This week we’ll revisit a couple of things in my town.The beauty of this late summer’s afternoon has been calling my name. The infinite azure sky that September brings to Northeast Ohio, warm temperatures and gentle breezes are welcome. We are still cleaning up from the storm that Ike brought us last week. Our beautiful old maple, as old as this old house, succumbed. More on that in another post.
I’ve talked about the special place that is my town, and the feeling that is unlike that in any other place I’ve been. It manifests in many ways, and the Peninsula Python Festival was one.
Post a guess who this PPP member is in the comment section and I’ll enter your name in a high tech drawing (where I draw a name from a hat). You could be the latest member of the PPP. You could win cool stuff and join the other intrepid Posse members, Terrie Farley Moran,Sam, Travis, Barrie, and Eryl.
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The versatile Travis Erwin, is the originator of My Town Monday. Wander on over to his site and see what others have to say about their towns this day.
We have been fortunate enough receive more press coverage about our Little Blue Guy, AKA the Little Blue Santa, and his friends. Here is a link to the article that Katie Byard wrote for the Akron Beacon Journal. If you would like to read more about the Little Blue Santa, please follow these links.
The American Marble and Toy Manufacturing Companywas one of the first companies in this country to mass produce toys for children. Toys, that had been available to the wealthy, were now accessible to most children. People could purchase a handful of marbles for a penny, and the company began producing other items. Small ceramic cats, dogs, shoes, hats, jugs and other items of daily life were produced.
We are in the process of developing a green glaze for the new Santa. Although there were no green Santas found at the site of the American Marble and Toy Manufacturing Company, we know that green and blue Santas are part of the rich Christmas traditions that immigrants brought to Akron, Ohio.
We are working on reproducing some of these toys as well as the Little Green Santa, and we will post them when they are available. If you would like to be notified when we have the additional items ready, send an email to FromSkilledHands AT gmail. com, and I will gladly add your name to the list.
Post a comment and I will you enter your name in the high tech Little Blue Santa Giveaway, in which I draw a name from a hat. The winner of the Little Blue Santa giveaway from my post of August 1, is Larramie.
We continue to hear from people whose lives have been blessed by the Little Blue Guy. Relationships that have been rekindled, family histories that have been recalled. Memories, the tapestries of family history; the delicious, sweet fabric of our lives have been made richer.
Our little business, located in the Village of Peninsula, Ohio, population 602, has been touched by the lovely and gentle Blue Santa. He has enabled us to share the process with others whose skills and natures have enriched our lives.
Making Santa Molds
These skilled hands are still making Little Blue Santas, and we are working on a glaze for a Little Green Santa.
Santas Waiting to be Glazed
Little Blue Santas in the Kiln
****We will be giving away a Little Blue Santa. To be entered into our high tech drawing (in which I draw a number from a hat), post a comment.
The story of this little guy continues to spread, and to enrich our lives and others’. He has traveled to most of these United States, Canada, Germany, England, France and Iraq. He has rekindled memories for people in nursing homes: one woman told us that her Grandmother had Alzheimer’s disease, and had not spoken for several years. When she saw the Little Blue Santa, she started to cry, and began sharing her memories of her youth. Another woman’s blue eyes twinkled as she told us of her childhood memories in Germany.
The Little Blue Santa still makes me smile. He fits in my hand nicely, which makes sense, since we think that he was originally designed as a children’s toy. He has brought people to the Village, and to the Valley with all it’s wonderful resources. He has enabled us to share the process with so many. The Little Blue Santa rocks!
I just realized that I began writing this blog on April 27, 2007. Oh, what a ride it has been!
In the past year, I have learned not to be afraid of this new to me medium (thank you, Kelly). I have discovered so much about this lovely blue planet, and about myself.
In the past ten months, I have had many life-changing experiences. On Fathers’ Day, my Dad had a massive stroke. Throughout a very powerful and intense few weeks, we supported him in completing his work in this life and transitioning to the next. My oldest daughter left for college in New York City; nine weeks after she left, her horse’s intestines ruptured and she had to make the decision to have him put down. At the end of November, my dear friend and neighbor lost her life to cancer (but not the battle—-she grew so much, and so did I). Since then, three good friends have lost a parent, and one had a serious surgery.
The Little Blue Santa came into our lives and graced us with his gentle being. His sweet nature and connection to history continues to be a blessing.
I have learned a lot about perspective, and about valuing what I have been given. i have learned what is truly important to me. (I have to say though, that a little less experiential learning would be fine with me; I’d gladly write a paper.)
I have met so many lovely people through this venture, where we sit and tappity tap our thoughts to share. Words have power, and the combined power of all our words and actions are catalysts for change.
It seems to me that blogging is another incarnation of the backyard fence: we chat, share thoughts, ideas and stories, even have a cup of coffee or tea.
