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May 2019

College Club of Buffalo Monthly Newsletter

The College Club of Buffalo Buffalo, NY 14222

716-885-4404

Mission Statement

The College Club of Buffalo is a community of women

who promote the advancement of education through programming,

scholarship endowment, charitable activities, and social interaction.

Greeting College Club Members,

It’s May, the lovely month of May. I believe that is a line from a Camelot song. Hopefully it will be a lovely month. Here are a few interesting facts about the month of May. Truth be told they come from Google. May is the fifth month of the year. There are 31 days and three notable holidays that are observed during the month: Cinco de Mayo, Mother's Day and Memorial Day. Cinco de Mayo, Spanish for the "fifth of May," is the celebration of Mexico's vic-tory over France in the Battle of Puebla. Mother's Day is the celebration of mothers. It was made an official holiday in 1914 and is observed on the second Sunday in May. Memorial Day is the celebration of the men and women who died while serving in the United States military. It is observed on the last Monday in May. Other events during the month include May Day, Haitian Heritage Month, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month. We will have two very interesting speakers. May 6 will be Cheryl McDonald from Explore Buffalo and May 13, will feature Marilyn Deighton from Niagara University’s Theater Department. Our Wednesday entertainment will feature Valerian Ruminski from Nickel City opera. The Opera La Traviata by Verdi will be performed on May 24 and 26 at the Villa Maria College Theater. Monday, May 20 is the bridge/scrabble luncheon. Movie nights are Thursday, May 2 and 16. There are the other three bridge days and the blanket brigade takes place on the second and fourth Thursdays. Please remember that we are still collecting baby items for Harvest House. We are very busy and I thank you for all your time and effort you give to the College Club. I do ask that you support our lunches and evening entertainment. Please remember we must have 15 for our caterer. Tom’s menu selections have been wonderful. Happy Mother’s day to all you fine ladies; be you a mother, step-mother grand-mother, aunt, godmother or simply a supportive friend.

In friendship,

Betty

Officers and Board

President…Betty Kulpa; 1st Vice President…Beverly Thomas; 2nd Vice President...Mary Ellen McGowan

Treasurer…Lillian Gondree; Assistant Treasurer…Carolann Besch; Corresponding Secretary and Newsletter

Editor…Rosina Alaimo; Recording Secretary...Pat Krims

Directors: Bonnie Botsford; Nancy Davidson; Barbara Kuvshinoff; Mary Vacanti

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Monthly Bridge Activities

Party Bridge May 1 Party Bridge is the 1st Wednesday of the month. Please sign up for this event with Since play begins at 11:00 AM, plan to arrive by 10:45. Bring your smile, your quar-ter and your lunch. Goodies will be provided. Mark your calendar; Make a sandwich; Bring Mike’s bridge les-sons, if needed!!!!

Duplicate Bridge: May 8 Duplicate Bridge is the 2nd Wednesday of the

month at 10:45 AM. Please be on time.

$25.00 is due, paid to Nancy Thomas.

Call Clare if you cannot play. Otherwise you are

expected to be there. Desserts are welcome— Just

let Clare or Betty know what you plan to bring. If

you cancel the morning of bridge you will be ex-

pected to provide a sub..

Dear Duplicate Players, Please realize that if you do not come, and we don’t have complete tables, we can’t play Duplicate. This is what occurred this past week, and we ended up playing Party Bridge. Also, if players leave ear-ly, we can’t have a fair score. Before resuming Duplicate for next year, we will have a meeting to ensure that everyone is partnered. I will be hostess for the May game and provide des-sert.

Fondly, Bev

Bridge Luncheon: May 20 12 noon $17.00

Lunch is served at 12:00. Sign-up sheet is available at the Club. Please reserve your seat at a table and for lunch by the Friday before the event. If you need to cancel, call Ca-mille Beecher (at 862-9517). This is important both for an accurate lunch count and to insure that we have 4 players per table. Scrabble: A dedicated group of scrabble players will play on the 3rd Monday of the month. They promise to play quietly so as not to distract the bridge players! We welcome new players. Join us—the more the merrier—-oops—we’ll be silent, I promise.

