Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 30, 1993 TAG: 9304290144
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Donna Alvis-Banks
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
English children of the 1800s celebrated the day by dancing around a pole decorated with hawthorn blossoms.
How will you celebrate the May Day?
Montgomery County chapters of the Friends of the Library are putting on a "May Day Extravaganza" Saturday at the headquarters library on Sheltman Street in Christiansburg. This is the first of what organizers hope will be an annual event.
The day features arts and crafts, bake sales and lots of children's activities, including story times and visits with Smokey the Bear and Sparky the Fire Dog. Of course, the May pole will be set up on the lawn, too.
The Friends will be selling raffle tickets - for $1 - for some nice items donated by local artisans. Up for grabs are decorative flags, jewelry, ceramic pieces - even Ukrainian eggs.
WKEX will do a live broadcast from the library from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Radio personalities will be handing out prizes and treats.
Saturday's celebration runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. All proceeds from sales during the day will go to the annual Summer Reading Program for the Blacksburg and Christiansburg libraries. The program provides incentives for children to read during the summer.
\ A JOYFUL NOISE: Five well-known gospel groups will perform tonight and Saturday at 7 in the Christiansburg High School Auditorium. It's the Martin Family's Homecoming '93 gospel sing.
The Martin Family of Christiansburg has been performing professionally for the past seven years. The group, led by Robert and Brenda Martin, will sing its latest release, "Carry On."
Robert Martin said he planned this weekend's event last year when his group attended a big gospel convention in Nashville. Each year 400 to 500 groups converge on the country music capital for this convention, he said.
The Martins persuaded four big-name groups to join them for the local concert.
Performing tonight are The McGruders and The Southern Statesmen. The McGruders, of Arkansas, are best known for "Go to the Master," a song that topped the gospel music charts. The Southern Statesmen, an all-male quartet from Roanoke, sing the older hymns in four-part harmony.
On Saturday, The Spencers and The Perry Sisters will join the Martins. The Spencers, a family trio from Mansfield, Ohio, are up front on the gospel charts with their song, "Let's Meet by the River." The group records on its own label, Peaceful Stream Music.
"They Can't Start the Celebration" is the song gospel fans call to mind when The Perry Sisters are mentioned. The trio is from West Virginia.
Martin said local fans can expect a good mix of gospel music at this weekend's concerts.
"Styles range from upbeat to traditional," he noted.
Tickets for both nights are $12 in advance. Advance tickets for either night are $7. They are available at Blue Ridge Heating & Air in Christiansburg and at WBLB in Pulaski.
Admission at the door both nights is $8.
\ PLAY ON WORDS: "Saving Grace" is the current production by the Giles Little Theatre. The comedy focuses on a woman named Grace, played by Amy Schetselaar of Narrows, who finds herself knee-deep in trouble one night with a telephone repairman, her boss, her kooky sister and a Russian evangelist.
Al Katz of Pearisburg is directing the play. Katz has been involved with the community theater group since it was formed in 1965. Over the years, the group has put on productions of "Never Too Late," "Mousetrap," "One Toe in the Grave," "Plaza Suite" and "Prisoner of Second Avenue," to name a few. Last year's production was "Who Am I This Time?"
"Saving Grace" is a Jack Sharkey play. Other cast members in the Giles Little Theatre production are Elsie McCombs, Victor Kuehn, Paul Stubbs and Eric Zimmerman.
Show time tonight and Saturday is at 8 in Pearisburg's King Johnston School Auditorium. Shows continue May 7 and 8.
Admission is $4.50 for adults or $2.50 for students and senior citizens. Tickets are available at the door.
\ MAY COMES IN LIKE A LION: On Saturday, the Christiansburg Lions Club will have is spring crafts show from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Christiansburg National Guard Armory. More than 35 booths will be set up for local exhibitors to show and sell handmade items.
In addition, the Lions Club will award door prizes throughout the day and have concessions available for browsers and buyers.
Admission to the crafts show is free.
Meanwhile, in Blacksburg, members of the Blacksburg Host Lions Club are preparing for their annual sale of light bulbs, brooms and mops. The sale begins Monday.
Proceeds from sales conducted by all Lions Club members are used to further the club's mission of sight preservation.
For information on the crafts show in Christiansburg, call Rodd Hall at 231-3604.
In Blacksburg, the contacts are W.A. Blackwell at 552-4043 or Matthew Glasgow at 552-3111.
\ WHAT A GUY! Babe Ruth's slugging power made him baseball's biggest star in the 1920s, but the real shine was his personality.
Born in 1895 in Baltimore, Ruth was raised at St. Mary's Industrial School in that city after his parents abandoned him. One of his teachers recognized his skill as a baseball player and helped him start his career in 1914.
Ruth broke all the records of the day, including his 714 regular-season home runs. He hit 60 home runs during one 154-game season.
In 1936, Ruth was named to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1948, the Babe died of cancer.
On Saturday, the Wal-Mart store at the Marketplace Shopping Center in Christiansburg will bring the traveling Babe Ruth Memorabilia Museum to town. The exhibit offers facts about the great baseball player's career and some insight into his life.
The display will run from 1 to 5 p.m. and admission is free.
by CNB