The high tech has become the high touch—interesting stuff. This international community supports and challenges ideas, encouraging the writer to expand his or her thinking. Pats on the back are freely given in a world that is generally less willing to do so. We recognize and encourage creativity, and share what we’ve discovered. We may not borrow a cup of sugar, but we certainly help those in need. Isabel Hoskins, has asked us to come together as a community to help. Bella writes:
The power in this is that, as Bella says, “We are not a non-profit. We are just a group of women coming together to support one of our own. We are rallying behind Jen because the reality is it could be one of us and we strongly believe that this is what community does.” Bella and others are planning an auction on eBay to raise money for Jeni’s needs that are not covered by insurance and to set up a trust fund for her 6 year old son. To find out more, please visit Bella’s post. We have donated a Little Blue Santa to the auction.
Jeni asks a challenging question: What would you do if you had only one year to live? Important question, one on which I am working. I’ll post my thoughts as they become more clear. I pose the question to you: What would you do if you had 12 months left to live on this planet?
Selected by the Random Number Generator, the winner is Stacy, over at The Thicket. Thank you to all who entered this drawing. Please come by and visit again!
Gifts come in all kinds of forms and packages, from the flashy gift wrap of a high end store, to the wonderfully simple muslin marble bag of the Little Blue Santa. The gift of friendships old and new; of relationships that grow organically, without pressure or intent.
The process of the Little Blue Santa has been like that: it has grown of its own accord; pieces and parts have fallen into place, in their own way, at their own time. I am still amazed at how it has grown, and continues to do so. There is something about this little guy that touches something very deep in so many people. People have shared their stories with us: childhood memories of the traditions of family members long gone; of celebrations and of delicately crafted ornaments and decorations; of preparing and sharing food; and of the magic of the season.
One woman is the genealogist for her family. She had found a family member who had worked at the American Marble and Toy ManufacturingCompany prior to the fire. Others have remembered the traditions from their Ukranian and Bavarian grandparents. People who had grown up in Germany and in Eastern Europe shared their stories and memories. Samuel Dyke’s great-grandson visited us and shared his remembrances.
Fourteen skilled hands and many more hearts have shared in the making of the Little Blue Santa. These are the true gifts, from the mostly women and children who labored in the factory so many years ago, to those of us who are passionate about the wonder of this journey, and who share this vision.
We have been making Little Blue Santas as fast as these 12 skilled hands are able. We are incredibly gratified by the response to this little guy. The history and courage of the people who come to this country unfamiliar with the language and the culture continues to amaze me.
We have heard from people who live all over this wonderful planet. The Blue Santa’s story has appeared in newspapers in many cities; his story was told on NPR’s WKSU 89.7FM.
To thank you for sharing this process with us, we will be giving away one Little Blue Santa to one reader; leave a comment in the comment section of this post and I will draw one name from a hat (a blue Santa hat) on Christmas Eve, and another on New Year’s Day.
We wish you happy, healthy, peaceful and loving days.
Michael Cohill is one of the many people who are passionate about the history of the American Marble and Toy Manufacturing Company. He is one of the people who have spent the past 20 years researching the history of Akron, Ohio’s toy industry.
The American Marble and Toy Manufacturing Company was the first toy marble factory in the United States, and the first of 32 marble factories in the Greater Akron area. The factory made some of the world’s first mass produced toys; this is significant because it made toys available to all children, rather than just the wealthy. They manufactured 1,000,000 clay marbles each day.
However, on one unlucky day in 1904, thirteen years after it had been incorporated, The American Marble & Toy Manufacturing Company burnt to the ground. This unfortunate event appeared, to some young pilferers, to be a great day for marble collectors: the next morning, every little boy in Akron came down to scavenge and fill his pockets with marbles. This was no play ground, far from being a safe place for such innocent children to be hanging (and looting) about. The police were called in to keep these treasure hunters from unlawfully appropriating the marbles, and soon after, the city ordered the charred remains of the factory to be buried.
The land on which the Factory had stood became a successful department store and parking deck. The department store closed in the 1980′s, and the building was bought by a law firm. In the late 1990′s, the parking deck was demolished.
Removal of the debris exposed the remains of the old marble factory, and like a phoenix rising from the ashes, thousands of marbles and old toys reappeared in the dirty remains, waiting to rediscovered.
The Little Blue Santa was one of many toys that were made at the American Marble and Toy Manufacturing Company. It may be one of the oldest known American made ceramic figurines of St. Nicholas, and dates to the mid-1890′s. Why is he blue? Santa Claus and modern day Christmas celebrations are of the German tradition. When Germans immigrated to the Akron area, they brought their rich culture and Christmas traditions with them: the decorated tree, stockings, gifts, and St. Nicholas, dressed in his blue, red, tan, green and white robes. Historically, St. Nicholas’ have been seen in brown, red, blue, green and tan robes.
The Little Blue Santa was brought to our studio. To make the Santa available to more people, Steve made a mold, and began casting reproductions, not unlike the toys made by the American Marble and Toy Manufacturing Company. He developed the glaze, so that the modern day 2 1/4″ tall Little Blue Santa retained the character of the original.
The Little Blue Santa had been described as “a gentle and kind figure. His head was slightly tilted, and he was relaxed. He was the hope of Christmas.” I agreed. The Santa’s sweet and gentle nature resonated to a simpler time, one where shared experiences and memories were the spirit of the season. We were pleased to have been able to share it with you.
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