New England Accordion Connection & Museum (Aired on June 4, 2023)

                   

Radio Rotary welcomes Paul Ramunni (and one of his more than 500 accordions) to the program. A few years ago, Mr. Ramunni learned of the connection between musical instruments, especially accordions and concertinas (smaller instruments sometimes called “squeezeboxes”), to the Holocaust. Concentration camp prisoners who played instruments were often used in propaganda bands. He began to collect historic accordions, having learned to play the accordion as a youth. His collection is now displayed in the old railway station in North Canaan, Connecticut, at the New England Accordion Connection and Museum, which also sells instruments and related items. Mr. Ramunni has many wonderful stories of how accordion music in the museum has had a profound effect on some visitors, many recounted in his book Accordion Stories from the Heart. On the show, he also plays a lovely rendition of “Arrrivederci Roma.”

Learn More:
New England Accordion Connection & Museum: https://newenglandaccordionconnectionandmuseumcompany.com/
Accordion Stories from the Heart: https://www.amazon.com/Accordion-Stories-Heart-collection-extraordinary/dp/0976176610
CMTQ Guide to Accordion Museum: https://www.ctmq.org/new-england-accordion-museum/
The Accordion in History: https://www.earlymusicamerica.org/web-articles/according-the-accordion-its-historical-due/

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July 6, 2023 · Posted in Arts & Letters, Museums  

Immigrant Center & Festival in Kingston, NY (Aired on April 17, 2022)

        

Dr. Sarah Litvin, Director of the Reher Center for Immigrant Culture and History and Dr. Sarah Gardner, Curator of the museum, join another Sarah (co-host Sarah O’Connell-Claitor) and co-host Jonah Triebwasser for a program updating the story of the Reher Center, a unique asset of the Kingston, NY, waterfront (the Roundout). The Reher Center is housed in the former Reher Bakery, a Kingston institution run by the Reher family for 80 years. During the restrictions of the covid pandemic, the Center used the down time to upgrade the facilities, including a new gallery that is opening with an exhibit highlighting the role immigrants have played in making Kingston a center of sewing and other aspects of the garment industry. In addition to the exhibit, the Center will host special programs on women in the garment industry and workshops in sewing and embroidery.

Learn More:
Reher Center: https://www.rehercenter.org/
Reher Center on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ReherBakery/
Ulster Immigrant Defense Network: https://ulsterimmigrantdefensenetwork.org/
The Kingston Waterfront (Roundout): https://www.thekingstonwaterfront.com/
The Garment Industry in Kingston: https://hudsonvalleyone.com/2021/09/17/the-local-garment-industry-once-employed-thousands/

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April 24, 2022 · Posted in Arts & Letters, Events, Museums  

Immigrant Center & Festival in Kingston, NY (Aired on May 23, 2021)

Sarah Litvin, Director of the Reher Center for Immigrant Culture and History, and Lucia Cherciu, Poet Laureate of Dutchess County, Zoom in to RadioRotary to tell about the re-opening of the Reher Center after Covid-19 closure, and the 9th annual Kingston Multicultural Festival. The Reher Center is housed in the former Reher Bakery, a Kingston institution run by the Reher family for 80 years, and now in addition to the historic building, there are interpretation panels of Kingston history for viewing. The Reher Center has been the originator of the Kingston Multicultural Festival that this year will include poetry in both English and Romanian by Dutchess County Poet Laureate and Dutchess Community College Professor Lucia Cherciu as well as music and international foods. Listen to the RadioRotary interviews to learn more.

Learn more:
Reher Center: https://www.rehercenter.org/
Kingston Multicultural Festival: https://www.kingstonmulticulturalfestival.org/
Dutchess County Poet Laureate: https://www.dailyfreeman.com/lifestyle/lucia-cherciu-named-dutchess-countys-poet-laureate/article_acbbfc5c-948a-11eb-9e38-cbea3d8214c8.html
Poetry by Lucia Cherciu: https://www.amazon.com/Lucia-Cherciu/e/B07T25PNG3?ref_=dbs_p_pbk_r00_abau_000000
Ulster Immigrant Defense Network: https://ulsterimmigrantdefensenetwork.org/

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May 24, 2021 · Posted in Arts & Letters, Events, Museums  

Cider Mill Annual Cider Tasting (Aired on September 27, 2020)

The show is a “triple play,” as co—hosts Sarah O’Connell-Claitor and Jonah Triebwasser are joined by three representatives of the history-preservation teams of Dutchess County: Lisa Weiss from the Cider Mill Friends of Open Space and Historic Preservation; Bill Ponte of the Sports Museum of Dutchess County; and Amy McKenzie of the Fishkill Historical Society and Van Wyck Homestead Museum. These volunteers and the many volunteers who work with them are dedicated to keeping the significant history of Dutchess County alive, from Colonial Days right up to the present. The event that brings them together is the 8th annual Cider Tasting at Kimlin Cider Mill, a historic building from the 19th century that was rescued from destruction by volunteers in 2008 after a  seven-year-long effort. Similarly, the Van Wyck Homestead, which dates from 1732, has been preserved since 1962 by the Fishkill Historical Society. The Sports Museum has since 1977 maintained a Hall of Fame for the many sports figures who played or lived in Dutchess County. The Cider Tasting features ciders from local farms as well as other treats.

Learn more:
Cider Mill Friends of Open Space and Historic Preservation: https://cidermillfriends.org/
Sports Museum of Dutchess County: https://www.dutchess.org/museums/sports_museum_of_dutchess_county
Carnwath Farms Historic Site and Park: https://carnwathfarms.webs.com/
Fishkill Historical Society and Van Wyck Homestead Museum: http://www.fishkillhistoricalsociety.org/

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October 4, 2020 · Posted in Dutchess County, Events, History, Museums  

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