Kitchen Bridge May 29

11:30 AM Lesson 12:15 PM Play Bridge Kitchen Bridge is played on the last Wednesday of each

month. Play begins at 12:15; If a lesson is planned, the

lesson will begin at 11:30. Remember to bring a lunch

and a quarter. Treats will be provided.

Hallie will call potential players to confirm.

Call Hallie Howell at 885-4190 if you wish to sign up or

if you cannot play.

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Cultural, Literary, Educational, and Social Activities

Book into Movie Night 1st Thursday Evening of the Month The next meeting for Reading between the Wines is Thursday, May 1st at 6:30 PM. The group will discuss To Kill a Mockingbird based on the book by Harper Lee. To Kill a Mockingbird is a 1962 American drama film directed by Robert Mulligan. The screenplay by Horton Foote is based on Harper Lee's 1960 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. It stars Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch and Mary Badham as Scout. To Kill a Mockingbird marked the film debuts of Robert Duvall, William Windom, and Alice Ghostley. The film received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics and was a box-office success, earning more

than six times its budget. The film won three Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Peck, and was nominated for eight, including Best Picture.

Fun Movie Night May 16th at 6:30 PM

This evening you will enjoy a wonderful vintage film. With great dialogue and broad, acid-tongued characters, this film is funny, sophisticated, and delightful to watch. THE WOMEN was a ground-breaking movie in 1939. It's about women, written by women, with an all-female cast (not a single man appears on-screen). The movie takes a brash look at the lives and manners of a group of gossipy, catty "friends" in New York City. They're rich; they're self-centered. Some are social-climbers; some are saintly. Its simple plot is accompanied by a number of fully drawn set pieces evoking the world of the very rich in 1939: the beauty salon, the exercise studio, department store fitting rooms and, though the rest of the movie is in beautiful black-and-white, a lengthy fashion show in bright Technicolor that dazzles with the fabulous costumes of the day.

The stellar cast, which includes Rosalind Russell, Paulette Goddard, and Joan Fontaine in addition to Norma Shearer and Joan Crawford, bring charm and wit to the already sparkling written word.

New Newsletter monthly feature!

Our College Club family is very important to us. We meet for lunch, for Bridge, for book clubs, for entertainment and

for dinners. And yet, we don’t know very much about each other. We are mothers, grandmothers, sisters, and aunts.

We have children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews that are “bragworthy.” Heck, we have pets that are

“bragworthy.” So, with your help, I would like to use this space for us to brag! For instance, as a tease, do you know

that Betty Kulpa has a very good reason to brag about her son? Do you know that Lillian Gondree and I have been

friends or over 50 years? So, my email is [ralaimo@gmail.com]. Feed me your “brag” and I will print it! Deadline for

inclusion in the March newsletter is February 9th! I want to hear from you!

**I haven’t heard from anybody! Does this mean that there is no interest in this type of information? I’ll give it one

more month—if your silence is very loud, I will abandon the idea.

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Monthly Program Dinner: Wednesday, May 16th

Our monthly program dinners are scheduled for the- 3rd Wednesday of every month. The cost for the dinner is $25.00. Reservations must be made by noon on the Monday before the dinner by calling Carolann Besch at 883-4482. AND, if you must cancel, you MUST call Carolann with that information to avoid being charged for your dinner. **Reservations and cancellations must be made with Carolann Besch at 883-4482.

Wednesday, May 15—Cost $25.00

5:15 PM Wine And Hors d’oeuvres

6 PM—Dinner and Program

Program: Nickel City Opera Speaker: Valerian Ruminski

Nickel City Opera Founder and Artistic Director Valerian Ruminski brings his passion for opera to Western New York audiences through NCO, but he also has a long and acclaimed history as a professional opera singer and performer. “I want to break the notion that opera is stuffy and only for the rich,” said Ruminski. “The sto-ries are timeless and the music will stick with you. Our shows are very ‘come as you are,’ wheth-er it’s in an evening gown or jeans. We want audiences to walk away being proud they can expe-rience such quality entertainment, right in their own backyard.”

