Jeff Syracuse

I was honored to attend Mass at the Cathedral of the Incarnation and present a Proclamation to recognize the 150^th Anniversary of the Sisters of Mercy.  Pennington Bend is home to one of their Retreat Centers.  Joining me was US Congressman Jim Cooper, a representative from Lamar Alexander’s Office, State Senator Jeff Yarbro, State Senator John Ray Clemons.  Pat Nolan moderated the event.

Congratulations to one of Donelson’s newest non-profit organizations, GROW Enrichment, for securing an agreement with Metro Parks to utilize land near Two Rivers Park, Two Rivers Mansion and the Two Rivers Dog Park for their educational offerings.  They offer great classes.  This is an exciting opportunity for them and I encourage everyone to support them!

Think 2 Change is coming to McGavock High School on Thursday, October 27^th.  Brian Earley, Donelson neighbor, founded this non-profit organization to help kids deal with bullying, abuse and suicide.  The event is open to the public.  See flyer below for details.

The Hip Donelson Community Farmer’s Market is extending the market season to the winter’s months via a twice-monthly online ordering system.  Visit the website here and sign up for more information and how to participate.

The Larry Keeton Live Music Series continues this coming month with the Lynn Beal Big Band on November 12^th!  Lynn and band put on a great show.  See flyer below for details. 

I had the pleasure of visiting with Nashville’s Amateur Radio Club, which meets at Lock Two Park.  Their meetings are the third Thursday of each month and are open to anyone interested in amateur radio.  They provide opportunities for Scout Troops, schools and other community groups to learn about amateur radio, the services they provide especially in emergency situations.  The club has been in existence since 1934.

Many have asked about Hip Donelson Farmer’s Market opening up on Saturday.  Here’s your opportunity!  This Saturday, September 17^th from 8am to noon, the market will be down in Music Valley.  Come on out and enjoy a great morning at the market!

There will be two more Music at the Mansion events in August and September at Two Rivers Mansion.  Saturday, August 27 will feature the 6^th Annual Nashville Blues Society show featuring Them Rubies, a fantastic female vocal Americana trio you won’t want to miss.  Saturday, September 17 will welcome the return of The Moonlighters big band.  Also, don’t forget that tours are available throughout the month of August. 

The success of the restoration, preservation and increased community awareness of The Friends of Two Rivers Mansion continues to receive much deserved recognition.  Congratulations on receiving The Commissioner’s Award at the recent Metro Preservation Awards.  The picture is Mayor Megan Barry presenting the award to Vice President Marilyn Swing and President Phil Howard.

The inaugural Donnie Whitworth Memorial C.A.N.S. (Challenged Adults Needing Support) Walk-Push-Run event will be September 24^th at Two Rivers Park.  A group project of a team in Leadership Donelson-Hermitage’s Class of 2016 is organizing a kick-off event on Wednesday, April 27^th from 6-8pm at The Larry Keaton Theater with light hors d’oeuvres and wine.  It’s a free event, so come out and hear what this walk is all about, share your favorite memories of Donnie and get excited about raising money that will benefit The Shelby Foundation, a Donelson-based non-profit organization dedicated to making the lives of adults with intellectual disabilities better.

The Hip Donelson Farmer’s Market kicks off the sixth season on Friday, May 6^th!  It promises to be another great season of healthy food, wonderful vendors, music and much more.  It runs every Friday from May – October 4-7pm.

The Tennessee Songwriters Association International will host their 2016 Taste of TSAI Sidewalk Party on Saturday, April 23^rd from 5-9pm.  Live music, food, vendors, door prizes and more.  See poster below for details.

Congratulations to The Donelson Gateway Project for securing assistance via a Metro Beautification grant for 45 trees that were planted on DGP sites, as well as other areas around Donelson.  Visit DGP’s website here for a few pictures.  There will also be a clean-up of all sites on Saturday, April 16^th at 9am.  Head to one of the main sites and pitch in to help keep Donelson looking great!

The Friends of Two Rivers Mansion and the Metro Historic Commission selected Encore Interpretive Design to manage the master planning process for the Two Rivers Mansion, 1802 House and 14-acre property.  This is an exciting time for this historic crown jewel of Donelson.  The community is invited to a kick-off of the process on Wednesday, February 24^th at 5:30pm at Two Rivers Mansion.  Come learn how you can be part of this process and what deliverables to expect.

The American Legion Post 88 has been working hard on a plan to beautify and enhance the War Memorial triangle site that has been there since 1970.  Thanks to an architect team at Lose & Associates for helping put the vision to paper.  We’ve now presented it to TDOT and are awaiting their assessment and approval, which I hope to receive so plantings could be done this Spring.

The Buchanan Log House will host their 3^rd Annual Chili Cook-Off next Saturday, January 30 from 3-6pm.  Cost is only $10 and it benefits the Hip Donelson Lost & Found Pets initiative.

The Larry Keeton Theatre presents Sunset Blvd. Don't miss Andrew Lloyd Webber’s celebrated musical tells the tale of aging, famed silent movie star, Norma Desmond, eternally living in the past and waiting for her next starring role, when she crosses paths with a hapless screenwriter.

Starring the one and only, Ginger Newman!

