Sundae Horn
Ocracoke Featured in Our State Magazine
The October issue of Our State magazine (www.ourstate.com) has not one, but two articles about Ocracoke! Of course, all Tarheels and O’cockers love Our State magazine, and never more so than when they recognize and celebrate how wonderful our little island is.
An article about Ghost Walks all around North Carolina couldn’t have been complete without a mention of Philip Howard. Philip is a raconteur extraordinaire who collects Ocracoke stories and folklore, which he shares on stage at the Ocrafolk Opry, online in his Ocracoke newsletter, and on the streets during his Ghost and History Walking Tours of the village. Learn about Old Diver and Mad Mag Howard and poor Alice O’Neal, shipwrecks and prophetic dreams and haunted inns. Amy Howard, who inherited her father’s gift of gab, also takes a turn each week at leading the tours. If you’re planning to be on Ocracoke in September or October, please call ahead (252-928-6300) to check the off-season schedule for the Ghost Walks.
Speaking of yours truly, the other article in this month’s issue is called “Camp Creative,” written by me about the Ocrafolk School. Our State sent a photographer to the first folk school and, as is usual for Our State, the incredible photography tells the story so well that the words are superfluous. (My favorite photo? I just loved seeing Captain Rob’s baldhead shining in the glow of the campfire.)
The October issue of Our State just hit the newsstands (available on the island at The Variety Store and Books to Be Red), and will no doubt sell like hotcakes, so get your copy today!
Ocracoke Musicians and Artists Out and About in the Community
Guitar Gary doesn’t just play music and record other musicians playing music at Soundside Studios, he also serves on the volunteer board of the Ocracoke Community Center. This week the board members (Tom Pahl, Nancy Leach, Lyn Buchanan, and Gary) organized a big project day, and checked several things off their to-do list for the building.
Gary Mitchell and Tom Pahl install the new Commnity Center sign
Gary and Tom hung a new sign on the building’s exterior, which can be used to announce meetings and events. The board also fixed and painted and cleaned until the place shone, complementing the renovations that have been done over the last few months including a new entryway, new ceiling, and improvements to the stage.
Ocracoke Community Center interior
The Ocracoke Community Center is owned by Hyde County and supported by Ocracoke Occupancy Tax funds, and by the revenue it generates from rental fees. The building is open for free use to any Ocracoke non-profit group, and it’s available to rent for parties, wedding receptions, and other events by calling 252-928-3162.
Ah! A hard day's work comes to an end
The Ocrafolk Festival Fundraising concerts at Thanksgiving and Easter, and some of the Ocrafolk Festival events are held at the Community Center. So, if you’ve been to a show there before, be sure to notice the improvements next time you’re here and let Gary know how great the place looks.
Fiddler Dave Tweedie and Captain Rob Temple sing a chantey
Captain Rob Scares Some Small Fry
To celebrate International Talk Like a Pirate Day on September 19th in his own nefarious way, Captain Rob Temple steered a course to Ocracoke Child Care and gave the little kiddies a nautical lecture on piratical practices. After they warmed up to him, the tots learned the Pirate’s Alphabet (“Aye!” and “Aargh!”) and danced to the Pirate Song. If you hear a three year-old calling for his grog, you’ll know he’s one of Captain Rob’s mateys.
Really now. . .who is the most frightening?!
Fiddler Dave Vistis Pre-K for “F” week
The Ocracoke School pre-Kindergarten class was learning all about the letter “F” this week. Dave volunteered to help the kids come up with some benign “F” words -– like Fiddle!
Fiddler Dave with son Lachlan (now in Pre-K)
Amy’s Sea Turtle Sculpture Class Adds to OYC Beach Scene
Amy Howard and students at work on the sea turtle
Amy Howard taught another sculpture class this week for the Ocracoke Youth Center, and this time the kids helped her create a sea turtle for the Beach Scene Sculpture Garden on Hwy. 12.
It all started with a surfer – Herbie Creampuff, to be precise. Then he needed a lifeguard to flirt with
What a cutie!
and some dolphins to ride waves with… and now the Youth Center’s front yard is one of Ocracoke’s most interesting roadside attractions. The sculptures hold up amazingly well in the wind and rain, and get occasional little touch-up paint jobs.
Herbie went AWOL overnight this summer, and came back as sneakily as he left. We assume he was kidnapped and taken to a wild island party, but he’ll never tell.
Amy provides the basic sculpture form, and then the kids add the plaster strips and make it sturdy. The next day they get to come back and paint and decorate their creation. It’s all good, messy fun!
Herbie Creampuff and the dolphin
Deepwater Theater & Music Hall Unveils Its New Website!
Over the last couple of months, those Molasses Creek folks have been working on a new website for their Deepwater Theater. The site features all the different activities that take place at Deepwater Theater throughout the summer season as well as the rest of the year. In addition to Molasses Creek, Ocrafolk Opry, Coyote and Noah Paley, and Rumgagger Pirate Shows, the island theater is also an art gallery for the work of Kitty Mitchell of Molasses Creek, hosts Yoga classes, the Ocracoke Needle and Thread Club (Quilting), Youth Center Movies, rental options, and a variety of workshops and activites in the off season. Visit the site at www.deepwatertheater.com