A native of Cheektowaga, N.Y., Valerian Ruminski is a graduate of the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and of SUNY-Buffalo. A true basso cantante, his bold and powerful vocal lyricism and remarkable coloratura have garnered him many accolades. An excellent musician and creative interpreter, he has performed with many of the great opera companies in the US and abroad including The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Dallas Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Seattle Opera, Miami Opera, Minnesota Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, Opera Ireland, Opera de Montreal, Opera de Monte Carlo,

Dinner Menu:

Salad

Chicken Marsala OR Seared Scallops

Brownie Cheesecake

Dr. Seuss Quotes on Life

“They say I'm old-fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast!”

“I'm telling you this 'cause you're one of my friends. ...

“Teeth are always in style.”

“Don't give up. ...

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better.

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***May 13th (There will be a Board

Meeting at 10:00 AM for all officers and board of directors.) Luncheon program speaker: Marilyn Deighton from Niagara University Marilyn holds an MFA in costume technology from the Uni-versity of North Carolina School of the Arts. Currently, she teaches stagecraft, costume construction, pattern drafting, corsetry, dancewear, supervises the student workforce in the costume shop and is the Draper/Tailor for all of the theater department’s productions. Previously, she was a lecturer and Draper/Tailor at the University of Maryland – College Park and an Assistant Professor of Costume Technology at the University of Mississippi. Professionally, Marilyn has been the Costume Shop Director for Paper Mill Playhouse in their New York City Costume Shop, Costume Director for Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Costume Shop Manager for North

Carolina’s Shakespeare Festival and a freelance Men’s Tailor for The Shakespeare Theatre, Arena Stage and Wolf Trap Opera in the Washington, D.C. area. In addition, she was a tailor for the Broadway version of Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk designed by Paul Taswell and a draper for the Robert Altman film “Cookie’s Fortune” starring Glenn Close and Julianne Moore. She has designed and built over 200 productions in the Florida Tampa Bay area for various Dinner Theatres and community theatres. In 2011, she created the costumes and unique lightweight fat suits for the French-language touring company Le Theatre de la Chandelle Verte’s production of La Farce de Maitre Pathelin. Marilyn has designed and built the costumes for 1776 that was performed with the Eight O’clock Theatre at the Largo Performing Arts Center in Largo, Florida.

Monday, May 6 Speaker: Cheryl McDonald

Program: Working Women at the Turn of the Century Before retiring in 2011, Cheryl worked as a human resource manager at Chicago Title for twenty years. After retirement she took a training program to be a Buffalo tour guide; that led to being a founding member of Explore Buffalo. Cheryl now works in the Explore Buffalo office two days a week, serves on the Volunteer Committee and Marketing Advisory Committee, and gives the Delaware Avenue Mansions Tour. In a previous life, Cheryl served as the president of the General Federation of Women’s Club-Aurora’s Women’s Club for two years. Recently, Cheryl won the Explore Buffalo Best of “Booffalo” Costume Contest for her costume as Lafayette Square! The thing that Cheryl loves most about Buffalo is obviously the people. Description: The influx of Irish immigrants and the Industrial Revolution changed the lives of women, especially single women, between 1870 and 1920. Although it was the Gilded Age in Buffalo, not everyone was a millionaire living on Delaware Avenue. What kind of work were women doing and where were they doing it? From domestic servants to ground-breaking professionals, hear the stories of Buffalo's working women - their struggles and their successes.

Program Luncheons

This month we have three program luncheons planned: May 6th and May 20th. We will be closed on May 27th in observance of Memorial Day. Our tasty lunches are catered by Chef Tom O’Keefe and served by Jerimiah. **Lunch is served at 12:00 PM immediately followed by the program. Carolann Besch is our very capable luncheon reservation manager. Please sign up with Carolann by phone (883-4482) or at the Club by noon on the Friday immediately before the luncheon so she has an accurate count for the caterer. The cost of the luncheons is $20.00. We encourage you to pay by check.