Show runs February 18 - March 5, 2016

Opening Thursday, December 3^rd and running through December 20^th, The Larry Keeton Theatre presents the Middle Tennessee premier of A 1940s Radio Christmas Carol, a nostalgic trip back to the days of live radio broadcasts featuring comedy and drama, peppered with holiday musical favorites plus new songs in the swing style.  Dinner seating for the holiday meal begins at 5:45 pm with curtain at 7:00 pm Thursday- Saturdays and seating at 12:45 pm with curtain at 2:00 pm on Sunday matinees. Dinner/Show Tickets $21 for children 12 and under, $30 ages 13 to adults.  Call 615-883-8375 or visit www.thelarrykeetontheatre.org.

Congratulations goes to Larry Keeton for being named one of the First Night Honors, recognizing individuals who have taken leading roles in advocating for live theater in Tennessee.  Larry was recognized for his work with his namesake, The Larry Keeton Theater.

Two great events coming up at Two Rivers Mansion.  The first one coming up is the 6^th Annual Tennessee Beer and Wine Festival on Saturday, October 17.  Early tickets are on sale now at their website.

The weather is starting to cool off a bit and there are some great events to enjoy in the weeks ahead!  Don’t forget the Hip Donelson Community Farmer’s Market is going strong every Friday until the end of October.  Lots of great information about what’s going on at the market can be found at their website.

I had a blast the weekend before last helping out the Tennessee Scenic Rivers Association in building a new access point to Mill Creek.  It is located just off Elm Hill Pike under the bridge going over Mill Creek, just across from the site of the Buchanan Station Cemetery.  It was hard work, but a lot of fun and I met some new friends.  The TSRA built a very successful access point on Stones River near Kohl’s a couple years ago.  I’m meeting with them soon about a couple other possible locations to build access points in Donelson.  Check out their website above to learn more about what this great organization is all about.

The 2015 Music at the Mansion at Two Rivers Mansion series kicked-off with a great concert from the Nashville Symphony in June and the The Moonlighters in July.  August 22 will be the 5^th Anniversary of Nashville Blues Society being part of Music at the Mansion and will feature Eight O’ Five Jive and Markey Blue

Music at the Mansion 2015’s series kicks off Thursday, June 18^th with the Nashville Symphony!  We have an exciting line up of fantastic music for you this summer.  See flyer for details and mark your calendars for all four events.

The next Larry Keeton Live Music Series event is coming this Friday May 15 at 7:30pm featuring “New Faces in Country” with Carly Pearce and Mamadear.  Just $8 or $10 at the door.  Get your tickets at the website or visit FiftyForward Donelson Station to pick them up in person.  Food trucks will be on site and you its BYOB.

The first-ever Larry Keeton Live Music Series launched on Friday, March 20 to a sold-out crowd at The Larry Keeton Theater for a night of blues and R&B.  Markey Blue opened the show with the Andy T – Nick Nixon Band following.  The dance floor was full the whole night.  This was a very special project from a team with Leadership Donelson-Hermitage Class of 2015.  They did a great job putting this together.  See the flyer below for details on the next two shows!

We have a new non-profit organization in Donelson!  GROW Enrichment is an educational program offering garden-based learning using skills in natural sciences and teaching a wide variety of subjects through hands-on activity.  Started by Maplecrest neighbors Jonathan & Ginger-Rose Krueck, they are beginning classes soon and have a GoFund Me campaign to help them get started.

Near the 2620 Building is an island that has served as a Veteran’s Memorial for many years.  The American Legion Post 88 Ladies Auxiliary has maintained the site and thanks to efforts of Brian & Mary McClanahan and Girl Scout Troop 1421, you may have noticed some changes and landscaping improvements happening to the site.  They look forward to continuing their work this year.  Also, the community Christmas Tree is always a welcome sight for travelers on Lebanon Pike through Donelson.  Thanks to JVI Secret Gardens for donating the tree, Larry Keeton with Dicks Petals & Flowers for donating the decorations, members of the board of Hip Donelson for decorating it, and Councilman Phil Claiborne for coordinating it all.

The Buchanan Station Cemetery just off of Massman Drive is a foundational historic site for Nashville.  All that remains of what was once one of the first settlements in Nashville’s history is a cemetery that reminds us of the amazing story of how these pioneers came to what is now Nashville in the late 1700’s.  For a great account of this story, read the story here from historian Mike Slate’s website.  A Friends group was formed to preserve and restore this cemetery and could even one day be a trail stop on a future part of the Metro Greenway.  The group is working with the property owner to transfer it to Metro Parks and has raised $11,000 of the $17,000 needed to install a fence around the cemetery.  If you’d like to help the group meet their goal, contact Joe Cathey at joecathey@comcast.net.

The Donelson Gateway Project’s annual Fall Work Day will be on Saturday, November 8^th at 9am.  Most of the help is needed at the Briley Parkway site, but we will be working at the Tollgate (Stewart’s Ferry) and Stones River Bridge sites as well.  We will be spreading pine straw and planting winter color.

The Friends of Two Rivers Mansion will host their annual Holiday Historical Tours on December 12^th, 13^th, and 14^th.  This is an excellent opportunity to see the continued restoration progress and visit this unique historical treasure in Donelson decorated for the Holidays.

FiftyForward Donelson Station welcomed new a director, Angela Bryan, just over eight months ago and she is doing wonderful things at keeping our community center thriving and active.  The 28^th Annual Donelson Fall Festival & BBQ fundraiser was a big success and included live music, children’s activities, a haunted theater, much more, and of course fantastic BBQ.  Congratulations to Angela and all involved in making it a success.  Coming up will be a Holiday Craft Fair on December 6^th during the Donelson-Hermitage Chamber of Commerce’s 30^th Annual Christmas Parade.  Contact Angela at abryan@fiftyforward.org to reserve a booth.