Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 21, 1995 TAG: 9504210080
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: DONNA ALVIS BANKS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
It's all he knows;
Certain as morning shine
Then off he goes -
Me standing there in the door
A'seeing black
And wondering evermore
If he'll come back...."
|- Louise McNeill |"Overheard on a Bus |(Miner's Wife)"
It was backbreaking work for the men who earned their living in Montgomery County's coal mines.
It was heartbreaking work for the wives and sons and daughters who waited at home.
On April 18, 1946, 12 miners died in an explosion at the McCoy mines near Blacksburg. They were the fathers of more than 50 children.
Many of those children - fathers and mothers themselves now - have kept alive the legacy they were given. Through stories and songs and treasured photos, they have preserved a part of Montgomery County's past.
"Our Heritage, Our Values and Our Future" is the theme of the second annual Miner's Heritage Day, a celebration honoring the county's miners and their families. It's happening Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the McCoy Community Ballfield.
Throughout the day, you'll have the opportunity to see a locally produced video documentary, "Hard Times and Rich Memories: Coal Mining in Montgomery County." The new video, produced by the Coal Miners Heritage Association and WTOB-TV, will be shown hourly.
Other attractions include an exhibit of mining artifacts and photographs, live Appalachian music and lots of keepsakes. T-shirts and caps depicting the Coal Miner's Monument will be sold, along with quilts, books, photo reproductions and souvenirs made from coal. You'll find plenty of good food, too. Proceeds from sales during the day will benefit the local association, a nonprofit group.
A coal miner's reunion starts at 1 p.m. At 2 p.m., Jack Stump, a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and an official of the United Mine Workers of America, will speak as part of a program on the theme for this celebration. A memorial service recognizing all former miners, particularly those who have died in the last year, will be held at 3 p.m. at the Coal Miner's Monument.
The ballpark is on Virginia 652 seven miles west of Blacksburg. Admission to the day's activities is free. Don't forget to bring your own lawn chairs for the outdoor seating.
EVERYBODY LOVES JANE: Roanoke's Jane Powell, the versatile and charismatic songstress, is the subject of Radford University's spring dance concert, "The Art of Motion." The university's dance department will pay tribute to Powell with a new work, "Jane's Song," created by dancer and choreographer John Parks.
Parks, a graduate of the Julliard School, has worked with several big-time companies (Rod Rogers, Jose Limon and the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, to name a few) and has performed in the Broadway production of "The Wiz," as well as in films such as "Rage in Harlem" and "Malcolm X."
Parks sought to capture Powell's spirit when he choreographed "Jane's Song," a modern jazz work based on Powell's songs, "Push'n," "Give Your Love to Me" and "Brings Me Joy."
Other works in the program were choreographed by Radford University professors Pegeen Albig and Mary Pat Balkus.
You can catch the show tonight or Saturday at 8 in Preston Auditorium. Admission is $3 for adults, $1 for children and free for Radford University students and staff.
SPEAKING OF DANCING: It doesn't get much better than Phildanco.
Phildanco, a multicultural dance company with a focus on the contemporary African-American experience, will bring its blend of ballet, jazz and modern technique to Blacksburg next week. The dancers will present a performance Wednesday evening at Virginia Tech and spend the day Thursday teaching and talking to students and others in the community.
Wednesday's performance at 8 p.m. in Squires Haymarket Theatre features the Philadelphia company's signature piece, "A Rag, A Bone and a Hank of Hair," choreographed by Talley Beatty with music by Prince, Natalie Cole and Earth, Wind & Fire.
Tickets, available at the box office in Squires Student Center, are $7 for the public or $5 for students and senior citizens. For reservations, call 231-5615. For more information on Phildanco's visit to Blacksburg, call Virginia Tech's Division of Performing Arts at 231-5200.
PORTER'S SONGS: We're talking Cole Porter, not Porter Wagoner here.
Singer Stephanie Nakasian and pianist Hod O'Brien take the stage for what's billed as "an elegant evening with the music of Cole Porter" Saturday at the Old Narrows High School. The concert runs from 8 to 10 p.m.
Nakasian, who was a Julliard student before taking a career detour that landed her on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, returned to singing several years ago. She has appeared at the Wolf Trap, Radio City Music Hall, New York's Kool Jazz Festival and the Kennedy Center.
Her local appearance is a benefit for the Giles Historical Society Museum and Restoration Fund. The goal is to raise $220,000 to restore the 1829 Andrew Johnston House in Pearisburg and to construct a new museum on the grounds.
Admission to Saturday's concert is $10.
ROCK FOR HABITAT: Four local bands will perform Sunday at Blacksburg's South Main Cafe in a benefit concert for the WomenWork project of the New River Valley Habitat for Humanity. They'll be rocking from 6 p.m. to midnight.
M.R. Ducks, Zookeeper, Cellophane Rain and the Yams from Outer Space have signed up for the event. The musicians are donating their time and talent for this cause.
The cover charge Sunday is $4. Call Deb Frankenberry, 951-3512, for more information.
ALL TOGETHER NOW: The New River Valley Community Chorus has two upcoming spring concerts for your listening pleasure.
The first is at 3 p.m. Sunday in Pulaski's First Presbyterian Church, and the second is at 8 p.m. Monday in Radford's Central United Methodist Church. Both are directed by Lynn Loftus and feature a variety of works, including hymns, folk songs, love songs and a medley from "Show Boat" by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II.
Admission is free but donations won't be turned down.
PORTRAITS BEYOND PREJUDICE: In 1990, 50 of the nation's most talented black photographers embarked on a project to capture the African-American experience through the eye of the camera. Their objective was to shoot photos reflecting what they described as "a balanced and accurate look at a people often misunderstood."
The result was "Songs of My People," a book published by Little, Brown & Company and a Smithsonian traveling exhibit sponsored by Time Warner. An HBO television special is now in the works.
Virginia Tech's Black Student Alliance is bringing "Songs of My People" to Colonial Hall in Squires Student Center Monday. The program involves a lecture and multimedia show drawn from the national project. It starts at 8 p.m.
Eric Easter, a media strategist for the presidential campaigns of Jesse Jackson and Douglas Wilder and publisher of One, a monthly newspaper in Washington, D.C., is one of three creators of the project. The others are Michael Cheers, a photo journalist for Ebony, and Dudley Brooks, an award-winning photo journalist for The Washington Post.
Monday's program at Virginia Tech will be presented by one of the three. Admission is free.
by CNB