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Local artist Ralph Harvey is a man of many talents that have a wide range including expert chili cook, but he is more well known for his expertise in glass art and ceramics, having spent the majority of his career as a professor of glassblowing, ceramics, and three-dimensional design at Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) where he was made professor emeritus after his retirement several years ago.

If you don’t know Ralph and his charming wife Nancy Harvey, herself a retired educator, now you have an opportunity to get acquainted.

Harvey will be man of the hour (actually two hours) at the Art Gallery, 117 W. Forsyth St. from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15 when the Americus Sumter County Arts Council presents an exhibit Harvey has dubbed “Stuff You Ain’t Seen Yet.” Doesn’t that title sound just like Ralph? The “stuff” he says is a collection of his artwork that includes graphite drawings from as early as the 1960s, ceramics, paintings, and glass art.

The exhibit promises to be interesting; besides, you’ll have the chance to purchase a collector’s item and do a good deed at the same time as proceeds benefit the university’s Fine Arts Department.

Meanwhile the Friends of the Rylander Theatre presenter series is offering an “early bird” discount on the 2019-2020 season tickets now through Sept. 13. This is a good time to secure your tickets and choice of reserved for the six in the series that opens with “Cruising Steady: The Friendship and Music of Aretha Franklin and Smokey Robinson” at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20.

Elsewhere, Shirley Litwhiler reports having a glorious week visiting with former Americus residents Duke and Brenda Jackson at their home in Redmond, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. The Jacksons, known for their hospitality, gave Shirley the grand tour, escorting her to landmarks in Redmond and Seattle that included the famous Space Needle, an evening at the opera, and dining at fine restaurants. They took the ferry from Seattle to the San Juan Islands known for its beautiful Pacific Northwest landscapes that Shirley says are breathtaking, and were the overnight guests of longtime friends at their charming home on Orcas Island, the largest of the island string. While in Redmond, Shirley said they had dinner several times with the Jacksons’ son and family, Tristan and Yuka Jackson, and two young sons.

What do you do when unexpected company comes? You roll out the red carpet and show off your southern hospitality. Americus has been the “to-go place” for many of Hurricane Dorian evacuees from the Georgia coast this week. Dr. Cecil and Carolyn Myers are hosting their son and daughter-in-law, Trey and Betsy Kingston Myers, and two young children, and Betsy’s grandmother, Betty Morris, all of Savannah; visiting Larry and Phyllis Tucker at their home in Leslie are their son and family, the Rev. Scott and Patty Tucker, and children, Amy, 16, and Matt, 10, of the Isle of Hope. And Charles and Kim Christmas have his mother, Sylvia Christmas of Keystone Heights, Florida, as their guest enjoying her time with them by keeping Georgia Grace, the Christmases’ dog, company during the day. Carl and Judy Tott are hosting friends who evacuated Fernandina, Florida. Joni Woolf is hosting her grandson and family from Buford, S.C. And the City of Americus’ Main Street and Tourism departments squired evacuees around Americus, offering complimentary trolley tours of Americus Thursday, Plains on Friday and Andersonville on Saturday. Magnolia Manor is the home away from home for about 20 evacuees from St. Simon’s Magnolia Manor. Welcome folks!

 

Leila Sisson Case lives in Americus.