We've had LOTS of rain, here in Florida for the past
month. We send light and love to all victims of the tornados around the
U.S.A. and to the Japanese victims of the earthquake and tsunami.
Melody Cole says,
"Join the American Federation of Musicians and start your retirement
account, today! In only five years you will be vested in a fund that pays
out the highest return in the land." Read these pages from the Musician's
Union Handbook
July is National Park and Recreation Month [Source]
Amanda Sedgwick, Mayor Jack Seiler and Joan
Cartwright
To
celebrate this month of Independence, on Sunday, July 3rd, we're going to
Fort Lauderdale's Riverwalk
for SunTrust Sunday Jazz Brunch with Amanda
Sedgwick, who performed
with Jazz Hotline for the 20th Anniversary of this event in
June 2010! Amanda is, now, performing in the orchestra on board the
Allure of the Seas of Royal Caribbean, a huge ship in
the Caribbean for five glorious weeks. She'll be docked at Port Everglades
all day on Sunday. Note: Deposit
for November Cruise due 8/15
Mayors Tommaso Cittadini (Piglio), Fabrizio Martini
(Fiuggi) and Richard Kaplan
(Lauderhill)
Lynn and I met with Mayor Martini over lunch and had a very nice meeting
with him. I presented him with the materials from Lauderhill and
spoke to him about our programs. There is quite a lot that
interested him, particularly the art exchange and possibly the
International Business Incubator Program. Tourism is a major
industry here, and his biggest exporter and local business is Fiuggi
Water. It is very famous and very good. You actually get
it from the tap and it is a natural mineral water. It maybe
available in the NY area.
He will be speaking with the company to see if they are interested
in exploring South Florida. Our program may be a way for them
to enter that market.
Fiuggi is a beautiful town, and is a
place we would recommend a visit to for a few days for
someone coming into this area. We
expect to meet with the Mayor tomorrow night
for a social engagement and see where it may go. Lynn has taken quite a few pictures which she will be providing to
the city, including photos that can be used in the Spotlight.
Thanks for all the help.
Mayor Kaplan
June
26, 2010
Just
met with Mayor Martini again, along with a Commissioner, and another
Mayor and Commissioners of the adjoining city (Piglio). There was a lot
of interest in the Incubator Program and the Enterprise Zone.
We also spoke about sports matters particularly golf. There
have a really nice course here, and they are interested in
Inverrary's. Don't know where that might go, but there was a
lot of talk with a visit being considered to Florida.
Music and art were discussed too.
They are also into tourism, and thought about doing some sort of
travel workshop in our area to encourage tour operators to stop in
Fiuggi (which is pronounced Fu-jee). Now that would go beyond
Lauderhill, but that would be fine. It really is a nice place
that Lynn and I would recommend people come to for a variety of
things. I'll talk more about that when we return.
I advised that we need to work out as many details that we can
before they travel to make their trip worthwhile. I think that
each interested party will have to develop their area and work with
whoever we can work it out with. So, there was a lot of
positive action with a interest in being a Sister City.
I
think that the common programs have to be worked out before twining.
Beverly Lewis is from New York
and has lived and performed in Italy for 16 years. This singer, musician, composer, author, actress,
director, conductor, who, according to critics in Italy is the New Yorker voice of Jazz,
grew up in a musical family, including Joe Henderson tenor sax, has traveled the world to
perform. She's worked with numerous international Jazz artists,
and Italian musicians that comprise the history of post-WW2 music, including
her illustrious music director,
Antonello
Vannucchi, considered the foremost interpreter of Beat
in Italy. As director and artist, she produced two
musicals: MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.: A MOVEMENT CALLED FREEDOM, a on the fight against discrimination
in the USA, and THE EBONY DIVA, a tribute to the great females of Jazz:
Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Dinah Washington.
Bev is the BL in BLAV with
Antonello Vannucchi, and their new recording
Dear Nicola is a salute to recently deceased singer Nicola Arigliano. The duo is embarking on their BLAV BeBop and Electric BLAV Jazz fusion repertoires.
As we
bid Mzuri
adieu, relunctantly, since she returned to the NY-NJ area to
further her career, the
music angels blessed us with another wonderful singer, Juanita,
our 147th member, who moved to South Florida from New Jersey
in May!
(click flier to enlarge)
Contact: CJ@paulettedozier.com Subject: Performance Slot for Summer Jazz Series @ El Bar with Paulette Dozier
We plan a monthly charity event to help the local shelters. Our fans, family, and friends bring clothes, shoes, toys, coats,
blankets, etc to our event and we distribute the items to the local shelters. We have scheduled our next CAUSTIC
ENT Monthly Charity Event
WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 2011 @ JAMAICA FLAVA
2440 Wesley Chapel Ed, Decatur, GA
THE
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF MUSICIANS - PENSION PLAN
It's our joy to share the gift of music with others. However, we may
overlook the need to care for ourselves or feel inadequate in this
activity because we don’t have “regular” jobs. Maybe we have
no idea where to begin. What I’m referring to is a pension for our
retirement years. Few musicians have a 401K package and that is even
unreliable, in today’s financial environment.
The
American Federation of Musicians offers an opportunity with a
retirement and pension package that is in the top 1% in the country.
With contributions of up to 15% of their earnings, musicians get
vested in only five (5) years!
Learn
about the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) - Local 655 online
at www.afm655.com and explore
this great opportunity. Women live longer and we must prepare for
our later years, in a deliberate manner.
I just reinstated my membership. A representative of Local AFM 655
will meet with us to share the benefits of membership. Let’s take
advantage this, now! I’m on the 5-year plan! ~ Melody
Cole - 954-829-6009 - melocole1@aol.com
South Florida Musicians Association - Local 655 American
Federation of Musicians 404 SE 15 Street (Rear) Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316 Phone:
954-527-4458 in Broward or 888-655-gigs Fax: 954-467-1011
Office: info@afm655.org Executive Board: board@afm655.org Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Friday by appointment
Besides increasing our membership
of musicians and supporters, we continue to submit grant
applications for performance funding. In January, we presented
COMMUNITY
MUSICWOMEN at four senior centers in Miami Beach, through a
grant from Miami
Beach Gala Grants.