The Belt and Beyond | August 13th, 2015

22
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Chalk Walk Blazeatron:
A Tribute to Blaze Buskirk
Submitted By Gwen Thomas
On July 20th, nine days after his 23
birthday, the world lost one of the best
people one would ever have the pleasure
of knowing, Blaze Buskirk. I was lucky
enough to be one of those people as he
was a close friend. The news was heart
breaking and every where I went, I was taunted by the reminder that he
was gone. I would never have the chance to see him again. A day later,
we were blessed with a beautiful, red, yellow, orange and pink blazing
sky. Above that, a rainbow and the purest
white cloud. I was not the only one to see a
butterfly linger around for a moment, which is
commonly associated with the death of a loved
one. Other friends all in seperate places, also
had a comforting sign that Blaze was still with
us, and would always be with us. A few days
later his girlfriend Sterling Long and best friend
Cassie Farrell held a chalk memorial, "Chalk
Sterling Long (Blaze's
Girlfriend) and
Cassie Farrell (Blaze &
Sterling's best friend)
Walk Blazeatron", at the Portland, PA. walking
bridge for all his friends to "chalk up" the
bridge and celebrate the life he lived and the
impact he made on all of us. Everyone one was
welcome, strangers and friends alike came to decorate the bridge in
his honor. There was music played by his friends, chalk drawings above
the bridge, paint underneath it,
flowers lining the bridge and
some people even swam under
to the bridge piers to draw
more chalk memorials on the
piers themselves. Some chalk
memorial tributes stated "Blaze
it" "Fly high" and personal
messages demonstrating
Blaze Buskirk
Jeremy Smith and Tanner Oliver
inspiration and the impact his life had made upon everyone he met in
the best way someone can. It was truly an amazing example of unity,
love, freedom and celebration of his life. I don't think anyone truly
knows how much and how many people love them. He knows now. We
are all truly blessed to have held a place in his heart as he does in ours,
no matter how heavy that may be now. I think of him everyday and I
doubt that will change for any of his friends and family. He taught us to
love freely, and to be kind and
helpful to anyone and anything
when you have the chance, and
to live as wildly and beautifully
as you can. "I'll take the
beauty of my chaos over ugly
perfection." Live and love the
way that life suits you and live
it to the fullest and don't forget
to take the time to do so, life is
short for all of us.
Sterling Long (Blaze's Girlfriend)
Roi and the Secret People performed
Saturday, August 8th at Musikfest
Renowned for their exciting live
shows, Roi and the Secret People
(RSP) features the mesmerizing
voice of Mike Roi and the musical
talents of Craig Martyn on drums,
Jason Hedrington on Moog/Keys,
Glen Radomski on bass and Ed
Golden on Guitar. Roi, who hails
from South Florida, set out to
assemble a group of talented,
experienced, and like-minded
musicians to create the version of
Photo by Kevin Terry
rock music he was raised with. Armed with all original music, RSP has
played such renowned clubs as Rockwood Music Hall, Mercury Lounge
and Arlene’s Grocery in New York City and The World Live Cafe,The
Northstar Bar, The Tin Angel, and The Legendary Dobbs in Philadelphia.
RSP's first album, Dog St., includes a variety of tunes from the stunning,
haunting song, “Firefly,” to the balls-to-the- wall sound of the title track
“Dog St.” Their newly released 2nd album, Phoenix, blends Roi’s pop
sensibilities with an alternative rock twist mired in sounds from the likes
of Nick Lowe to Tom Petty. Roi has been known to say that all he needs
is a good bottle of bourbon, a good cigar, and a guitar to create the
kind of true-blue, sexy, and salt-of-the earth music that has captivated
audiences in up and down the Eastern seaboard. Eclectic, diverse, and
thoroughly original, RSP is a band that combines a classic alt/rock vibe
with a lyrical, wholly unique sound.
Karen (Shoemaker)
Katchur, a Bangor
graduate (Class of
1987) released her
book "The Secrets of
Lake Road" and held
a book signing at the
Moravian Book Shop
and Gift Gallery. Karen
pictured with her
family, husband Phillip
and daughters Annika
and Natasha.
Photo by Kris Ordinsky-Parks