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Author Archive for dan
We are excited to announce the first annual 7the Ward Festival at 1910
Urquhart Street (at the corner of Pauger). Please join us on
Saturday, May 12, 2007 for food & drinks, live music, and kids’
activities. Doors open at 11 am and will close at 7 pm.
The following day, Sunday, May 13th, at 1 pm, the Original Big Seven
Social and Pleasure Club’s Annual Second Line Parade will roll at
Seal’s Class Act (St. Bernard and N. Miro). The Porch will be hosting
a stop along the route.
The 7th Ward Festival has been made possible by the generous support
of the Renew Our Music (NOMHRF), Sweet Home New Orleans, the Unitarian
Universalist Service Committee, Neighborhood Housing Services New
Orleans, and the Orleans Sheriff’s Department.
Please see below for a full line up of music at the festival.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
12:00 pm
Seventh Ward Mardi Gras Indian Gathering
1:00 pm
Original Little Seven Players
2:00 pm
Chris Williams, Poet and Spoken Word Artist
2:30
Fi Yi Yi and the Mandingo Warriors
3:30 pm
VaVaVoom
4:00 pm
Honey Dripper Joe’s R & B Show Band
5:30pm
New Birth Brass Band
The Porch Seventh Ward Cultural organization works with neighbors,
artists, teachers, students, storytellers, churches, architects,
social and pleasure clubs, Mardi Gras Indians, musicians, and many
others to create a space where we can come together to participate in
the rich cultural life of our community. Since our beginnings in
early 2006, we have hosted block parties, an oral history project,
second line parades, brass band concerts, a run/walk, a youth theater
program, and a summer arts camp. We have also developed an herb farm,
and are working with Neighborhood Housing Services New Orleans on a
cultural center.
Located in the 1600 block of North Robertson street, not far from the historic Circle Food Store, is the 7th Ward Herb Farm. The farm, conceived by Porch members Ed Buckner and Dan Etheridge, has just planted its first crop of herbs to be grown, harvested and sold at local farmer’s markets and to local restaurants.
For the past year, Ed and Dan have coordinated much volunteer support to plan and prepare the site before food production could begin. The garden is located on a vacant abandoned city owned lot and permission to establish the garden was gained with the support of local organization Parkway Partners. Since then, we have had volunteers from Common Ground, the University of Kansas, the Food and Farm Network, Unitarian congregations from Massachusetts and our fellow members of The Porch 7th Ward Cultural Organization, prepare the site by clearing trash, building support structures, building raised beds, hauling fresh soil, landscaping, and planting.
Our goal is to provide work opportunities for teenagers from the 7th Ward and to strengthen the local food economy. All youth who work in the garden will be trained in the basic horticultural skills necessary to maintain the garden and harvest the cash crops, as well as the skills necessary to market and distribute our produce.
