TI Life Happenings in September

What a summer… high water, some picture perfect days… family and friends!  Now we head into the fall season, where us lucky ones own the River, find easy parking and a seat at the Koffee Kove!  Time to get down to some great Island time…

September Reading:

Tributes:  John Elder thanks the Northern New York EMS System in Testimonial: Saving a Life; Janet Sullins captures a lovely summer evening when the River community gave a Special Thanks to Mary Dial.

Fire:  Tom King presents A Fiery Prescription for Camelot Island's Pitch Pines and Lynn McElfresh provides TI Park Fire…then and now…

Island Experiences:  Deane C. Parkhurst came back in “You Can’t Go Home Again!” (Or Can You?); while Tyler W. Barton Dreams of a River and Kim Lunman presents Cherry Island's Casa Blanca.

Mother Nature:  John Peach give us sound advice in A Bass is Too Valuable to Catch only Once… and Ellen Childs provides a special tale in “The Old Woman and the River”.

Photography:  An introduction to Andrée Thorpe’s Photography

New Contributors

	Jack Elder - Testimonial: Saving a Life Jack Elder and his wife Judie, their daughters Kirsten and Holli ans the grandson Justin, have lived in Alpharetta, GA (metro Atlanta) for the past 18 years.  Jack is the President of I/DC Technologies and a Managing Director of eClinical Technologies.  He credits his father for a love of technology and an inquiring mind which guided him through his business career.  At 72 he admits he should probably be retired but thoroughly enjoys the work he is doing and lives by the adage, “work’s not work if you’re having fun”.   Born in the Pittsburgh, PA area, he first visited the Thousand Islands (Clayton/Gananoque) when his family vacationed here in 1955.  They enjoyed it so much they kept coming back for the next 15 years.
	Janet Sullins - A Special Thanks to Mary Dial Janet Sullins is a river artist and photographer.  Her photographs have been published in Thousand Islands Sun, in the Save The River calendar and, thankfully, TI Life.  However she is also a gifted artis,t capturing the River in oil paintings, watercolors and in her beautiful stained glass work.  When not working for the Town of Clayton or walking her dog, you will probably find Janet suited-up for another scuba dive.  In February, 2013 Kathi McCarthy profiled Janet Sullins: Janet Sullins: River Queen of Arts
	Andrée Thorpe - Andrée Thorpe’s Photography Andrée Thorpe is an emerging photographer who has chosen photography as a mean to share with her viewers her personal expression.  Andrée is nesting on Howe Island, in the Thousands Islands, Ontario Canada with her husband and biggest supporter. From there, she continues to pursue her passion to create and share her visual experiences through photography. You can travel around the world with Andree through her website, Andree Thorpe Photography and can view her landscape work including images of the Thousand Islands on www.andreethorpeprints.com.
	Ellen Childs - “The Old Woman and the River” by Ellen Glenn Childs Ellen Glenn Childs wrote this piece a few years ago, fictionalizing a bit of her memoir, which of course, is not fiction at all. She says, “I have loved the St. Lawrence River since my parents and I moved to Jefferson County, in 1953. During my college years, I was a cowgirl at Adventure Town in Alexandria Bay, and a waitress at McCormick's and Tony's in Clayton.”  Now retired, after more than twenty-five years at the Melvil Dewey Library at Jefferson Community College, Ellen lives on Sand Bay, between Clayton and Cape Vincent.
	Tyler W. Barton - Dreams of a River T.W.(Ty) Barton lives in central Pennsylvania and dreams of living in the Thousand Islands. He and a crew of friends have been traveling to the islands since 2000, for an annual fishing trip.  “The worst year was when, in the course of a day and a half, I lost the lower unit of my boat’s motor, the sole of my only footwear ripped off, and while stepping onto the dock, knocked my walkie-talkie off my pants and watched it drop between the boat and the dock!”  Ty manages a book review website, T.W. Barton Book Reviews Live!, and posts reviews of books, primarily by what are called indie authors, those who publish without agents, editors or publicists.

Auction of “Fiddler’s Island” - looking for a good steward

It was back in August that Marshall Gummer thought he had discovered an answer to Mary Alice Snetsinger’s request for a photograph of the original Fiddler’s Elbow Lighthouse in Ivy Lea.  Marshall wrote, “I have attached some images of a watercolour in my next auction that may be of interest to her. It is referred to as Fidler's Island by the painter.”

