Monday, November 30, 2009

Music at Midday

Each month the Boise Tuesday Musicale, the music teachers association in the valley, sponsors a wonderful, free, musical performance that is open to the public. It is held on the second Tuesday of each month at 12:00 noon and lasts for about 45 minutes.

The December program on Tuesday, December 8, is “Cathedral Bells and Pipes for Christmas” and features Sam Porter on the organ at the Cathedral of the Rockies at 12th and Franklin Street in Boise. These performances would be appropriate for any age that can sit quietly through a 30-45 minute program as they are geared to the general public, not just students.

Last month I met several homeschool families that attend each month from Mountain Home. The January program is Tuesday, January 12 at the Simplot Performing Arts Academy and features a trio of flute, clarinet, and piano called the Table Rock Trio. If you need any additional information, you can email Jill at jillcall@idahoidea.org.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Thank you Sarah for Thanksgiving!

Sarah Hale (October 24, 1788 - April 30, 1879) is credited as the individual most responsible for making Thanksgiving a national holiday in the United States; it had previously been celebrated only in New England. Each state scheduled its own holiday, some as early as October and others as late as January; it was largely unknown in the American South.
Her advocacy for the national holiday began in 1846 and lasted 17 years before it was successful. In support of the proposed national holiday, she wrote letters to five Presidents of the United States -- Zachary Taylor, Millard Filmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, and Abraham Lincoln. Her initial letters failed to persuade, but the letter she wrote to Lincoln did convince him to support legislation establishing a national holiday of Thanksgiving in 1863.
The power of the pen is amazing! Thank you Sarah for your legacy!
The new national holiday was considered a unifying day after the stress of the American Civil War. Prior to the addition of Thanksgiving, the only national holidays celebrated in the United States were Washington's Birthday and Independence Day.