Like mother, like daughter, and like daughter again.

            This phrase can be applied to the Connolly family of Marion. Barbara Connolly was born in Ireland and was a competitive Irish stepdancer from the age of three. Her daughter Katie followed her footsteps, and now her daughter Emersyn is doing the same.

            In fact, the latter two compete in the world Irish stepdancing competition — and both at the age of 10.

            Emersyn, 10, competed in her first solo New England Regional Oireachtas in November 2023 when she placed among the top five and qualified to dance in the World Irish Dance Championship being held in Glasgow, Scotland, at the end of March.

            This comes after six years of dancing and daily training at the Keane O’Brien Academy of Irish Dance in Braintree.

            Barbara, the first-generation stepdancer, said this world competition is the Olympics of Irish Stepdancing.

            Emersyn will meet dancers from all over the world, some coming from as far as Australia, New Zealand and Africa.

            Barbara, noting the high level of competition, is not sure how well Emersyn will do but says the experience alone is a chance of a lifetime for her 10-year-old granddaughter.

            “It will be very hard, but she will do her best and that’s all we can ask of her,” Barbara Connolly said. “Just to be able to qualify to dance is an honor in itself.”

            Emersyn appears to agree, and takes pride in how she is the third-generation Connolly daughter to embrace stepdancing.

            “It feels good and it is really fun to know my grandma and my mom did this. I am following after them,” Emersyn said.

            A student of St. Joseph’s School in Fairhaven, Emersyn says her classmates support her hobby, but Emersyn has very little free time these days to spend with friends. When she does have free time between dancing and school, she likes to draw and play outside, she says.

            Emersyn says she has visited Ireland, but this will be her first visit to Scotland.

            Like every competition, she gets a bit of stage fright at the start, but it quickly fades once she pounds those first steps into the dance floor.

            “Once I do my first steps, I get used to it and it makes me feel more confident,” Emersyn said.

            Barbara, 70, said the world competition did not exist when she was younger. But Barbara still competed and even had her own dance studio in Jamaica Plain before she got married.

            Katie Connolly was involved from the age of six to 19. Katie says her daughter is more talented.

            Like Barbara, Katie feels the experience of competing represents a victory in itself.

            “It’s definitely an experience,” Katie said. “I want her to take it all in and learn that the hard work will pay off even if she doesn’t get the results.”

By Jeffrey D. Wagner

A public input meeting is planned for January 24 at 6:00 pm in the Mattapoisett Fire Station meeting room by the committee that has been tasked with securing public opinions for reuse of the town property known as the Holy Ghost Grounds.

            The committee volunteers are Greta Fox (Recreation Department director), Nathan Ketchel (member of the Planning Board and vice chair of this committee), Freemin Bauer, Nicky Miller, Jack Hill, Aaron Goldberg and Mike Rosa (Finance Committee member and HGGC chairman.)

            The group has diligently met to craft a survey that was launched in the summer of 2023. Following the launch, the group studied the results, being careful to ensure data would be presented in a straightforward, nonskewed manner, thus presenting the public with a clear view of how people responded.

            They were surprised that 553 surveys were submitted. Of that number, 80 were identified as non-full-time residents or nonresidents from surrounding towns. The average age from respondents was 41 years of age with the largest group responding falling between 60 and 75 years of age. Respondents were also asked to share how frequently they might use the proposed, renovated space. Then came the possibilities. What did they want on the 5-acre, town-owned property?

            A dog park and pickleball courts rated high, but a study of the data showed it was a tie between the wants and the definitely not’s. For instance, those wanting pickleball courts came in at 137, but the “no” responses were 163. The dog park was nearly a tie with 182 wanting one and 183 registering “no.”

            Three passive-recreational-use options came out on top. Those suggestions were a picnic area (225), a playground (224) and a walking loop (270.)

            Now the committee was ready to meet vis-à-vis to discuss the survey process and results and to hear directly from the public.

            Voicing concerns that people in the community will expect the committee to make recommendations or have design plans were several members, including Denise Conton. Rosa said it was important to tell the public that the committee is neither an advisory board nor a decision-making committee, that the committee’s job is to ascertain public opinion on various uses. Rosa stated, “We don’t have a budget … we aren’t making those decisions … we just want input so we can give the Select Board a report.”

