Susan Rushton commentary: Rummage, radio, stars, birthday, trumpets, hoopla, art

Joyce Silva is in charge of the First Congregational Church's Best Little Rummage sale in Auburn, 4-8 p.m. Thursday, June 15; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, June 16; 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 17. Donations accepted June 4 through noon June 14. The church address: 710 Auburn Ravine Road, Auburn. For information: 530-885-9087. My recommendation: Go early. Joyce has made it clear she adores organizing this event. Personally, I don't understand it ... but that's because I'm not an organizer. For some reason, she loves it and wants to do more. More power to her! ... And speaking of the Congregational Church, Don and I attended the State Theatre Acting Company's first Golden Age Radio production of the year on May 20. We left the house early enough – I was convinced we'd be some of the first to arrive. To my surprise and delight, I was wrong – we saw lots of cars and a nice audience gathered and waiting and chatting. I love it when events I like fill up quickly. We sat with our friends Marsha Porte and her lovely standard poodle Susie. Marsha is enamored with the stars, and she has taught about them several times at the Senior Center. The theme: "So You Want to See What's Up in the Sky?" (I know the answer: "Everything!") If you're interested, call the Center: 530-823-8172. I also bumped into Fairy Fran Haynes, who was reading about herself in my column to Raenel Toste and Rita Paiz. The focus – her birthday party the next day. "I wanted to be a good example to others getting older," she said. ... She certainly was. Her party, held at the Auburn Art Park at the corner of Lewis and High – where all the umbrellas are hanging – was, to nobody's surprise, packed. My goodness, what a kick. A beautiful day, and lots of people I recognized and lots I didn't. Of course, fairies were everywhere. I chatted with Jeanne Bisbano and Jack Hargace, Hortie Davis, Chip Perley and Linda Robinson, Dean Prigmore and Patrice Taylor, Liz Honeycutt, Colleen Conley and Marsha Dolkas, who is retired from teaching English at EV Cain, and Eric Peach. Linda wanted me to know she's looking for a smallish place in Old Town to set up business again – she misses selling wonderful clothes. I'm convinced I can't help her, but I'm convinced I'd meander quite often into that smallish place if she found one. Good luck, Linda. Lots more people at this spot, for heaven's sake, but I didn't know everyone. Happy birthday, Fran. ... But before I reached that party, I meandered across the street from City Hall to the stairs leading up to Odd Fellows Hall. Mainly because I heard a young man playing the "Pink Panther" theme on a trumpet. This was a fundraiser meant to beautify the EV Cain campus, hosted by J Ross Parrelli and Jim Kepfer. As I stood near the door and stairs, kids and more kids arrived, joined by their parents. How cool, I thought. This thing was attracting the very people who would be interested. Delightful. Turns out there were two trumpet players at the door: Levi Lovett, who told me he's "trying to get into music," and Nico Grossman, who grinned, "The trumpet's my hobby. I'm good at it." And people keep telling me schools no longer teach music. Don't think that's true in Auburn. Thank goodness. ... I recently went into Rutherford Reserve, 853 Lincoln Way, Suite #110 (at the corner of Lincoln Way and Hillmont) to get more shampoo, and Karrie – it's her store – shared she's going to have "Hoopla in July." She's celebrating 20 years of selling her handcrafted products and celebrating the ownership of her store for three years. Drop by on the first weekend in July. I think what she's doing is fabulous. Good for her! ... I recently supported the Placer Artists Tour. And if you think it's a good idea to support this bunch of local artists, why don't you join me? Investigate placerartiststour.org and apply to be a sponsor. I'm convinced the more art and artists we have in this area the better, and the more available art is, the better ... and the prouder we can be. ... Two events I'm deeply involved in are coming up next week. I get to promote Silver Screen (auburnsilverscreen.com) on Cruise Nite, 5-9 p.m. Friday, June 9 on Lincoln Way. I'll be across the street from the Auburn Promenade and the Auburn Big Band. Come say hi! And the next day, Saturday, June 10, I'll be promoting the movies again at FAM Fest 2023, 3-7 p.m. at the Auburn Library Garden Amphitheatre, 350 Nevada St. It's a three-way fundraiser: for Auburn's Senior Center, the restoration of the historic DeWitt Theatre multi-use community center, and the Auburn Winds Concert and jazz big band. FAM stands for Family, Art and Music. The cost to attend is $10. For information, contact Creative Music Services at cms@wizwire.com or 530-613-9440. ... That's my town. Got any items for me? Email me at goldcountrydenizens@gmail.com.