OrmondBeachObserver.com
ORMOND BEACH OBSERVER
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THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2022
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Fourth-annual Holly Hill Arts Festival coming March 26-27 The weekend festival is the brainchild of Ormond Beach residents Pat Abernathy and Dr. Pam Fieldus. ASSOCIATE EDITOR
is the brainchild of Ormond Beach residents Pat Abernathy and Dr. Pam Fieldus. The idea for an art festival came to Abernathy while she was at a classic car show in Holly Hill and heard a children’s orchestra playing “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Upon her discovery that the children in the
Suzanne Ayala lets her medium dictate her art. As a glass artist since the late 1970s, she pays close attention to her torch. She’s only gotten burned once, and she’s never going to make that mistake again. When she’s ready to begin, she takes a bar of borosilicate glass and cuts off the portion she needs to work. For about the next 20 minutes, she works it back and forth until it is red and glowing. “I don’t feel like fighting anything with the glass,” Ayala said. “I let things go and let it fall whatever way it wants to. I really like that a lot.” Ayala, of Daytona Beach, is one of 70 artists who will be showcasing their work at the fourth-annual Holly Hill Arts Festival at Holly Hill City Hall on Saturday and Sunday, March 26 and 27. The festival features local, regional and national artists and it
“Swimming Turtles” by Suzanne Ayala. All of her pieces are unique; she said she never does the same thing twice.
JARLEENE ALMENAS
“Memories” by Nick Alexiades, of Mascotte. Alexiades is one of the 70 artists participating in the Holly Hill Arts Festival.
“Green Spring Path” by Alan Gessinger, of New Smyrna Beach. Gessinger is one of the 70 artists in the Holly Hill Arts Festival
orchestra lacked funds for instruments, she decided to find a way to help. Abernathy spoke to Fieldus, and they decided to use their combined decades of experience volunteering for the Halifax Art Festival in Daytona Beach to help children in Holly Hill. This resulted in the creation of Helping Hands Thru Arts, which supports fundraising through arts for local needs, in January 2019. Aside from the juried artists, this year’s festival will also have crafters and a student art exhibit, featuring art from students at the Holly Hill School, UBIC Academy and the Rossmeyer Family Holly Hill Boys and Girls Club. There will also be lots of festival food, including barbecue from Fraze’s Scratch Cookin’. “It’s a wonderful family-friendly event,” Abernathy said. “You can bring the kids because we’ve got the student art. Dad is going to be happy because we have the barbecue. Mom is going to be happy because she can shop jewelry and art and whatever — there’s something for everybody.” This will be Ayala’s second year
LOCAL Former Mrs. Ormond Beach on ‘The Real Housewives of Orlando’ EVENTS Leesa Marie Benz used her Marilyn Monroe impression to land on the Bravo show. JULIA AMBROSE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Leesa Marie Benz, a Marilyn Monroe tribute artist who lives in Halifax Plantation, has been cast in the upcoming season of “The Real Housewives of Orlando,” to air this summer on Bravo. Benz was first discovered in 1995, on Marilyn Monroe’s birthday, June 1. A look-alike competition was being held to promote the new Marilyn Monroe postage stamp, and she was encouraged to enter the contest. “I had three months to get ready,” she said. “So I really had to study her. I had a strong resemblance to her,
Courtesy photo
LEESA MARIE BENZ’S BEAUTY TIPS Get lots of sleep Drink lots of water Never leave the house without lipstick.
and then with tweaking the makeup and the hair, and getting clothes, old vintage clothes, it just kind of all came together.” After Benz’s Marilyn debut, she went on to win Mrs. Ormond Beach 1999 and Mrs. Daytona Beach 2000. One of the photographers she was working with then kept in touch and informed her, years later, of the audition for “The Real Housewives of Orlando.” She was apprehensive. She recalls telling him, “I don’t even live in Orlando, and I’m not a housewife anymore.” He responded, “You’re going to be perfect for this.” After the casting in November 2021, she landed a position on the show. Through the filming process, Benz has learned what it takes to be on a professionally made show, which requires about 30 hours of filming for a 20-minute episode. Patience was “truly a virtue” for her as she would film for eight hours a day. She describes the experience as “once in a lifetime” and although there might be a little bit of TV drama on the show, it is all part of the fun. In order to be “Marilyn ready,” Benz takes her time in the morning after getting plenty of sleep. When watching “The Real Housewives of Orlando,” she said, there will be a lot of jaw dropping moments, with participants talking about each other behind their backs, but the cast says a prayer before filming to keep a positive environment. The filming feels authentic, she said, because the director places actors in a setting and allows them to simply start a conversation. The mansions and sets she is working in makes her feel like “a million bucks for a day,” she said, and she hopes that this opportunity leads right into the next adventure.
THURSDAY, MARCH 10
HALIFAX GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY MONTHLY MEETING When: 1:30 p.m. Where: Ormond Beach Regional Library auditorium, 30 S. Beach St. Details: Paul Howes will present: “The Joy of Surnames.” Learn about the origin and meaning of surnames, followed by a talk on “Basic Concepts in Genealogy” for the novice genealogist. Free.
