STEWART — Past East State Street and right off from US 50 East in a town not far from Athens city limits, a school from many years ago still stands — Rome-Canaan School, belonging to the Stewart community. In existence since 1897, the school started as just a two-room school building with a bell tower. Throughout the school years, more buildings have been added to it. By 1997, the school building became obsolete as the Federal-Hocking School District formed and shuffled students into new buildings.
By 2012, the Federal Valley Resource Center (FVRC) assumed ownership of the school building to operate as a community center and currently provides the community with a source of health, arts and education and a new activity to entertain the seniors’ group nearly every day of the week.
The Federal Valley Resource Center is at 8225 State Route 329, Stewart. One of the two original classrooms of the school building provides Stewart residents and neighboring residents with a source of musical encouragement and growth. Musical instrument rentals and music lessons, all organized by community center President and Program Director Therese Lackey.
The music room looks like a professional studio with the large spread of musical instruments from harps, violins, guitars to drums, speakers and music books, most of which have been donated by individuals or music stores such as Blue Eagle Music located on Court Street, Athens.
Lackey, who was a General Music teacher for 30 years, has a passion for music and her passion is evident in her commitment to the music room and her promotion for musical opportunities in the area. “I was teaching my students and those students were becoming music instructors who were teaching other students. What I realized is, what was needed the most was not necessarily more instructors but more instruments.”
Lackey describes the initial idea for the instrument rentals in the music room which she refers to as borrowing, and not renting because she does not charge for anyone to borrow an instrument and she doesn’t put too strict of a time limit on how long someone can keep the instrument. “Everyone, regardless of funds or anything else, should have an equal opportunity to explore music and the production of music. Putting a time limit on someone learning an instrument is not productive or feasible.”
Lackey says FVRC used to have a grant to provide free music lessons to the community and neighboring communities but that grant has since depleted. Music lessons are still currently offered weekly for a small charge which goes to pay the instructor.
The community center also holds bi-weekly Bluegrass jam sessions every second and fourth Sunday of the month in which anyone is invited to participate in creating music as a group effort or to just listen. These jam sessions take place in another room of the collaborative building, the auditorium.
The auditorium holds events such as concerts and community dances and can be rented out for a small fee. FVRC is a nonprofit, so any money that comes through whether it be from rentals or donations, is used to keep the center running and anyone on the board of the community center is strictly volunteer.
The facility can be rented out for anything, Lackey says there have even been weddings held there. Any room can be rented out and the other most common rented, besides the auditorium is the gym. The gym has been utilized by many groups in the community especially since the flooring has been replaced and other updates. Pickleball has been a consistent activity in the gym since the pickleball court was added.
Following the FVRC’s mission of supporting the community in health, arts, and education, the center also provides food distribution through their food pantry to all surrounding communities in Athens County from 11 a.m. to noon every Friday. The food pantry is next to the thrift store that provides the community a source of necessities at a low cost. The thrift store is open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. every Thursday through Saturday. The inventory is donations of gently used clothing, shoes and small household appliances. Income from the thrift store is another source of income for the Community Center but the main purpose is to provide the community with an affordable and local place to shop.
There is also a small library included in the center that can be accessed at any time during hours of operation and can also be rented. The newest update to the center is the exercise room with newer but also diverse exercise equipment to provide any age group the opportunity to better health. Lackey says they also have plans to add a large television to stream music or exercise instructional videos. This room is accessible to anyone free of charge. Yoga, stretching and various dance classes are offered for additional ways of promoting health and exercise.
For additional information, questions and lists of events, check out FVRC on Facebook or on their website: https://federalvalleyresourcecenter.org.
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