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From February 27, 2009

In Memoriam: Lillian “Julie” Blake Williams

Lillian “Julie” Williams, 89, the wife of Gerry Williams, who served as N.H. Artist Laureate from 1998 to 2000, Died Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009, at her home in Dunbarton. A graduate of Nashua High School and Wellesley College, where she studied music, she hosted a number of radio shows in the 1940s and ‘50s, including the Julie and John Show and Kitchen Chat with Julie Blake. She met potter Gerry Williams when she interviewed him in 1953.

Julie was the circulation manager for the magazine Studio Potter for 30 years, and ran the couple’s business, Phoenix Workshop. She was, her obituary in the Concord Monitor states, “a spiritual guide and second mother to countless craftspeople who studied pottery and graphic arts at the Phoenix Workshop, which ran for 25 years at their home in Dunbarton.”

Calling hours are today, February 27, from 5 to 8 p.m. at French and Rising Funeral Home, Goffstown. Funeral services will be tomorrow, February 28, at 1 p.m. at Dunbarton Congregational Church. For more information, visit frenchandrising.com.

A New Book from the Laufmans

Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling, a book by Dudley and Jacqueline Laufman, has just been released by Human Kinetics publishers. The Laufmans, both fiddlers, are included on the State Arts Council’s Traditional Artist and Folklife Listing, as well as on the Artist Roster. Dudley, who is also a traditional New England dance caller, is a recipient of the Living Folk Heritage Governors Arts Award.

With a DVD and two CDs, Traditional Barn Dances is aimed at dance teachers, physical education instructors, and recreation program coordinators, in addition to dancers, musicians and callers. It includes everything instructors need to teach 53 dances to people of all ages. For more information on Traditional Barn Dances With Calls & Fiddling, or other education resources, visit www.HumanKinetics.com or call 800-747-4457.

Handmade Products Granted Relief from New Law

Producers and importers of handmade goods recently won a one-year stay from enactment of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, a bill passed by Congress last year to stem the tide of unsafe product imports. The legislation would have required expensive testing and certification of all children’s products, even those made by trusted small businesses, toymakers, and artisans who create one-of-a-kind goods. The Consumers Product Safety Commission (CPSC) decided to delay the new law due to the overwhelming concerns of small business owners that the new requirements were designed for large manufacturers who would have very little new costs associated with their production. The CPSC has decided to look into modifying the rule for handmade items before the new enactment date of February 10, 2010. For more info, visit  http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09115.html

Getting the News Out More Effectively

The State Arts Council will soon be upgrading the way it distributes e-news, by switching to a data-base-driven system. Staffers are working hard to ensure as few glitches as possible, but it’s anticipated that a few people who subscribe to our electronic news bulletins will be inadvertently dropped. Please accept our apologies should you find yourself unintentionally dropped from the e-mailing list, and visit our subscription page, http://www.nh.gov/nharts/newsandcalendar/subscription.htm, to re-subscribe.

Last updated: August 13, 2009