The Cranston Hall of Fame Foundation Inc. has announced its five inductees for the 2010 calendar year. This is the 31st induction class for the local, non-profit Foundation established in 1980. The Cranston Hall of Fame Foundation was created to recognize graduates of the Cranston public school system who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in their chosen field and have distinguished themselves in their community and beyond.

Each year, the Foundation’s Permanent Selection Committee selects five worthy candidates from a large pool of qualified applicants. This year the Foundation is pleased to announce its 2010 inductees who reflect its honored tradition of excellence in the fields of business, government, education and law. The five inductees into the Cranston Hall of Fame for 2010 are:

• Mr. David A. Conary of Bryant Pond, Maine: investment/securities executive, business entrepreneur, poet.

• Mr. Dennis N. DiSano of Aiken S.C.: educator, music program director, professional musician and performer.

• Mr. Stephen L. Gordon of Cumberland: educator, residential camp director, over four decades coaching and youth mentor.

• Mr. Edmund A. Lamagna, PhD. of Cranston: Professor and Departmental Chair URI computer sciences, author, visiting professor.

• Mr. Anthony J. Natale, Esq. of South Glastonbury, Conn.: senior partner, Fellow of Connecticut Bar Foundation, noted litigator personal injury law.

The induction ceremony and dinner is scheduled for the evening of Oct. 15 at the West Valley Inn in West Warwick. Tickets are $35 per person and may be ordered from the Foundation by calling Ann Votatile, secretary, at 942-9308.

Foundation President Frank Del Santo noted that, “Each year our induction event is a memorable one for family, friends and most especially for the new members of the Cranston Hall of Fame. I am certain that the 2010 induction dinner will be no exception and I hope that many friends and family members of the inductees will join us for this wonderful evening.”

How do you get people who don’t speak English to come to the library?

That is the primary question on Josefina Callendar’s mind.

“This community does not know of the free services provided, the welcoming atmosphere, the kids’ programs, etc. We are not used to thinking in how to attract this community,” she said.

Callendar feels that once the ESL community is exposed to the library, and all the services it provides for free, they will be hooked.

A native of Argentina, she attended a bilingual school growing up. From 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. they worked and studied in English, then from 1 to 5 pm., they did the same in Spanish. It was a full immersion school.

Callendar is educated in Spanish, English, French and German. French was an elective language in elementary school, and she studied it in grades four and five. Learning German was a personal interest, and she borrowed the book from her high school teacher and taught herself.

By this time her family was living in Westchester County, N.Y.

Callendar has been running story times for the past 10 years, focusing on childhood literacy. She was first made aware of the state’s libraries when she had her daughter, as her native country did not have a public library system.

A long-term substitute for the Wheeler School in Providence, at the middle and high school levels, she actually designed a special high school course for Spanish speaking students.

“It is important for native speakers to learn Spanish in school,” she said.

Four years ago she started volunteering at the Rochambeau Branch of the Providence Library.

“It is a place for English and Spanish speaking kids to come together,” she said. She holds a story time there every Wednesday.

Last Tuesday, she brought her talents, stories and music to the Knightsville Library Branch.

Passing out colored “eggs” to all the children, she told them to use them as musical shakers, for they were filled with beads to make noise.

All her songs and stories were told in English and Spanish. The children were able to understand the Spanish stories based on Callendar’s facial expressions, the inflection in her voice, and the pictures in the books.

The first song was about counting in Spanish, which most of the children could already do up to number 10.

She then went into a Spanish song, naming different objects in the room, singing about them first in Spanish then translating to English.

She went around the room with her “guitarra” or guitar, singing, asking the children their names, then singing it in Spanish.

Callendar taught the children to sing “Itsy Bitsy Spider” in Spanish. She also taught them how to play “Diego Dice” or Simon Says in Spanish.

Callendar told the story of when the Spanish settlers first came to South America looking for gold in Peru and Argentina and how they brought musical instruments with them. The natives were fascinated by them, and wanted similar instruments for themselves.

They fashioned their own style of a guitar out of an armadillo shell, and it is called a “charango,” and they use it to play Andian music.

At the end of the program, she sang a Spanish lullaby to a sleeping baby, and it seemed to quiet and sooth all the children, just in time to go home.

Under bright sunshine, and a cool breeze, members of the Cranston Chamber of Commerce joined with staff and residents of Cedar Crest Nursing & Rehabilitation Centre to celebrate the dedication of their healing garden and their 40th birthday.

Cedar Crest first opened in August 1970 as a family owned business. Second generation administrator Susan Pezzelli Whipple runs the facility. The family also owns and operates Golden Crest Nursing Centre in North Providence, and Woonsocket Health & Rehab Centre in Woonsocket.

The turnover at Cedar Crest is significant, as their main focus is rehabilitation. Their goal, throughout the year, is to put their more than 1,000 patients who are admitted each year back into their communities.

Whipple explained the purpose of the healing garden “as a place of tranquility, where patients can find peace. The tree is symbolic of strength; strength to heal, cope, and care.”

Mayor Allan Fung spoke highly of Whipple and her facility during the dedication ceremonies. He presented her with a citation from the city.

After the dedication, everyone went inside to enjoy the theme of the evening; “the 1970s.” Much of Cedar Crest staff was dressed in “groovy” costumes for the occasion.

The Cranston Chamber of Commerce paired their Business After Hours program with Cedar Crest to highlight both organizations’ dedication to the community.

During the reception, a looping video played clips from famous TV shows and movies of the 1970s.

Whipple spoke to the crowd, telling of Cedar Crest’s history. She remembers the first staff at Cedar Crest wearing white hats and starched white uniforms.

In 1990 Whipple took over the dementia/Alzheimer’s special care units.

“It was important they become secure and caring environments,” she said.

Significant changes were made to insurance plans in 1995, shortening hospital stays and decreasing payments. This lead to increases in the rehabilitation industry. Cedar Crest increased staffing, education and technology.

Cedar Crest provides their own in-house therapy services, which allows patients to heal quicker, and patients receive individual treatment services.

“We are always adding new technology and services in order to meet requirements,” Whipple said.

Cedar Crest partners with several nursing schools in the state. The students come to do clinical rotations.

Whipple spoke of the newest program Cedar Crest offers, “Cedar Home Care,” which allows patients to continue recovery at home after they have been discharged.

Another new practice they have implemented is a computer on wheels.

“This allows for assessments and documentation to be done efficiently, and quicker. Allowing more patient interaction time, and less paperwork,” Whipple told the crowd.

Whipple thanked her staff for “all their hard work and dedication. They are so talented and so very special.”