SATURDAY, MARCH 12
SHINING STARS PAGEANT AND TALENT SHOW When: 12:30 p.m. Where: Ormond Beach Performing Arts Center, 399 N. US. 1 Details: See this showcase of talent and beauty for the special needs community, where everyone is a star. Free to all participants; $5 general admission on the day of the show. Contact Lori Koplin for more information at 386-677-3252 or email Lori.Koplin@ormondbeach. org. The PAC’s box office is open Tuesday-Friday from noon to 5 p.m. Tickets can also be purchased online at ormondbeach.org/PAC GARDEN CLUB’S ANNUAL FLOWER SHOW AND TEA When: 1-3:30 p.m. Where: The Casements, 25 Riverside Drive Details: Join the Ormond Beach Garden Club for its annual flower show and tea. This year’s theme is: “Walking the Garden Path.” Admission costs $7. See a flower arrangement demonstration, and peruse arrangements and jewelry for sale. Visit www.facebook.com/RockfellerGardens ‘GENEALOGY IN THE LIBRARY’ PROGRAM When: 1-4 p.m. Where: Meeting Room 3 of the
participating in the festival. She had a wonderful time last year and sold some of her pieces. Feedback from festivalgoers was good too, she said. “Especially since I’m making the tall pieces now,” Ayala said. “... And they’re beautiful. They look so elegant.” Ayala uses rocks, such as coquina or volcanic rocks, as her base. Her glass art usually depicts blades of grass or weeds with animals such as fish, turtles and birds. All of her pieces are unique, since she doesn’t begin working with a specific idea in mind. “To me, I like everything to be different,” she said. “I don’t want any of them looking the same way.” Last year’s festival was held at Sunrise Park, but that is currently undergoing the construction of a new seawall, so it was moved to Holly Hill City Hall, where it was held in 2019. Abernathy said she actually prefers City Hall’s lawn, as it makes setting up the student art exhibit a little easier. “My business partner and I, we really believe in children’s art,” Abernathy said. “We really believe that’s a
Ormond Beach Regional Library, 30 S. Beach St. Details: Join Halifax Genealogical Society volunteers for this free, one-on-one research assistance program open to anyone interested in researching family history. To register, contact halifaxgensociety@ gmail.com
SUNDAY, MARCH 13
SINATRA THE MUSICAL When: 2:30 p.m. Where: Ormond Beach Performing Arts Center, 399 N. US. 1 Details: See this multimedia tribute to Frank Sinatra, starring Tony Sands. Tickets cost $25. The PAC’s box office is open Tuesday-Friday from noon to 5 p.m. Tickets can also be purchased online at ormondbeach.org/PAC FROM SHRIMP TO SHARKS When: 3-4 p.m. Where: Anderson-Price Memorial Building, 42 N. Beach St. Details: Listen to Chad McFie, manager of the Marine Science Center, as he discusses how a healthy Indian River Lagoon depends on thousands of organisms, and in turn they rely on clean water for survival.
MONDAY, MARCH 14
RACING FINGERS QUILT GUILD MEETING When: 6:30 p.m. Where: Seabreeze United Church of Christ, 501 N. Wild Ave. Details: The next Racing Fingers Quilt Guild meeting will feature tips on how to cut, piece and press and accurate quilt block. Free and open to the public. Please park behind the church and enter via the kitchen door. Sit ‘n Sew will take place on Tuesday, March 15, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the church. Bring your own sewing machine. Visit racingfingersquiltguild.com
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16
COUNCIL ON AGING PRESENTS: ‘THE FIVE WISHES’ When: 1 p.m. Where: Ormond Beach Senior Cen-
HOLLY HILL ARTS FESTIVAL When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, March 26; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, March 27 Where: Holly Hill City Hall, 1065 Ridgewood Ave. Details: Featuring 70 juried fine artists at Holly Hill City Hall’s front lawn, this familyfriendly festival will have crafters, a student art exhibit, festival food and barbecue. It’s presented by Helping Hands Thru Arts in partnership with the city of Holly Hill. Visit HollyHillArtsFestival.com
strong foundation.” Abernathy said the leadership of the city of Holly Hill are also supportive of the festival. “There just isn’t a better place in the city, in the area, to have an event because they are so helpful,” she said. “They’re problem-solvers. They are partners.”
ter, 351 Andrews St. Details: Join the Council on Aging at the Ormond Beach Senior for a Halifax Health presentation on “The Five Wishes.” The discussion will focus on living wills and durable power of attorney. Topics include: choosing the right person to be your health care agent, medical treatment preferences, and personal, spiritual and emotional wishes. There will be a Q+A period. Free and open to the public. Call 386-253-4700, ext. 250 to reserve a space.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23
FELTED SOAP WORKSHOP IN THE GARDENS When: 1:30-3 p.m. Where: Ormond Memorial Art Museum gardens, 78 E. Granada Blvd. Details: Artist Liz Canali will lead this one-day outdoor workshop where students will learn the process of felting to create a useful soap and washcloth combo that is as fun to use as it is to gift to others. Costs $20 for museum members; $22 for future members and includes most supplies. Students should bring two or three bars of soap and three hand towels to the workshop. The towels will be used in the felting process and do not need to be new. Program open to ages 16 and older. Meet outside the Emmons Cottage at the southeast corner of the gardens. Deadline to register is March 16. Visit https://bit. ly/36MANVM
ONGOING
WHIMSY MEETS GEOMETRY: ABSTRACT SCULPTURES AND PAINTINGS When: Through March 18 Where: News-Journal Center Fine Art Gallery, 221 N. Beach St. Details: Cheri Erdman and Frederick Goldstein offer the viewer an informed experience of abstraction through this exhibition. Open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free and open to the public. Exhibition curated by Stacey Fletcher Reynolds.
