Author: mkatzmark

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THE CASE OF THE MISSING BRIDE

Since many of you have asked me “What can I do for the church?”, I figured I’d let you know about something coming up. On Saturday March 18th at 5:00 we are having a dinner theater at our sister church, Cottage Grove E.C. Church. The actors are from both their church and ours. The cost is only $5 for the meal and it is a fundraiser for something near and dear to our hearts: Camp Ecco, our church camp in Carrollton, OH. Raffle baskets will be auctioned off if you are interested. Also, there will be some of our own who will be playing music.

So, what could be better? It’ll be an entertaining evening supporting a good cause and supporting some fellow musicians. Those involved are: Joy Hart, Kathy Jesser, Deb Withnell, Connie Stinnett, Marilyn Katzmark, Art Hensler, our token male, and Carrie Cunningham who will also be one of the actresses in the play.

Come have a good time!

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KATHRYN WEAVER AND KATHY JESSER

Kathryn Weaver (violin) has recently been diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs and is having a hard time breathing. Apparently it’s the same germ that causes RSV. She is slightly better but is not expecting to be back to New Horizons for a couple weeks. Her goal is to be back for the John S. Knight performance.

Kathy Jesser (trombone) recently had surgery and has been scootering ( hmmm, I wonder if that’s a word) around her house. She’s hoping to get the okay from her doctor tomorrow to bear weight on her foot. Her goal is to be in good enough shape to make rehearsal on Monday.

Please keep these two in your thoughts, and pray for quick recoveries!

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SOMETHING LOST AND SOMETHING FOUND

My music for Mandalorian was on a stand up front with the super big base drum. Someone must have put it somewhere after rehearsal because by the time everyone left, the stands were put away but there is no sign of my music. Please text me at (330)612-5542 if you know where it is. My email hasn’t been working the last 3 days. Marilyn Katzmark

I found 2 green snake humidifiers for possibly a cello over by the hangers. I will have them with me tomorrow at our gig. You might not even know they are missing yet.

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NANCY SAUER

Although it has been a few years, some of you may remember Nancy Sauer who played with New Horizons in the flute section. Unfortunately she passed away Friday August 5th, 2022. The obituary is posted below:

February 12, 1941 ~ August 5, 2022 (age 81

Obituary

Miss Nancy Sauer, age 81, passed away on August 5, 2022 at the Justin T. Rogers Hospice Care Center. Nancy was born in Pittsburgh, PA to the late William and Pearl Sauer.

Along with her parents, Nancy was preceded in death by a sister, Marilou Sauer.

A graduate of the University of Akron, Nancy pursued a 38-year career as an elementary school teacher, educating thousands of students in the Ellett (Hatton) and Manchester systems. Passionate about teaching, she continued as a reading specialist for 4 more years in the Akron system.

An enthusiastic tennis player, she played and organized leagues over 50 years and counted those women as some of her best friends. An accomplished pianist, she also played the flute in the New Horizons band, making numerous friends through that organization.

Nancy is survived by her brother, William, of Chicago, as well as numerous cousins in the Akron and Columbus areas.

A visitation will be held on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 from 10 AM to 11 AM at the Hummel Funeral Home, 500 E. Exchange Street, Akron. A funeral service will begin at 11:00 AM on Wednesday at the funeral home. Burial will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery, 100 E. Waterloo Road, Akron.

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BARBARA TOMSELLO

Early this morning, Carrie Cunningham’s (clarinet) sister, Barbara Tomsello, passed away after a lengthy illness. Barb was Carrie’s older sister and the last remaining sibling. Barb left behind her husband, Tony, and 2 children, as well as 5 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild. Carrie mentioned the family was not planning on a funeral service or calling hours but may at some point arrange a memorial time for family members. .

Although the family realizes she is at peace and no longer struggling, please pray for God’s comfort as they deal with this loss.

If you would like to send Carrie a card her address is: 49 Wynstone Dr., Mogadore, OH 44260. Below is her obituary:

Barbara “Barb” J. (Fisher) Tomsello

September 22, 1946 ~ August 6, 2022 (age 75)

Obituary

Barbara “Barb” J. Tomsello (nee Fisher), age 75, passed away peacefully on Saturday, August 6, 2022 at home with loved ones. Barb resided in Barberton and was born in Portage County, living her entire life in Northeast Ohio. Preceded in death by her parents, Clive and Mareta Fisher, as well as brothers, Kenneth (Lynn) and Ronald (KIA Vietnam). She is also preceded by her first husband, Carl Veppert, the father of her children. Barb is survived by her husband of 31 years, Anthony “Tony” Tomsello; kid sister, Carrie (Jeff) Cunningham; children, Wendy (Dick) Phillips and Brian (Sue) Veppert; grandchildren, Kyle (Adrienne), Kevin (Rachel) and Colin Phillips and Clair and Abby Veppert as well as great-grandson, Cole Phillips, many nieces and nephews, step children, Ryan and Danny Tomsello and special aunt, Mary Lou Silvers. Cremation has taken place with internment at Hillside Memorial Park with a celebration of life in the near future….. while Barb lovingly looks upon us and does her word searches.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Barbara “Barb” J. (Fisher) Tomsello, please visit our floral store.

