Saturday, June 13, 2009

Farewell, Darling Ermel

It is with a heavy heart that I update this blog to report that Ermel Gordon, our Miss July, passed away May 22nd from injuries sustained in a fall at her home. Ermel would have been 98 in July. She was so cute and so spunky--we will all miss her a lot. There is more about her on our Web site, www.courthousegirls.com.

We are off to Toronto, Canada for a screening at the ReelHeART International Film Festival (RHIFF) on June 24th. Five of the women are going--they all got their passports and are excited about making the trip. If anyone reading this is in the Toronto area, please join us that evening beginning at 7:15 pm. Seniors get in for free! Details about the screening can be found at www.reelheart.com and on our site.

Best, Angela

Thursday, May 7, 2009

The Fine Art (and Angst) of Blogging

Greetings from all of us at Courthouse Girls of Farmland. A friend's blogging prowess has convinced me I need to be more "with it" when it comes to blogging. After a blogging etiquette goof and a reluctance to write frequently, I am determined to keep this blog current. So here we are to date:

The girls were a huge hit at the SENE festival in Providence and the film won the Audience Choice, Best Documentary award. Next up is a trip to Toronto, Canada for our Canadian premiere at the ReelHeART International Film Festival (RHIFF). If any of you who might be reading this live near Toronto, please put us on your agenda for Wednesday, June 24th at 7:15 pm. Our film is screening in ReelHeART Main Program "A" in Innis Town Hall, Innis College, 2 Sussex Street, U of T campus, Toronto M5S 1J5 (one block south of St. George subway). Tickets are $10 ($5 for seniors) and are available online at www.reelheart.com.

Five of the women are traveling to Toronto from Farmland with co-producers Larry and Jerome and my sister Anne (who keeps us organized). I'm going as well. The festival moved us to their main venue (i.e. bigger) so we really need to attract attention and fill those seats. Please feel free to pass along this information to friends and family members who may live near Toronto. Ciao, Angela

Monday, March 16, 2009

Australia, New England and Beyond

Onward we trek as Courthouse Girls of Farmland continues to gain fans around the world. In March Angela and husband Jim will be in Gympie, Australia for the Heart of Gold International Film Festival and first of April five of the women (Garneta, Eileen, Iraida, Mary Ellen and Wanda) are traveling to Providence, RI for the SENE Film, Music & Arts Festival. Larry and Anne will be going with them and meeting up with Norm who now resides in Swampscott, MA. Eileen has mended from her broken hip and is back on the circuit. You really just cannot keep these vivacious bridge players down for long.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

The Courthouse Girls continue to wow audiences around the country. Most recently three of the women, Wanda Grove, Iraida Davis Lietch and Garneta Amburn, along with co-producer Larry Francer and director Norman Klein, traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah for a special screening hosted by the Salt Lake City Film Center on November 17th. After the film we held a panel discussion about historic preservation with local preservation experts and activists and the women were kept busy signing their new calendar for fans afterwards.

Most recently we learned that the film has been accepted into the Heart of Gold International Film Festival in Gympie, Australia in March. We working on finding a way to get a few of us over there for that event.

The women also traveled to Decatur, Illinois recently for a screening of the film at a historic preservation event, and the film was shown in Tulsa, Oklahoma at the National Trust for Historic Preservation's annual conference and has been requested for a historic preservation event in Minnesota next spring.

For those of you in the Santa Fe area, I hope you'll add the film to your festival agenda. It's a fun film that always generates cheers and laughter and makes people feel pretty darned good about the human spirit--especially when it is packaged in seven women who are as charming as they are courageous.

Hope to see you there! Angela

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

We're Headed for Tacoma!

Greetings. We are delighted to report that our little film has been accepted into the Tacoma Film Festival and will screen Saturday, October 4th at 3:15 pm in the Tacoma Art Museum. If you're in the area, please do join us. We also managed an Honorable Mention at the Washougal International Film Festival in August and have had the privilege of screening at Breckenridge (where the film won the top audience award) and at the DC Independent Film Festival in Washington, DC.

In addition, the Salt Lake City Film Center is planning to present the film this fall. No promises, but some of the "girls" may come out for that event. We also hope to combine this screening with a panel discussion about the importance of historic preservation in communities. More details as they are available.

Our Courthouse Girls' ringleader, Eileen Herron, who fell at Breckenridge and broke her hip, is doing well. She's being very cautious but rumor has it she's been making some forays without a walker or a cane. We're hoping she'll be back at the bridge table soon. Ermel Gordon also had a mishap this summer. She fell down 17 steps in her house and broke her ankle but is on the mend.

And don't forget--the DVD is now for sale! Visit our Web site (http://www.courthousegirls.com/) to order or call 765-468-6958.

If you attend one of our screenings, please introduce yourself and let us know what you think of the film. If you are involved with historic preservation or work with seniors, let us know; we'd be happy to provide the film for one of your special events to help emphasize how important it is for people to get involved in their communities--whatever the cause.

All the best, Angela Soper (co-producer/co-writer and daughter of Miss October)

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Meme is Home and Doing Well

My mother, known to most of the world as Meme, is home from Colorado and doing well. She even chose to fly home, which is a major step for her given she is terrified of flying. Her friends who traveled to Breckenridge with her recently traveled to Ohio to support a local group's efforts to save their historic courthouse which is being threatened with demolition. They were, once again, a big hit and spent the afternoon signing their new calendar. They are inspirations wherever they go, proving that you are never too old to make a difference in your community.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Courthouse Girls Are Festival Favorite

Our weekend in Breckenridge was fantastic, with one not so fantastic part (more later). The "girls" were the hit of the festival and garnered smiles and conversations everywhere they went. The topper? The film received the first place Audience Award Sunday evening during the awards ceremony. Talk about excited women--and producers!

Now, about that not so fantastic part. My mother (and ring leader of the girls), Eileen Herron, fell opening night and broke her hip. However, she had surgery that night at the most amazing hospital any of us have ever seen and we were told the surgeon is one of the best orthopaedic surgeons in the country. They had her up the next day and she is doing great and will be returning to Farmland in about a week after she's had a little more time to heal and regain her strength. My sister, Anne, is staying with her and they will fly home. But my mother has one heck of a great attitude and although she was mad that it happened, she is dealing with it and she has shared the fun and excitement of having our film at the festival and winning this wonderful award. Most of all, she is so touched by the outpouring of support and love shown to her by all of the people in Breckenridge, especially the festival team.

We will have some new photos on the site asap from the festival.

Best, Angela