This new website is a wonderful opportunity to bring serious issues directly from the trenches to the public’s attention. As a dedicated arts advocate, K-12 English & Theater teacher, educational theater scholar/practitioner, and actor, I am committed to raising awareness of how The Arts rejuvenate. The Arts Restore. The Arts are our supernatural gift. It is the force that unites us as a single, breathing, living entity that connects every human being to be all that is good and pure.
Perceived as an amenity The Arts continue to be slashed from federal, state, and community budgets. To offset this spiraling trend, I’ve created a blog/talk show First Online With Fran to give sustainable national attention to The Arts by inviting guests from all walks of life – ordinary people who are doing extraordinary things to make The Arts the fabric of our existence. Through the facilitation of this site people can share their stories on how The Arts transformed their lives and why we have a responsibility to insure The Arts will continue to be a staple of our humanity. Bring it on!!
First Online with Fran 
Well I for one know that the arts have SAVED my life. Growing up in Harlem is the 70’s wasn’t exactly a picnic and so the chance to attend one of the most revered high schools in New York, The High School of Music & Art, was not only a dream come true but an eye-opening experience. It was my first time being exposed to students from all walks and not just the neighborhood. It truly was the most wonderful experience of my young life. I still have so many friends from M&A – we were and are a very special group. I studied voice and somehow, all these years, always managed (while holding a professional job) to be in band, or a jazz trio, or to coach, or be an inspiration. I perform cabaret in the city and have recently inspired a few old classmates to get back on stage! While live music, esp live jazz, has taken a bit of a beating, there is nothing like being on stage and doing a show. Not just singing at a bar or restaurant – I mean booking a room and giving a show. Rehearsal is therapy. Sending out invites and “save-the-date” cards is so exciting. The anticipation of showtime. It’s just the greatest feeling in the world. I perform at one particular venue several times a year and my “following” know what to expect when they get that invite: a show they’ll never forget. It’s my gift to myself as well as to my audience when i hit that first note. I wish there was more time and money to do it more often. Like I said live music is a tough sell these days. But I take what I can get gladly and with such pride.
This is exactly what people need to hear! Keith Johnston,Director of the College/Adult Program at The Creative Arts Team, shared similar sentiments in his First Online With Fran interview. I would like to include your blog as Testimonial #17. Go to http://www.francesmcgarry.com/p/interviews-testimonials.html! Please add your occupation/title so that people can see how exposure to the arts transcends across careers. I have been an ardent supporter of the arts both as a K-12 English & Theater teacher, educational theater scholar, and now actor. You can read more at http://www.francesmcgarry.com
Please follow my First Online With Fran blog and encourage your friends and colleagues to make their voices be heard. The more attention The Arts receives the more we can raise awareness of its effect on us as a people and as a nation! Let’s make First Online With Fran the voice of those ordinary people doing extraordianary things in The Arts!