On September 21st 2012 Dellview was in celebration of our neighborhood's rich history. Bett Butler and Joel Dilley created a wonderful evening with song, music, stories and a engaging video that was a collaboration between Bett and I in gathering images and stories from the residents.
It took place at St.Marks United Methodist Church and the Art Beat Committee of the Dellview Area Neighborhood Association really worked hard to bring this to its glory!
We filled the house! As you can see from the pictures, many were the elderly neighbors that bought their home in Dellview in the 50's. There were many of Bett and Joel's fans too.
As artists working together, Bett and I really do well when we set down to do a project. I admire her professionalism and dedication to her craft. It was a lot of work coordinating everything for this big production but the fruits it bore are everlasting. Bett blew the audience away when she honored the first residents that lived through WWII by singing Brother Can You Spare A Dime? Every song they performed they did with their hearts and everyone was captivated. I was the "mistress of the ceremony" and ran the video and slide presentations. I also played a video I did for this event called
Dellview Drive and Joel's music was the soundtrack.
Maybe this will be the start of honoring other old but not ancient neighborhoods in San Antonio but I really wanted to bring attention to what we have here in Dellview. Obtaining a CAAP Grant from the city of San Antonio Cultural Affairs was not easy but it help defer some of the big expenses of this free concert celebration. It indeed created a stir and we are continuing the call for more stories and photographs from the past to add to the history documentation of Dellview, a neighborhood consisting of mid century homes and warm hearts.
The big publicity we received was due to Jim Beal's article in the San Antonio Express News that got everyone's attention....I knew it would having Bett and Joel along!
The concert and the videos will be available on a DVD for members of DANA- Dellview Area Neighborhood Association. Everyone is invited to be a "neighbor" of Dellview. It costs only 12 dollars a year and you will receive our bi-monthly newsletter (which I design btw) in addition to the DVD when it comes out.
As artists, we never sleep and this was one project we all are happy to have accomplished successfully.
The concert was dedicated to the memory of Janice Petmecky, a dear friend and former Board Member of DANA.
SA Express article is located at http://www.mysanantonio.com/life/article/Working-in-concert-for-Dellview-3874882.php