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LOST KEYS

Last Thursday a set of keys were found in the church parking lot. They do not appear to be car keys. Although it was announced at Thursday’s rehearsal, no one claimed them. It was also announced in church on Sunday and they were not claimed. It’s possible that a band member lost them before Thursday so I’m sending out this post in case it reaches that person. For that matter, someone who was at the concert 2 weekends ago could have lost them.

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NEW NORMALS

This past week was kind of hard for me. It started out with me telling myself I needed to stop playing the violin for awhile. I feel like my arm/shoulder should be fairly normal by now but it’s not. I’m not sure if I just need to give it time without playing, or if I did something wrong while I rehabbed and need surgery again, or if I’m never going to be able to play decent without pain. As I was pouting through my week, a good friend died. He lived a nice long life and I know he’s in heaven, but I still felt sadness. Then, as I wrote before in “Our Military”, my son-in-law left today to his first army base. On the whole I’m not a cryer, but I’ve done my share this week.

All of this has made me stop and think about all the “new normals” we go through. Some new normals are exciting: graduating, getting married, having a baby, getting a new job. But along with it you have to adjust to new things: living somewhere new, living with another person, sleeping less, learning new skills. You get the picture. I’m happy I retired this month. Oddly, I’m having a little trouble figuring out how my days should be structured.

Loss is a reality though that none of us can escape. We will lose family members, we will lose those abilities that were so easy to do in our twenties. When these things happen the new normal is daunting. I’m very practical when it comes to death but that doesn’t change the loss you feel. I remember driving back to Ohio after my mom’s funeral and it hit me. She always insisted I call when I got home so she knew I was safe. I realized … there was no one there to call.

I really am feeling much better but I had to ask myself “Why?” So I don’t know if this will help anyone else but here goes. The first thing I told myself to do is just get through that day. Even though you may feel immobilized, at least do the “have tos”. And try to glean at least one thing that was positive about that day. There’s usually more going on in our lives to be grateful for than to get depressed over. I try to never stay down for too long so most days after that hopefully get easier. The second thing I told myself to do is exercise. I haven’t been able to swim laps since November so at least with the weather being better I’ve been going on walks. Short ones with my dogs and long ones by myself. There’s something so good about being outside and moving. So as hard as it is at first I told myself I had to get out of bed and walk. The third thing I told myself to do was enlarge my world so it includes more than just me. When I get down it’s all about me. All I have to do is look around and I see people having far worse things going on in their lives. Now that I’ve got time I’ve been trying to visit some of the people in my church that temporarily or permanently can’t get out. It does make you feel better if you can help someone else.

I hope you don’t think this is easy. It isn’t always. When I was 4 years old my dad died and I watched my mom be clinically depressed for 10 years. She got up every day to go to work, and she was good at that job, but that was all the energy she had. When we lose people we move on, we develop a new normal, but it doesn’t mean that layer of sadness isn’t in the background.

I hope this doesn’t offend anyone but I’d like to share my favorite scripture: Joshua 1:9. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord our God will be with you wherever you go.” I guess for me the most important thing is to realize I’m not alone. Seventeen years ago I went through chemo for ovarian cancer. To this day I’m grateful God spared me and I often have found myself in awe as to why. So I know there are worse things than not being able to play the violin or swim laps. What’s interesting though is I never felt alone. It’s like I had God company with me all the time. So, when I’m down, I rely on my faith to get me through things.

I’m so sorry I rambled on so much. Just chalk it up to me needing to write out my innermost thoughts. This won’t happen often. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized we all have our times where we need to adjust to new normals.

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OUR MILITARY

Last night after New Horizons disbanded, I went to say my final goodbye to my son-in-law, Jake Hailey. He left for the army this morning. I feel so much pride for this guy. He’s smart, caring, brave … the list goes on and on. For now, he’s leaving behind my daughter Meghan and their two girls. In the next 6 months he will be at 4 different bases until he finally arrives at Fort Bragg near the first of the year. Because of this, they decided Meg and the girls should stay here until the end of the next school year. I feel the loss myself, but more importantly, I feel my girls’ pain.

In trying to not make this all about me and my family, my heart just goes out to all of the military families out there. Probably several of you or your families have gone through something similar. My niece and her husband spent 3 of their married years on totally different naval bases. When they finally got stationed together in Guam, a year later he was deployed to Afghanistan. But none of this even compares to the possibility of these soldiers losing their lives. Unfortunately this hits home to so many. My uncle Paul died at 18 years old at Anzio in WWII. Carrie Cunningham’s brother, Ron, died in Viet Nam. I’m sure that there are other members who have gone through this as well.

My point is that when it doesn’t involve us I don’t feel we can truly appreciate the sacrifices these men make. That their families make. I’ve been guilty of this myself. With the hovering possibility of WWIII, I am not crazy about the fact that Jake’s entrance into the service is now. I’m sure thousands of families are in the same boat. So I’m just asking that when we are watching the news about Russia and the Ukraine that we not become desensitized. The Ukraine’s people and their soldiers are suffering. I feel like the US and other countries are walking on eggshells trying not to let WWIII happen but it may at some point happen.

