A message from Raymond Freake through my voice.
I sat down today to do some long overdue administrative work with Dolly Parton playing in the background to honour her recent passing. I learned I would not be invited to a meeting I was hoping to attend tomorrow where Zita Cobb may be present, a human I’ve admired since the first time I heard her speak. Quietly working with Dolly playing in the background, I soon forgot about the missed opportunity and started to appreciate Dolly. Inspired by one of her songs I left my Excel spreadsheet and reached for my dream book, to add some inspiration about Dolly‘s life. As always when I get this book out, I scan previous entries to remind myself of what was important enough to write down in the past. I came across a page where I had scribbled some plans about turning the Goodyear building into a recreation, arts and housing hub. Under the housing portion I scribbled, “partner with the Pentecost, they are already doing housing so they could run the 10 units and maybe call it Pastor Benson Place”. I instinctively started scribbling out the words, “Pastor Benson” to the point where you couldn’t read what was under the scribbles … then I slowed down a bit … a bit more … then I stopped scribbling, held my pen still and wished it was a pencil so I could erase the fact that I ever scribbled over his name. My immediate action taken to erase him left me feeling hypocritical.
Raymond came down the stairs in Jason’s old bathrobe, which was handed down to Christopher and claimed by Ray while living in Christopher’s room; hair slicked back over his balding head, fresh out a bath coming to get a cup of tea. I said, “hey Ray, guess who’s coming to Gander tomorrow?” and he said, “who?” and I said “Zita Cobb” and he said, “Zita Cobb? Really? I guess I should go see her, I went to school with her, where is she going to be?” I said, ”a meeting at the Townhall” he said “I guess there will be a crowd there? she’s a big shot now!” I said “no actually, it’s a closed meeting I was hoping to be part of it.” He returned to the kitchen as the kettle had boiled, poured his cup of tea and then came back out into the living room and said “did you say she’s gonna be at the mall?” I said “no not the mall, she’s gonna be at the town hall and it is a closed meeting” he said “I wouldn’t mind seeing her, she’s cool and laid back you would like her, she’s pretty down to earth. Don’t you go worrying about her Joanne she’s a big wig now and too busy anyway, just wait for that guy we met last week he said he’s coming back, I think he’s going to help us.”
It’s funny how I keep racking my brain trying to figure out how to pull enough financial resources together to help people like my son and Raymond but yet it’s them who show me time and time again, the ways to help them, and it never has anything to do with financial resources. I think about what I want to present to my community about how what Zita Cobb has done for her small island in NL is exactly what I want to do for one small part of Gander. For nine years I have been building community at the Goodyear building and as NG Power Foundation I have shared my dreams of making that “place” home for much more than Airials. I come from the world of evidence based decision-making, labour market research, statistical analysis, social determinants of health, indicators and strategic planning minutia….. my dream book and my lived experience at the Goodyear building the past nine years have done me much better than any of that has … inspiration from the lives of humans like Dolly Parton and Zeta Cobb and the comparison of what’s going on in my life shapes my decision-making now.
Ray has his cup of coffee, enters back into the living room and says, “did you say she was going to be at the mall?” I said “no she’s going to be in a closed meeting at the Townhall” “well,” he said, “I guess I should try to go see her, I did go to school with her”
Raymond, a true artist in every sense of the word, is from Fogo Island and he is the artist I am supporting through this initiative. He is suggesting the two of you chat about “Rays Art Fogo” and his studios, Studio 66 and Studio 273, TG Power Foundation’s artist in residence studios. Inaugural artists, Curry Gray at Studio 66 (Elizabeth Dr., Goodyear Building) and Raymond Freake at Studio 273 (Magee Rd., Rays Art FOGO).
Post blog review Ray returns fully dressed, hat with pink feather and says “Dolly Parton is gone, thats a shame, whats going to happen with all her money now I wonder? She was one of the good ones.”
Over Half Way 