            The members reviewed the short presentation planned for the January 24 meeting. It includes a brief history of the site, goals of the committee, public input, closing with survey results and demographics.

Holy Ghost Grounds Reuse Committee

By Marilou Newell

While we always look forward to the Marion Art Center’s exhibitions, there is something so necessary for our human condition during winter, that being the Winter Members’ Show (January 13 – February 23.) This show not only gives the member artists a venue to share their works (nearly all available for purchase), but moreover to warm and charm our spirits during the gloomy skies that surround us. Thank you all.

            As we entered the first-floor gallery on January 13, we were immediately and yes, once again, struck by the sheer variety of artistic expression on display.

            In the entranceway, we found a truly unique piece titled Picasso’s Steam Punk Heart by Michelle Lapointe. Using Picasso’s abstract take on the symbol of love, the black, red and metallic elements of the petite offering is striking.

            Deeper into this gallery we found sculptor John Magnan’s Infinite Love, a moebius shape delicately carved with flowers, a symbol of love eternal of rich cherry wood.

            Magnan’s works are always thought provoking and masterfully executed, such as the other piece on display titled Bookends, walnut and common pins. Magnan told us he is heavily influenced by the abstract artist and fellow sculptor Constantine Brancusi (born in 1876 in Romania and deceased in 1957 in France.) Magnan’s Bookends takes Brancusi’s Sleeping Muse into another realm, taking uncomfortable couplings, smooth wood and pins, to possibly a statement on the world’s current conditions. There’s always so much to ponder.

            We had to pick and choose what to note in this piece, which is never a good thing when there is so much to say about each and every work of art, but taking the show in personally will do you a world of good.

            Don’t miss Anthony Days’ pictures, especially the precious take on the Marion Music Hall titled Musical Afternoon. The filtered sunlight contrasted against the rich red brick of this local iconic structure is just perfection.

            Jane Eagan’s two velvety landscapes, while small, pack a punch thematically.

            Peter Stone’s large canvas titled Cloud Break captures the sky and sun at rich juxtaposition. The sky as a natural canvas for the light encircled by clouds.

            Lisa Baltz’s Oyster and Quahog oils on paper had us doing a double take. The 3D effect is astonishing.

            Brenda Wrigley Scott’s Into the Woods, acrylic and pencil, welcomes the viewer into a dense forest theme, while Zoryana Tershovska’s simply titled Flowers is a fusion of bright, loud florals heralding the beauty of flowers everywhere.

            Jaye Degnan Tirimacco’s oil on aluminum titled Marsh Grass gives us a view of a marsh with translucent and shimmering undertones.

            And over at the Marion General Store in a window you’ll find Adrift by Barbara Healy. You could call it a much-deserved, one-woman show.

            Other artists exhibiting their works are Carol Bliven, Kim Barry, June Strunk, Lynette Torres, Janet Cromer, Helen Bryant, Martha Plumb, Kyle Riseley, Thomas Richardson, Bernie Klim, Susannah Davis, Charles Stockbridge, Jill Law, Susan Gilmore, Iria DeVaooes-Vieira, Heather Long-Roise, Donna St. Amant, Charlotte Smith, Cathleen Broderick, Susan Meadows, Peggy Call-Conley, Helen Johnson, Reginald Carter, Christy Gunnels, Barbara Geagan, Pat Coomey Thornton, Michael Hebert, Nancy Skawinski, David Danis, Milo Fay, Alanna Nelson, Russell Saunders, David Owen Maloney, Robert Dunn, Bunny Mogilnicki, Jay Ryan, Nat Simkins, Dorothy Hebden Heath, Lorraine Stewart, Thomas Geagan, Susan Gilmore, Sarah Calder, Susan Lawrence, Susan Costa, Anita Poyant, Lenore Pennington, Kate Butler, Diana Parsons, Michael Matherson, Adele Daley and Zoryana Tershovska. Winter gallery hours are Thursday through Saturday from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.

Marion Art Center

By Marilou Newell