Saint Mary’s hosts pianist George Winston Dec. 19

Solo pianist George Winston will fill the Page Theatre with the sounds of the transcendent beauty of nature and the changing seasons, as well as a tribute to New Orleans musicians on Friday, Dec. 19.

His 7:30 p.m. performance, part of the Page Series, will also draw attention to the Winona Volunteer Services Food Shelf. A food drive is held at all of Winston’s concerts. Attendees are asked to bring canned goods and nonperishable food to the show; drop-off areas will be set up in the lobby.

Winston, best known for his melodic rural folk piano style, will play selections from his latest CD, “Gulf Coast Blues and Impressions — A Hurricane Relief Benefit,” as well as from his melodic seasonal recordings including “December” and “Winter Into Spring.” Winston has performed more than 2,500 concert dates, with more than 3 million tickets sold.

Tickets for the Page Theatre performance are $25, $20 for seniors and students, and are available by calling the SMU Box Office, Ext. 1715, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

‘Gifts for Winona’ nears completion; gifts due today

Today is the last day to get your gifts in for Saint Mary’s University Gifts for Winona. This community-wide program — in its seventh year — provides gifts to less-fortunate families during the holiday season. Last year the Winona community provided gifts to more than 1,500 residents. This year more than 1,800 individuals — a record number — have asked for help. Return gifts to the Business Office. If you are unable to return your gift today, please call Deb Nahrgang at Ext. 6966 with tag identification information.

A monetary donation can also be made; make checks payable to SMU GFW and send to Gifts for Winona, Box #8 or drop off at the Business Office windows.

Family entertainer Red Grammer will perform Jan. 13

Grammy-nominated family entertainer Red Grammer will bebop his way onto the Page Theatre stage at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 13.

With a playful, good-natured character, Grammer is a young-at-heart, premier entertainer of children and families. Parents Magazine has described Red as “the best voice in children’s music.” Having been featured on “The Today Show,” “CBS This Morning,” Nickelodeon, Showtime, PBS, and his own Disney Channel concert special, Grammer is practiced in lifting the spirits of families across the United States. He has set the gold standard for writing and performing music that playfully reconnects each one of us with the best in ourselves.

Tickets for the Page Series performance are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors and students, and are available by calling the SMU Box Office, Ext. 1715, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, or online at www.pagetheatre.org.

This presentation is supported by the Performing Arts Fund, a program of Arts Midwest funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art, with additional contributions from the Minnesota Arts Board, General Mills Foundation, and Land O’Lakes Foundation.

Environmental Awareness Center plans weekend hours

The Environmental Awareness Center will be open between 1 and 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday to check out cross country ski equipment. The Environmental Awareness Center is located next to the clock tower on the top floor of the power plant. There is no charge, but an SMU I.D. is needed. If you would like to use the ski equipment, contact Brother John Grover at Ext. 1404.

Crozier presents paper at Metropolitan State University

Dr. Bill Crozier, archivist, presented a paper at the regional meeting of the American Conference for Irish Studies at Metropolitan State University, St. Paul. The paper, titled, “An Irish Enclave between Little Italy and New Israel on New York City’s Lower East Side, 1900” provided a social analysis of 1,055 Irish — born and Irish-stock people who resided on or near the Bowery.

Employee changes

New:
Debra Rose, administrative assistant, Health & Human Services, Twin Cities campus, Dec. 1.
Leaving:
Tessy Neves Dias, International Student Activities, November.

Rodeheffer presents at international conference

Dr. Jane Kelley Rodeheffer, professor of philosophy, represented Saint Mary’s and the International Consortium for Core Classics at the “Liberal Education and East Asian Traditions” Conference, which was held over the Thanksgiving break in Taipei, Taiwan. Dr. Rodeheffer presented a paper titled, “Self-Cultivation in Augustine’s Confessions and the Confucian Tradition.” She also served as a consultant to faculty from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Japan on the use of core classics in liberal arts education, as East Asian Universities seek to develop models of liberal arts education. Dr. Rodeheffer’s trip was supported by a grant from the National Chiao-tung University of Taiwan.

'Study Abroad Photo Contest' winners on display

The “Study Abroad Photo Contest” display is up in the Fitzgerald Library. The top 12 photos, submitted by Mike DeGidio, Alex Gorgone, Alison Kay, Anna Keller, Erin O’Keefe, Caitlin Radtke, Jillian Reinboldt, Sarah Weir, and Danielle Zauher, are on display.

Jazz Notes

Performing in the upcoming MAFA concert are, from left: Adrianna Rackow, Dr. John Paulson, Evan Glenna and Eric Heukeshoven.

• Music Access for All students and faculty will present a Christmas Musicale Saturday, Dec. 20, from 11:30 a.m. to noon at Faith Lutheran Church, located at 1717 W. Service Dr. The M.A.F.A program was organized in December 2002 by Dr. John Paulson, music department, with the assistance of William Doerer of the Winona Housing and Development Authority which serves as a home for the program. The SMU Music Department serves as a co-sponsor of the organization. The purpose of the program is to provide instrumental music lessons, instruments, and sheet music to students ages 10-18 in need of financial assistance. Teachers in the program include program director, SMU professor of music Dr. John Paulson (band), SMU music faculty member Eric Heukeshoven (band and piano). SMU alumnus Michael Munson has also been adding to the program by assisting with guitar instruction. The program is free and the public is welcome to attend. Refreshments will follow.

• The “Standard Time” duo, consisting of Jerry Paulson and Eric Heukeshoven, music department, will perform at the Canadian Honker Restaurant in Rochester from 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 13.

• The John Paulson Jazz Trio will perform from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 19, at Michael’s Restaurant in Rochester.

SMU in the news

Here are some recent mentions of SMU “making the news” — in the Winona area and beyond.

• A letter praising the Dance Repertory Company production of “The Nutcracker” appeared in the Winona Daily News on Dec. 9 and the Winona Post Dec. 10.
• An article regarding area school closings, with pictures featuring children sledding at Saint Mary’s appeared in the Winona Daily News Dec. 10.
• Articles about Saint Mary’s “Gifts for Winona” were featured in the Winona Daily News Dec. 6 and the Winona Post Dec. 10.
• The Daily News printed a story titled, “Happy to give back” about guest pianist George Winston on Dec. 11.
• Also on Dec. 11, an article titled, “Musicians hold concert to collect a toy for every tot” about an SMU music alum fundraiser ran in the Daily News.

Reminder: This is last ‘Campus Notes’ before break

Because of Christmas break, the next issue of “Campus Notes” will be Jan. 9. The deadline for that issue is Jan. 7.

Sympathy to Frith family

Roger Frith, London lighting designer, died Saturday, Nov. 29. Roger had been lighting London shows since the London Semester program began back in the mid-1990s. A tribute to Roger can be viewed at http://roger-frith.blogspot.com. Saint Mary’s extends its sympathy to the Frith family.