Restored ceramics room breaks mold for seniors

The basement ceramics studio at the Springfield Community Center has re-opened after being shut down last December for eight months of building repairs.
http://eagletimes.villagesoup.com/p/restored-ceramics-room-breaks-mold-for-seniors/1412898

Restored ceramics room breaks mold for seniors By ALLAN STEIN | Sep 18, 2015 Photo by: Allan Stein Springfield Senior Center Director Terri Emerson and Parks and Recreation Director Andrew Bladyka marvel at the recently re-opened ceramics studio for seniors. Some of the new concrete support columns, called pilasters, can be seen against the wall. SPRINGFIELD — Springfield Senior Center Director Terri Emerson is a kiln-fired cup-half-full kind of person. "You know how they say good things always come from bad things?" Emerson asked. Well, the same thing was true when the basement ceramics studio at the Springfield Community Center shut down in December for eight months of building repairs, she said. On Monday, the studio finally reopened to the public — roomier, brighter, better equipped, and with seniors smiling happier than ever. "They are very happy that it happened. They say this is a good thing," Emerson said. The renovated ceramics studio was the final piece of an emergency project to install new concrete support pilasters within the 127-year-old community center building at 139 Main St. The pilaster is an architectural element used in older building construction used to give the appearance of a supporting column, though its function is largely ornamental. For years, community center officials lamented the building's weakened foundation and its tendency to shake and vibrate from each passing big-rig truck along Main Street. A structural engineer examined the crumbling pilasters last year and recommended the project be made a priority. In late July, All Seasons Construction of Springfield finished replacing all 10 brick-and-mortar pilasters at a town cost of $93,712. Andrew Bladyka, director of the Springfield Parks and Recreation Department, said a former studio partition has been removed, creating more space for ceramics classes. "You had to see the old ceramics room to see how much it has improved," Emerson said. "This looks so great." Emerson said a number of people volunteered their help painting floors, walls, shelves, and moving furniture and equipment. Ceramics instructor Cathy Buskey designed the new space with the help of Phil Drinker, a carpenter, Senior Center member Denis Menard, also a carpenter, Don Gray, Bill Buskey, Christina St. Sauveur. Keith Eno, Rick Johnson, and Kirk Perham also donated hours of their labor. The new studio features two large work tables for about 20 students. The shelves are stocked with clay molds and plastic bottles of paint and glaze for seniors to use and experiment with. A pair of electric-fired kilns are tucked away in a back room, unseen from the main studio area. Emerson said the new ceramics studio looks like - a ceramics studio. "As I said, something good — actually something great — came out of something that we all felt bad about," she said.