger than I had imagined! 2 The caption states that Mom was performing as part of the Croatian Slavulj Society. Slavulj—Croatian for "the Nightingales"—was founded by Joseph Gregorincich and operated from 1937 to about 1951. The group began as a singing and drama club and later ...
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GENEALOGY CHALLENGE 2021 - Art & Craft: Needle & Brush


GENEALOGY CHALLENGE 2021

Art & Craft: Needle and Brush -  January 27th entry of a 31-day challenge to post a document, photo or artifact on social media every day in January.  

by Nancy Gilbride Casey

 

Each person makes their mark on the world. Sometimes that mark is a beautiful piece of art or craft which they leave behind. Each piece is a product of their imagination, their skillful hands, their time and patience. It is also a record of their desire to bring forth beauty in the world, and so reflects their character as well.

Our family definitely has its share of creative members. As a couple, my husband Jim's paternal grandparents left many pieces of their artwork for their descendants to enjoy.

Harold Edwin Casey (1915-2009) and Claretta Hall Casey (1917-2000) were married over 60 years. Family, faith, and running businesses filled up their lives, but when they had time, needlepoint and painting were hobbies they enjoyed.

Harold's primary artistic pursuit was needlepoint. According to my father-in-law Jim Casey, Sr., his mother Claretta taught his father this craft while he was recovering from a back injury in the 1950s.1 It was a hobby he enjoyed well into his 90s. His lovingly-crafted needlepoints were professionally framed when finished and given as gifts. 

I think of him whenever I see the lovely depiction of tiny birds on snowy branches (above), which he stitched. It combines his two great interests: needlework and birdwatching.2 The couple's rural home in Collinsville, Oklahoma was surrounded by birdfeeders, and I have heard tales of the passion both he and Grandma Casey had for feeding and watching birds. In fact, we have inherited several bird books which we use quite a bit now that we, too, live in the country.

When Harold became a widower, he moved to Texas to live with his son, so we had a tiny extended family of me and my husband, our two children, and my husband's father and grandfather. Our children were fortunate enough to be able to spend nearly 10 years with their great grandfather—whom they called GrandPapa— in their lives, and with whom they shared a special friendship. The lovely young lady below was a gift from GrandPapa to his great granddaughter Anne.

Grandpapa Casey was in his 90s when he stitched this for his great granddaughter. 


Another favorite stitched piece is this yellow rose:



Meanwhile, Claretta Hall Casey, Jim's grandmother, enjoyed painting and embroidery. Among my favorites paintings are these two tiny ones, each not more than 4" x 6" or so. They are simple and sweet.



We enjoy having these tangible reminders of our family members now gone, which bring a bit of beauty to our home and world.


NEXT UP: Art & Craft II - Hooked


1 James D. Casey, Sr., email to Nancy Casey, 26 January 2021, "Quick Question," Leaves on the Tree Project folder, N Casey [address for private use].
2 Ibid.


 



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