Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2001 9:19 PM
To: Rina Saperstein Cc: james.crockerlakness@uc.edu
Subject: Folk Dance Announcement The International Folkdancers of Cincinnati have a new home!

Starting Saturday, December 1, 2001, we will be dancing in the Maitri Center in The Lodge, 4120 Hamilton Avenue in Northside. The Lodge takes its name from the Masonic Lodge which had its home in this elegant old Victorian, the ground floor of which still houses the Cumminsville Post Office. Its owner, Maureen Wood, has restored the building to much of its former beauty while creating multiple spaces for "healing, performing and movement arts." The Maitri Center, on the third floor of The Lodge, is an ideal dance space. Not only is the atmosphere calm and beautiful: the room is large and open, with a suspended wood floor, an excellent sound system (which we are free to use when we do not need the variable-speed feature on our tape-player), good heating and ventilation, and a locked space where we can leave our equipment, as well as an adjacent refreshment room for parties and a play space for the kids. The Lodge easy to get to (especially for the dozen or so members of the group who live in Northside!): it is on several major bus lines and, at the juncture of I-75 and I-74, has convenient access from the freeways. (See below for directions and a map). There's no Papa Dino's, alas, but there are numerous small coffee houses and restaurants in Northside within walking distance of The Lodge. In addition, this space offers us numerous advantages over our old home at the University Y. Parking is readily available, both on-street around the building and (we expect) behind the Northside Bank across the street from The Lodge. For the bargain price of $36 per week, we get not only the dance space but a voice-mail box on the Lodge's system at 541-0500, and inclusion on The Lodge's website and flyers, as well as having places in the building to display our own flyers. Better, this space belongs to us absolutely from 8 PM to Whenever every Saturday night: no more being bumped, with or without notice, by other events. No more worry about future plans which might displace us. The committee that approved this change (Jim Crocker-Lakness, Eileen Cooper, Kate Spencer, Doug Morriss, Mary Mischenko, Edith Starbuck, and Terrill Silva) has agreed to sign one-month contracts for three months, as a trial period; at the end of that period, subject to approval by the group, we will sign a one-year contract. There will be a few changes in this new space. Because the price is a little higher than we have been paying at the Y, the standard donation will now be $4 per person, though anyone who cannot afford the price will (as always) be asked merely to put in what they can afford. Because the floor has been newly refinished, it is important to use non-street shoes (or at least clean soft-soled shoes) for dancing. We may bring food and drink, but they must stay in the refreshment room. To inaugurate our tenure in this beautiful new space, we would like to have a party on December 1. Bring some food or drink to share; wear something festive; bring your dancing shoes, and come enjoy our new space. Announcement: Beginning Folk Dance class. Eric Bendix has agreed to teach a beginners' class on January 26, 2002, for the first hour of the session. Let your friends know! Directions from I-75 (S or N): take the exit to I-74, and then the first exit off I-74, "Spring Grove" (exit 19). At the bottom of the exit ramp, take the center lane, and go straight across the intersection. This looks like a little dead-end street to nowhere, but fear not. In two blocks, you will intersect Spring Grove. Turn LEFT. The next light is Hamilton Avenue, where you will turn LEFT again. The Lodge is a block and a half up on the right. Landmarks: on the left, look for the park, and then the Northside Bank across the street. The post office is one door north of The Lodge. The street door will be open; just climb up to the third floor.