Our Town of Rochester’s events and activities are diverse, exciting, fun, colorful, educational, wonderful, intriguing, full of joy… If a photo is worth a thousand words, allow me to save a few thousands words by posting from the photos I took at each event.
Blue Stone Press is graciously hosting more photos on their website. Please visit and enjoy.
Manuela Michailescu
Our Town of Rochester’s events and activities are diverse, exciting, fun, colorful, educational, wonderful, intriguing, full of joy… If a photo is worth a thousand words, allow me to save a few thousands words by posting from the photos I took at each event.
Blue Stone Press is graciously hosting more photos on their website. Please visit and enjoy.
Manuela Michailescu
… led by Rich Miller for the after-school program.
Our Town of Rochester’s events and activities are diverse, exciting, fun, colorful, educational, wonderful, intriguing, full of joy… If a photo is worth a thousand words, allow me to save a few thousands words by posting from the photos I took at each event.
Blue Stone Press is graciously hosting more photos on their website. Please visit and enjoy.
Manuela Michailescu
Our Town of Rochester’s events and activities are diverse, exciting, fun, colorful, educational, wonderful, intriguing, full of joy… If a photo is worth a thousand words, allow me to save a few thousands words by posting from the photos I took at each event.
Blue Stone Press is graciously hosting more photos on their website. Please visit and enjoy.
Manuela Michailescu
Blue Stone Press – September 6, 2013, p.15
To the Editor:
Thanks Blue Stone Press for your generous coverage of Rochester’s Recreation/Youth Department and its summer program (August 16, 2013 issue, pages 2 and 19: “Live well, laugh often” and “A summer like no other for Rochester youth”). It helped the readers become aware of the department’s goals and the amazing variety of activities included in this year’s summer program.
I participated to most field trips as well as many other activities of the summer program, and I can confirm that the way it was organized deserves admiration. I truly believe Rochester’s could be the best such program in the County!
There was a record number of kids registered for the program (75), with up to 40 participants per week. That made the job of MaryAnne Gates, program director for over 10 years, more challenging than ever. She described the program for this paper’s readers and praised the people who helped her. Now it’s time to say a few words about her being simply phenomenal!
MaryAnn Gates was always the first and last to check on everything, from all kids’ names read on the bus to picking up left-behind backpacks, clothes, or even shoes! Her actions and reactions show dedication, passion, loving care, attention to details. She was firm but also very kind… For all the kids MaryAnne Gates was a mother and a nurse, and they ran to her for advice, medicine, food, hugs, breather, towels, sun-protection lotion, or scissors. She confessed on Facebook that she hears her name called when she sleeps!
I loved being part of this summer program. As in the previous years, it included the weekly super-delicious “Lunch with Tana,” but also new programs like Richard Miller’s “Good Guys” presentation. It’s hard to describe the joy of watching the kids discover, explore, learn, play, have fun.
Among the most memorable scenes I recall: the kids learning how the locks worked while visiting the D & H Canal Museum; watching trains and boats from the Walkway over the Hudson River; transforming a counselor in a Mer-man while burying him in the sand at Lake Taghkanic; riding a boat in the Howe Caverns; building castles on the Ulster Landing beach… All of these and many other moments were made priceless by kids’ authentic reactions.
While making my feet disappear under wet sand at Ulster Landing, one of my new little girlfriends said “This is magic!… Who doesn’t like magic?” Congratulations and thanks to all involved for a superbly organized summer program! Let’s continue to create magic for our children.
Manuela Michailescu
Despite missing some of the fun in the morning – as I was getting ready to leave for a weekend trip to New York City – I still had plenty to enjoy this last day of the Summer Program at the Recreation/Community Center… Games and music with DJ Eric, lunch and especially watching excited kids waiting in line to get their turn at jumping inside the inflatable “house.”
Being appreciated by the director of the Youth Department, Carol Dennin – and her new assistants Rita and Angie – for my participation and help to this summer program simply brought tears to my eyes… Thanks and congratulations to all, you did an amazing job!
Manuela Michailescu
This last day trip best exemplifies that we can always discover new beautiful places in our area… A perfect day to be on the shore of the majestic Hudson River! The time spent on the Ulster Landing beach was wonderful and very relaxing. Low tide, then brick and sand castles covered by the water, even unexpected waves created by passing boats…
The Ulster Landing beach also offered me some summer “magic moments” when little Sophia (one of my favorite among the little girls), covering my feet with wet sand said: “This is magic!… Who doesn’t like magic?!” Without having any idea whatsoever, she just offered me the ending to a letter to the editor I’m writing: Let’s continue to create MAGIC for the children.
The day ended perfectly at the Recreation/Community Center with the now “traditional” launching of balloons, anxious to find out how far Rochester’s messages fly…
Manuela Michailescu
Sandwiched between outdoor activities and moments of relaxation lead by Tana, the last weekly “Lunch with Tana” on Monday, August 19, 2013 was not only colorful and super-delicious, but emotional too… Thanking Tana Miller and her helpers for all their dedication, great food and cooking, kids sharing what they most enjoyed about the summer program and then… saying ‘good bye’ until next year!
Manuela Michailescu
Cancelled on a rainy day, this trip was rescheduled for August 15, a day with perfect weather… I’m so happy I didn’t miss it as nothing is more amazing than seeing little ones stepping back into history and discovering how things used to be…
“The D&H Canal Historical Society was established in 1966 to preserve, protect and perpetuate the unique history of the Delaware & Hudson Canal, particularly in Ulster County.
As part of fulfilling its mission, the Society operates a museum and maintains the Five Locks Walk, a National Historic Landmark.”
From the video presentation done by John Motzer to actually seeing how the locks and the boats worked, from listening to Ms. Grace Schoonmaker’s explanations to looking for pieces of coal in the grass and proudly showing the large(st) ones to everybody, the excitement generated by this trip was palpable. The kids were divided in two age groups. I was with the little ones, as you can tell from my pictures.
Educational and informative, but also very pleasant and relaxing, this trip fascinated us all.
Manuela Michailescu
After spending 33 years in New York State without visiting the Lake Taghkanic State Park, it just happened that I went there twice in two weeks, first time with friends, then on August 14 on a Rochester Summer Program field trip; it is a wonderful place, offering plenty to enjoy…
My group was triple A plus: Alex, Aiden, Aramis plus Elena.
The weather was not exactly the “friendliest” on August 14 – the night before has been extremely cold, with temperatures in the upper 40s, clouds were too often stopping the sun’s rays, the wind didn’t let up. Despite all this, the kids had a lot of fun in the water and especially building castles in the sand.
In fact, the most exciting moment – generating plenty of fun all around – was burying counselor Dillon in the sand, with little worry for his eyes and mouth, despite his trying to protect his face under a towel… well, heavy with sand! He was transformed into a “mer-man” and not allowed to be Dillon again for a long, long time, surely not before everybody took photos of the new creature. Do you see his fishtail?
Manuela Michailescu
