Wednesday, May 10, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Arts celebration
reflects community
By Jim Cornelius
News Editor
Over the better part of
two decades, Sisters Folk
Festival’s arts celebration My
Own Two Hands has reflected
the values of an arts-oriented
community that the organiza-
tion itself has sought to foster.
It’s a symbiotic relationship, in
which artists donate their work
and talents to support a com-
munity that supports the arts.
“We’re celebrating excep-
tionally talented individuals
and how they contribute to our
community,” said Brad Tisdel,
creative director of Sisters
Folk Festival (SFF). “I think
it’s about community values.
I think it’s about the schools
and school opportunities mir-
roring the Sisters community.”
One of the festival’s goals
as an organization, Tisdel says,
is to foster intergenerational
relationships, where estab-
lished artists mentor young
artists and those youths inspire
their elders. To that end, stu-
dent artists are featured in
the My Own Two Hands art
auction at Ponderosa Forge
and Ironworks, which raises
thousands of dollars for SFF-
supported programs in the
schools. Students also work
at the event, from setup and
takedown to serving appetiz-
ers to displaying the auction
art.
“The art auction is a fan-
tastic way to engage young
people with that arts commu-
nity,” Tisdel said.
Tisdel notes that the arts
education programs that SFF
supports are about a lot more
than “art for art’s sake” —
though he is quick to acknowl-
edge art’s intrinsic value.
Study after study has found
that students who are engaged
in the arts are more engaged
in school. Arts provide forums
in which to develop problem-
solving skills and the ability
(and courage) to create some-
thing and present it to an audi-
ence. Such skills — the abil-
ity to confidently develop and
present an idea — transfer to
almost any career.
Students who build guitars
and ukuleles in Sisters Folk
Festival’s luthier program in
the schools learn woodwork-
ing skills, computer-assisted
design — and less tangible
skills like attention to detail
and problem-solving when
they (almost inevitably) run
into difficulties in crafting an
instrument.
And the arts can be inte-
grated into “core” academics
as well, creating what Tisdel
calls “opportunities for young
people to learn through the
arts in many disciplines.”
Whether it’s the intersec-
tion of math and science in the
production of sound, or cre-
atively writing reflections on
scientific study of Whychus
Creek, the integration of arts
into school curriculum pro-
vides different pathways for
learning — and a broader per-
spective, Tisdel believes.
Tisdel also notes that the
arts and cultural events are a
major economic contributor
to Sisters. The Sisters Folk
Festival, the Sisters Outdoor
Quilt Show and Sisters Rodeo
all bring thousands of people
to town — and the vibrant
community they help create
also attracts people who want
to live here. And businesses
from art galleries to music
venues to Thompson guitars
and Catch Magazine reflect a
commercial community that is
increasingly connected to the
arts, he said.
Ultimately, Tisdel says,
support for the arts in Sisters
has helped to “really create
outstanding citizens.”
Buying or Selling in Sisters?
31
Softball in Sisters is on the rise
The Sisters Little League
junior softball team is hav-
ing a great season. After eight
games the juniors have an 8-0
record, with their latest game
resulting in a 14-4 win over
Redmond. Other big wins
this season include games
versus Bend, Crook County,
and Madras.
The Juniors team consists
of players ages 12 to 14. They
are coached by Desmond
Boots and Shad Sitz.
“This group of girls are
like sponges. They absorb
nearly everything that they
are coached, and then they go
out and execute at a very high
level,” says Coach Boots.
“Coach Sitz and I couldn’t
be happier with our players’
attitudes, their willingness to
learn, and their desire to play
the game,” Boots added.
Youth softball in Sisters
has seen an overall spike in
numbers over the past three
seasons. The pipeline of
PHOTO PROVIDED
Daisy Patterson at bat.
players from the minors level
up to majors, and then up to
the Junior level, is incredible.
With a consistently high num-
ber of players and positive
coaching staff at each level,
Sisters is going to continue
to see a large increase in tal-
ent continuing all the way
through high school.
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