Growing up I was always in Memorial Day parades and Veteran’s Day parades. I did not have a clue how important it was to remember what our men had been through. Now that this is up in my face, I understand. God, please be with the Ukraine’s soldiers and their families. Please be with our boys and their families. And selfishly I must add, please keep Jake safe.

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BARBARA TOMSELLO

Barbara Tomsello is the sister of Carrie Cunningham (clarinet). She has been in hospice for awhile now, and appears to not have much longer. Carrie would appreciate your prayers for a peaceful passing, and for comfort for the family as they stand by her during her final moments.

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SUMMER ENTERTAINMENT – LOCK 3

Every year my husband and I venture down to Lock 3 in Akron for some of their concerts. It is so much easier to do than I ever thought it would be. We have never paid for parking. Most of the concerts are free. If you do not want to bring your own lawn chairs you can rent some. Refreshments are available to buy. Just in case some of you would like to reminisce to some 70’s-80’s music I am going to post the schedule. On a balmy summer night, it’s a really good time.

The City of Akron’s Lock 3 Announces Summer 2022 Rock the Lock Concert Schedule

Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan and Lock 3, in partnership with 97.5 WONE, are thrilled to share Lock 3’s Rock the Lock summer concert series on the iconic Cleveland Clinic Akron General Stage. The season kicks off on Friday, May 27 with Into The Blue, an ELO Tribute, with Sunflurry. Lock 3’s full summer 2022 event schedule including additional concerts, jazz nights, festivals, movie nights, and more will be released on April 25.

“I’m excited to announce this year’s ‘Rock the Lock’ concert schedule,” said Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan. “Each year, this concert series brings thousands of Akronites and guests into Akron’s ‘central park’ to enjoy good music, good company, and good times. We can’t wait to entertain you again this summer so mark your calendars and come on down.”

Fridays beginning May 27 and continuing through Sept. 2, Lock 3 will host your favorite tribute bands, with gates opening at 6 p.m. and concerts beginning at 7 p.m. There will be some special concerts on Saturdays and Sundays as well. All listed concerts are presented in partnership with 97.5 WONE. Concerts are free unless noted otherwise. See the full schedule below:

  • May 27  Into The Blue ELO Tribute with Sunflurry
  • June 3   Draw The Line The Endorsed Aerosmith Tribute with Lady Lyre
  • (Sat.) June 4   Donnie Iris and The Cruisers with Ravenwood Tickets available at The Akron Civic Theatre
  • June 10   Fleetwood Macked Fleetwood Mac Tribute with Kerosene
  • June 17   Dirty Deeds The AC/DC Experience with Akron’s Magic Alex *($5 Admission)*
  • June 24   Satisfaction International Rolling Stones Tribute with The Twistoffs
  • July 1     E5C4P3 Journey Tribute with Monica Robins & The Whiskey Kings (RWB Fest)
  • (Sat.) July 2       Bruce in The USA World’s #1 Tribute to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band with Sinners and Saints (RWB Fest)
  • (Sun.) July 3      The Best of Queen featuring The Georgia Players Guild with Xcess featuring Andrea (RWB Fest)
  • July 8      Best of Times A Tribute to STYX with The Michael Weber Show
  • July 15    Double Vision The Foreigner Experience with Blue Hour *($5 Admission)*
  • (Sat.) July 16    Who’s Bad The Ultimate Michael Jackson Tribute with Umojah Nation A LOCK 3 EXTRA!
  • July 22    Atomic Punks The Tribute to Early Van Halen with Neil Zaza
  • July 29    Hard Days Night  A Beatles Tribute with The Angie Haze Project
  • Aug. 12   Full Moon Fever  Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers Tribute with Ben Gage
  • Aug. 19    Hotel California The Original Tribute to The Eagles with Walking in Circles *($5 Admission)*
  • Aug. 26  Straight On The Heart Tribute with The Ladies Night
  • Sept. 2    ZOSO The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Tribute with Ravenwood (Pizza Fest)

Sponsors and foundation underwriting keep all concerts free or at deep discounts.

Lock 3 thanks our sponsors Cleveland Clinic Akron General, Akron Civic Theatre, Downtown Akron Partnership, Tramonte Distributing, Miller Lite, Coca-Cola, Thirsty Dog Brewery, The Knight Foundation, Akron/Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau, Roetzel, Pritt Entertainment Group, WAKR, WONE, WQMX, and Courtyard Marriott Downtown Akron.

Food and alcohol are available for purchase in Lock 3. You are welcome to bring your own food to concerts or enjoy your lunch sitting at Lock 3 but outside alcohol is not permitted. Outside food and drinks are not permitted during the festivals. We accept cash, MasterCard, and Visa. There is open seating for concerts. Bring your own chair or blanket and find a good spot to enjoy the show. For a full list of FAQs click here.

Concert and event information will be posted as it becomes available at lock3live.com.

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