The Lights Are on at the New Deal Cafe

If you’ve dropped by the this week, you may have noticed the new stage lights. But what you may not know is how much community it took to get them turned on.

They are the fruition of a specially-marked gift of $1000 to Friends of the New Deal Café Arts or FONDCA from an anonymous donor. Once the lights were purchased, the donations kept coming, as an almost all volunteer team worked to install the lighting.

Amethyst Dwyer led the effort from the beginning, figuring out the design and using the services of an out-of-town friend, Mark Zucker. Rob Baluch performed the significant electrical work, volunteer Karl Gary, standing 6’4,” attached the electrical boxes and the lights to the ceiling, while Dorian Winterfeld supported the installation and MacGyvered a way for the lights and the controller to work together.

The new lights fill the stage with brightness and color effects, which can be dimmed or brightened. But if Winterfeld works some more magic, the café may one day pulse with disco lighting.

Commenting on the team effort that went into it, Ed James, New Deal Café board member, responded “It’s a co-op,” explaining the basic nature of a co-op is a team of people coming together with common goals.

Terri Rutledge, New Deal Café general manager, oversaw the project as it was going on Friday and Saturday, and said the effort by the  team, who got the lights operational, was pretty typical of how things can happen at the New Deal Café.