Luncheon Menu: Salad

Stuffed Shells with Meatballs Birthday Cake—Tropical Cake

Luncheon Menu: Salad

Shrimp OR Chicken Kebobs with rice

Cappuccino Crème Brulee

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Membership Information

Nominating Committee

Ex-Officio: Camille Beecher

Chair: Kathy Kubala

Members: Kathy Howels, Bev Thomas, Elaine K, Mary Ellen Shaughnessy

The Nominating Committee works hard to insure that the College Club has good leadership. If asked to

stand for office, please say YES!

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Please welcome Claudia Walsh to the College Club! Please add her

contact information to your directories.

Claudia Walsh 837-4044

836 Parkside Ave Claudiawalsh19@gmail.com

Buffalo, NY 14216

Medaille/Buffalo State

Retired Buffalo Teacher

Enjoys gardening

Birthday Is March 7

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Are you planning a special event such as a wedding shower, a baby

shower, a birthday celebration , a retirement celebration? Do you dread the high

costs of booking a restaurant? Do you dread the work involved in using your own

home? Well, the College Club has the solution for you.

You can book our gracious house and have your celebration catered. Many of our

members have done this and they have had great reviews. Just think about it:

no heavy cleaning; no shopping; no cooking; no clean-up!

Just select the date; send the invitations; drive up; greet your guests; no fuss;

no mess! And the savings are huge!

Call our House Manager Susan Davis at 885-4404 for information and availability.

The College Club’s gracious living room

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Just a reminder that we have a website where you can find pictures, newsletters, information and

other wonderful “stuff” about our College Club. Your monthly newsletter is either sent to you via US

mail or via your email address. But sometimes we misplace things. Now, if you have access internet

access, you can go the College Club website and find newsletters dating back to 2016. You can find our

calendars and sometimes corrections or updates to the newsletters. Just copy and paste the following

web address into your email browser and enjoy!

https://collegeclubofbuffalo.com/

The Blanket Brigade Goes On!

A group of your fellow Club ladies started a “blanket

brigade” to further our involvement with the babies at Harvest

House. We met at the Club on the 2nd Thursday of April.

We brought our yarn, our knitting needles, our crochet hooks. We brought a sewing

machine and an iron and a variety of fabrics. If you do not have a particular skill, you can

still help by cutting fabric squares, pinning squares, ironing seams,

etc. Also, yarn and pieces of quilting fabric (child

appropriate designs, please) are welcome. We even offer

simple tutorials. We had such a productive and fun morning that

we are doing it again on April 25th. All are welcome! Come and

join us. This is another chance to help those less fortunate than we are and have fun at

the same time! Mark your calendars—May 9th and May 23rd.

The Buffalo Federation of Women's Clubs has issued a philanthropic challenge to all of its' member clubs,

including the College Club of Buffalo. BFWC is calling on all its' clubs to donate new or very gently used

Dr. Seuss books in an effort to collect and distribute 1000 Dr. Seuss books by March of

2020. All books are to be donated locally in the Buffalo and WNY area.

College Club members can take part either by bringing in books and giving them to

Barbara Kuvshinoff or Betty Kulpa OR by donating funds ($5 per book). Any donation

checks for the Dr. Seuss challenge should be made out to BFWC with Dr. Seuss/CCB in

the memo line. BFWC will track donations from each of its' member clubs and post

monthly updates toward the collection total, so let's make College Club of Buffalo proud

and plan to donate either books or funds toward this initiative! For more information,

call Barbara Kuvshinoff at 553-5722.

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May 2019 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

10:45 AM

Party Bridge

2 6:30 PM

Book into

Movie Night

3 4

5 6

12:00 PM

Program

Lunch

7 8

10:45 AM

Duplicate

Bridge

9

10:30

Blanket

Brigade

10 11

12 13

10:30 Board

Mtg

12:00

Program

14 15

5:15 PM Wine

And Hors

d’oeuvres

6 PM—Dinner

and Program

16

6:30 PM

Fun Movie

Night

17

18

19 20

12:00 noon

Bridge

Luncheon

21 22

23

10:30 AM

Blanket

Brigade

24 25

26

27

Memorial

Day

Closed

28 29

11:30 Lesson

12:15 Play

Kitchen

Bridge

30

31

Happy Birthday to all our birthdays!

May 4………..Rosina Alaimo

May 5………..Marcia Bergmann