Mary was quick to identify the scene as being Lindoe Islands Lighthouse, based on the date of the painting and view. “In 1890, Fiddler's Elbow Light was long gone, and Lindoe was also in the Fiddler's Elbow area (and was sometimes called Fiddler's Elbow Light by locals).” she wrote, “Also, if you look at the Marshall Bros. (1912) sketch in my article, it presents an almost identical view, with the same general island shapes and locations.”

A few more emails and we realized it was not the original, but it is going up for auction on September 28th at the Historic Castleton Town Hall, Colborne, ON. (Contact, Marshall Gummer www.theappraiser.ca for details). 

It is not often that we have the opportunity to find a good steward for these special Thousand Islands treasures.  We wish all the bidders great success… and if you are a winner, please let us know why you wanted it!

Deborah Clark

It is with sadness that we notify the River community of the death of Deborah Clark on July 30, 2014.  The obituary published this month in the Thousand Island Sun describes Deborah as a pioneer member of Save the River and a “wow” inductee to the board of directors of Clayton’s Shipyard Museum, now the Antique Boat Museum.  She and her good friend the late John Russell, organized the first Classic Boat Show in Alexandria Bay.  “Her vision of what would make the 1000 Islands a greater place somehow characterized her life.”

Up, Up and Away

A message from Ian Coristine:

Fifteen years ago, on a perfect late summer evening, I captured a shot of the Admiralties very similar to this one. It was shot on film with a so-so camera so wasn't great, but it said "1000 Islands" better than any image I had captured. With the help of my dear friend (artist) Paul Rupert's help (so sadly no longer with us), it became the very first image I ever published (as a poster), in 1999. I always wished that circumstances would allow me to capture this scene again with a truly great camera. Last week, on another very similar and stunningly beautiful evening, thanks to Jordan at 1000 Islands Helicopters, it happened again, this time in 36 MP glory. Happy boy!

 

New Books

Sally Barnes is known as a self-confessed political junkie residing near Kingston, ON.  On October 15the, her Laughed Till they Cried will be launched in Kingston and it promises not to disappoint.

“Laughed Till They Cried chronicles the lives of three post-war girls who grow up amidst a group of quirky characters in a small town in Eastern Ontario.  Ultimately they settle in historic Kingston where they get involved in politics and form the core of a closely knit group of 12 women who call themselves The Cell Sisters – just for the hell of it.  The Cell weathers everything life can throw at a group of women hell bent on taking on the world.  Nothing can stop them – until old age ruins everything.” 

The book launch will take place on October 15th, at The Seniors Centre, 56 Francis Street Kingston.  See http://sallybarnes.ca/

(My goodness this book sounds way too familiar and I, for one, can’t wait!) 

Margaret Blackmer’s Nana’s River was published in 2011 and Nana’s Island came on the scene this summer.  The books are described as realistic fictional picture books.  Each illustration has a hidden acorn, meant for the child to discover.  The books share visits with grandchildren enjoying summer adventures: boating, swimming and learning about river lore.

Nana’s Island is available now at Singer Castle, Corbins book store, Antique Boat Museum and Captain Spicer's Gallery and Gifts near Clayton, NY. They are also available through Xlibris.com in paperback or in hard cover.

New for TI Life

This month we did a study and determined that thousands visit our site each month… a record 22,463 visited this past month… but don’t get excited, many only look at one article, or stay hooked for a few minutes.  However, if the emails, comments and inquiries we get are any indication of interest… this editor is extremely happy!

We also discovered that many visitors are interested in our Properties page, and for that reason we will change the format this coming month, improving this section, so check back in a week or so! 

Please Don’t Forget

Remember our facebook page throughout the month, as we post information and photographs & follow us on

We also appreciate having you hit our  button and donate!

Do you write about the River - near to it, from above or below?  If so, please consider submitting an article.  Let us know what you like, or dislike, about TI Life, so we can all share more ideas.  And… most of all; please ask questions and leave comments.

By Susan W. Smith, Editor info@thousandislandslife.com